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Rudolf caracciola
1. Rudolf Caracciola
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Rudolf Caracciola
Caracciola (seated) with his first wife Charlotte at a race
in 1931.
Nationality German
30 January 1901
Born
Remagen, Germany
28 September 1959 (aged 58)
Died
Kassel, Germany
Retired 1952
European Championship
Years active 1931–1932, 1935–1939
Mercedes-Benz (1931, 1935–1939)
Teams
Alfa Romeo (1932)
Starts 24
Wins 10
Championship titles
1935, 1937, 1938 Drivers' Championship
Rudolf Caracciola
2. European Hillclimbing Championship
Years active 1930–1932
Mercedes-Benz (1930–1931)
Teams
Alfa Romeo (1932)
Championship titles
1930, 1931 Sports cars
1932 Grand Prix cars
Otto Wilhelm Rudolf Caracciola[1] (30 January 1901 – 28 September 1959), more
commonly Rudolf Caracciola (pronounced [ʁuːdɔlf kaʁaːtʃiːɔlɑ]), was a racing
driver from Remagen, Germany. He won the European Drivers' Championship, the pre-
1950 equivalent of the modern Formula One World Championship, an unsurpassed three
times. He also won the European Hillclimbing Championship three times – twice in
sports cars, and once in Grand Prix cars. Caracciola raced for Mercedes-Benz during their
original dominating Silver Arrows period, named after the silver colour of the cars, and
set speed records for the firm. He was affectionately dubbed Caratsch by the German
public,[2] and was known by the title of Regenmeister, or "Rainmaster", for his prowess in
wet conditions.
Caracciola began racing while he was working as apprentice at the Fafnir automobile
factory in Aachen during the early 1920s, first on motorcycles and then in cars. Racing
for Mercedes-Benz, he won his first two Hillclimbing Championships in 1930 and 1931,
and moved to Alfa Romeo for 1932, where he won the Hillclimbing Championship for
the third time. In 1933, he established the privateer team Scuderia C.C. with his fellow
driver Louis Chiron, but a crash in practice for the Monaco Grand Prix left him with
multiple fractures of his right thigh, which ruled him out of racing for more than a year.
He returned to the newly reformed Mercedes-Benz racing team in 1934, with whom he
won three European Championships, in 1935, 1937 and 1938. Like most German racing
drivers in the 1930s, Caracciola was a member of the Nazi paramilitary group NSKK, but
never a member of the Nazi Party. He returned to racing after the Second World War, but
crashed in qualifying for the 1946 Indianapolis 500. A second comeback in 1952 was
halted by another crash, in a sports car race in Switzerland.
After he retired Caracciola worked as a Mercedes-Benz salesman targeting North
Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) troops stationed in Europe. He died in the German
city of Kassel, after suffering liver failure. He was buried in Switzerland, where he had
lived since the early 1930s. He is remembered as one of the greatest pre-1939 Grand Prix
drivers, a perfectionist who excelled in all conditions. His record of six German Grand
Prix wins remains unbeaten as of 2011.
Contents
[hide]
3. • 1 Early life and career
• 2 1926–1930: Breakthrough
• 3 1931–1932: Move to Alfa Romeo
• 4 1933–1934: Injury and return for Mercedes
• 5 1935–1936: First Championship and rivalry with Rosemeyer
• 6 1937: Second Championship
• 7 1938: Speed records and third Championship
• 8 1939: Claims of favouritism towards Lang
• 9 War, comeback and later years
• 10 Nazi connections
• 11 Legacy
• 12 Complete European Championship results
• 13 Notes
• 14 References
• 15 External links
[edit] Early life and career
Rudolf Caracciola was born in Remagen, Germany, on 30 January 1901. He was the
fourth child of Maximilian and Mathilde, who ran the Hotel Fürstenberg. His ancestors
had migrated during the Thirty Years' War from Naples to the German Rhineland, where
Prince Bartolomeo Caracciolo had commanded the Ehrenbreitstein Fortress near
Koblenz.[1] Caracciola was interested in cars from a young age, and from his fourteenth
birthday wanted to become a racing driver.[3] He drove an early Mercedes during the First
World War,[4] and gained his driver's license before the legal age of 18. After Caracciola's
graduation from school soon after the war, his father wanted him to attend university, but
when he died Caracciola instead became an apprentice in the Fafnir automobile factory in
Aachen.[3][5]
Motorsport in Germany at the time, as in the rest of Europe, was an exclusive sport,
mainly limited to the upper classes. As the sport became more professional in the early
1920s, specialist drivers, like Caracciola, began to dominate.[6] Caracciola enjoyed his
first success in motorsport while working for Fafnir, taking his NSU motorcycle to
several victories in endurance events.[5] When Fafnir decided to take part in the first race
at the Automobil-Verkehrs- und Übungs-Straße (AVUS) track in 1922, Caracciola drove
one of the works cars to fourth overall, the first in his class and the quickest Fafnir.[4][5]
He followed this with victory in a race at the Opelbahn in Rüsselsheim.[4] He did not stay
long in Aachen, however; in 1923, after punching a soldier from the occupying Belgian
Army in a nightclub, he fled the city.[5][7] He moved to Dresden, where he continued to
work as a Fafnir representative. In April of that year, Caracciola won the 1923 ADAC
race at the Berlin Stadium in a borrowed Ego 4 hp.[4][8] In his autobiography, Caracciola
said he only ever sold one car for Fafnir, but due to inflation by "the time the car was
delivered the money was just enough to pay for the horn and two headlights".[9]
4. Later in 1923, he was hired by the Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft as a car salesman at
their Dresden outlet. Caracciola continued racing, driving a Mercedes 6/25/40 hp to
victory in four of the eight races he entered in 1923.[4][5] His success continued in 1924
with the new supercharged Mercedes 1.5-litre; he won 15 races during the season,
including the Klausenpass hillclimb in Switzerland.[5] He attended the Italian Grand Prix
at Monza as a reserve driver for Mercedes, but did not take part in the race.[10] He drove
his 1.5-litre to five victories in 1925,[5] and won the hillclimbs at Kniebis and Freiburg in
a Mercedes 24/100/140 hp.[4] With his racing career becoming increasingly successful, he
abandoned his plans to study mechanical engineering.[5]
[edit] 1926–1930: Breakthrough
Caracciola (left) and his riding mechanic Eugen Salzer celebrate after winning the 1926
German Grand Prix
Caracciola's breakthrough year was in 1926. The inaugural German Grand Prix was held
at the AVUS track on 11 July, but the date clashed with a more prestigious race in Spain.
The newly merged company Mercedes-Benz, conscious of export considerations, chose
the latter race to run their main team.[11] Hearing this, Caracciola took a short leave from
his job and went to the Mercedes office in Stuttgart to ask for a car.[11] Mercedes agreed
to lend Caracciola and Adolf Rosenberger two 1923 2-litre M218s, provided they enter
not as works drivers but independents.[12][13] Rosenberger started well in front of the
230,000 spectators, but Caracciola stalled his engine.[5] His riding mechanic, Eugen
Salzer, jumped out and pushed the car to get it started, but by the time they began moving
they had lost more than a minute to the leaders.[14] It started to rain, and Caracciola
passed many cars that had retired in the poor conditions. Rosenberger lost control at the
North Curve on the eighth lap when trying to pass a slower car, and crashed into the
timekeepers' box, killing all three occupants; Caracciola kept driving.[13] In the fog and
rain, he had no idea which position he was in, but resolved to keep driving so he could at
least finish the race. When he finished the 20th and final lap, he was surprised to find that
he had won the race.[15] The German press dubbed him Regenmeister, or "Rainmaster",
for his prowess in the wet conditions.[13]
Caracciola used the prize money—17,000 Reichsmarks—to set up a Mercedes-Benz
dealership on the prestigious Kurfürstendamm in Berlin.[5][16] He also married his
girlfriend, Charlotte, whom he had met in 1923 while working at the Mercedes-Benz
5. outlet in Dresden.[4] He continued racing in domestic competitions, returning again to
Freiburg to compete in the Flying Kilometre race where he set a new sports car record in
the new Mercedes-Benz 2-litre Model K, and finished first.[17] Caracciola entered the
Klausenpass hillclimb and set a new touring car record; he also won the touring car class
at the Semmering hillclimb before driving a newly supercharged 1914 Mercedes Grand
Prix car over the same route to set the fastest time of the day for any class.[18] The
recently completed Nürburgring was the host of the 1927 Eifelrennen, a race which had
been held on public roads in the Eifel mountains since 1922. Caracciola won the first race
on the track, and returned to the Nürburgring a month later for the 1927 German Grand
Prix, but his car broke down and the race was won by Otto Merz.[19] However, he won 11
competitions in 1927, almost all of them in the Ferdinand Porsche-developed Mercedes-
Benz Model S.[4]
Caracciola regained his German Grand Prix title at the Nürburgring at the 1928 German
Grand Prix, driving the new 7.1-litre Mercedes-Benz SS.[20] He shared the driving with
Christian Werner, who took over Caracciola's car when the latter collapsed with heat
exhaustion at a pit stop.[21] The German Grand Prix, like many other races at the time,
ignored the official Grand Prix racing rules set by the Association Internationale des
Automobile Clubs Reconnus (International Association of Recognized Auto Clubs, or
AIACR), which limited weight and fuel consumption, and instead ran races under a
Formula Libre, or free formula. As a result, Mercedes-Benz focused less on producing
Grand Prix cars and more on sports cars, and Caracciola drove the latest incarnation of
this line, the SSK, at the Semmering hillclimb, and further reduced his own record on the
course by half a second.[22]
The inaugural Monaco Grand Prix was held on 14 April 1929. Caracciola, driving a 7.1-
litre Mercedes-Benz SSK, started from the back row of the grid (which was allocated
randomly), and battled Bugatti driver William Grover-Williams for the lead early on.[23]
However, his pit stop, which took four and a half minutes to refill his car with petrol, left
him unable to recover the time, and he eventually finished third.[24] He won the RAC
Tourist Trophy in slippery conditions, and confirmed his reputation as a specialist in wet
track racing. He partnered Werner in the Mille Miglia and Le Mans endurance races in
1930; they finished sixth in the former but were forced to retire after leading for most of
the race in the latter after their car's generator burnt out.[25] Caracciola took victory in the
1930 Irish Grand Prix at Phoenix Park,[26] and won four hillclimbs to take the title of
European Hillclimb Champion for the first time.[4] However, he was forced to close his
dealership in Berlin after the firm went bankrupt.[27]
[edit] 1931–1932: Move to Alfa Romeo
Mercedes-Benz officially withdrew from motor racing in 1931 — citing the global
economic downturn as a reason for their decision—although they continued to support
Caracciola and a few other drivers covertly, retaining manager Alfred Neubauer to run
the 'independent' operation.[28] In part because of the financial situation, Caracciola was
the only Mercedes driver to appear at the 1931 Monaco Grand Prix, driving an SSKL (a
shorter version of the SSK).[29] Caracciola and Maserati driver Luigi Fagioli challenged
6. the Bugattis of Louis Chiron and Achille Varzi for the lead early in the race, but when the
SSKL's clutch failed Caracciola withdrew from the race.[30] A crowd of 100,000 turned
out for the German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring. Rain began to fall before the race, and
continued as Caracciola chased Fagioli for the lead in the early laps. The spray from
Fagioli's Maserati severely impaired Caracciola's vision, but he was able to pass to take
the lead at the Schwalbenschwanz corner. The track began to dry on lap six, and Chiron's
Bugatti, which was by then running second, began to catch the heavier Mercedes.
Caracciola's pit stop, completed in record time, kept him ahead of Chiron, and despite the
Bugatti lapping 15 seconds faster than the Mercedes late in the race, Caracciola won by
more than one minute.[31]
Caracciola was lucky to escape from a crash in the Masaryk Grand Prix. He and Chiron
were chasing Fagioli when Fagioli crashed into a wooden footbridge, bringing it crashing
down onto the road. Caracciola and Chiron drove into a ditch at the side of the road to
avoid the debris; while Chiron drove out of the ditch and was able to continue, Caracciola
drove into a tree and retired.[32] Despite this accident, Caracciola again performed
strongly in the Hillclimbing Championship; he won eight climbs in his SSKL to take the
title.[33] Perhaps his most significant achievement of 1931 was his win in the Mille
Miglia. The local fleet of Alfa Romeos battled for the lead early in the race, but when
they fell back Caracciola was able to take control. His win, in record time, made him and
his co-driver Wilhelm Sebastian (who allowed Caracciola to drive the entire race) the
first foreigners to win the Italian race. The only other foreigners to win the race on the
full course were Stirling Moss and Denis Jenkinson in 1955.[34]
Caracciola driving an Alfa Romeo 8C in the 1932 Mille Miglia. The car later retired
when a valve connection broke, leaving him unable to defend his 1931 title.
Mercedes-Benz withdrew entirely from motor racing at the start of 1932 in the face of the
economic crisis, so Caracciola moved to Alfa Romeo with a promise to return to
Mercedes if they resumed racing.[35] His contract stipulated he would begin racing for the
Italian team as a semi-independent. Caracciola later wrote that the Alfa Romeo manager
was defensive when he questioned him about this clause; Caracciola believed it was
because the firm's Italian drivers did not believe he could change from the huge Mercedes
cars to the much smaller Alfa Romeos.[36] His first race for his new team was at the Mille
Miglia; he led early in the race, but retired when a valve connection broke. Caracciola
later wrote, "I can still see the expression on [Alfa Romeo driver Giuseppe] Campari's
7. face when I arrived back at the factory. He smiled to himself as if to say, Well, didn't I
tell you that one wasn't going to make it?"[37]
The next race was the Monaco Grand Prix, where Caracciola was again entered as a
semi-independent. He ran fourth early in the race, but moved to second as Alfa Romeo
driver Baconin Borzacchini pitted for a wheel change and the axle on Achille Varzi's
Bugatti broke. Tazio Nuvolari, in the other Alfa Romeo, found his lead reduced rapidly
as Caracciola closed in; with ten laps remaining in the race Caracciola was so close he
could see Nuvolari changing gears. He finished the race just behind Nuvolari. The crowd
jeered Caracciola: they believed he had deliberately lost for the team, denying them a
fight for the win. However, on the strength of his performance, Caracciola was offered a
full spot on the Alfa Romeo team, which he accepted.[38]
Alfa Romeo dominated the rest of the Grand Prix season. Nuvolari and Campari drove
the newly introduced Alfa Romeo P3 at the Italian Grand Prix, while Borzacchini and
Caracciola drove much heavier 8Cs. Caracciola was forced to retired when his car broke
down, but he took over Borzacchini's car when the Italian was hit by a stone, and came
third, behind Nuvolari and Fagioli.[39] In the French Grand Prix, Caracciola, now driving
a P3, battled Nuvolari for the lead early on. Alfa Romeo's dominance was so great and
their cars so far ahead the team could choose the top three finishing positions, thus
Nuvolari won from Borzacchini and Caracciola, with the two Italians ahead of the
German. The order was different at the 1932 German Grand Prix, where Caracciola won
from Nuvolari and Borzacchini.[40]
Caracciola performed strongly in other races; he won the Polish and Monza Grands Prix
and the Eifelrennen at the Nürburgring, and took five more hillclimbs to win that
Championship for the third and final time.[41] He was, however, beaten by the Mercedes-
Benz of Manfred von Brauchitsch at the Avusrennen (the yearly race at the AVUS track).
Von Brauchitsch drove a privately entered SSK with streamlined bodywork, and beat
Caracciola's Alfa Romeo, which finished in second place. Caracciola was seen by the
German crowd as having defected to the Italian team and was booed, while von
Brauchitsch's all German victory drew mass support.[42]
[edit] 1933–1934: Injury and return for Mercedes
Alfa Romeo withdrew its factory team from motor racing at the start of the 1933 season,
leaving Caracciola without a contract. He was close friends with the Monegasque driver
Louis Chiron, who had been fired from Bugatti, and while on vacation in Arosa in
Switzerland the two decided to form their own team, Scuderia C.C. (Caracciola-
Chiron).[43] They bought three Alfa Romeo 8Cs (known as Monzas), and Daimler-Benz
provided a truck to transport them.[44][45] Chiron's car was painted blue with a white
stripe, and Caracciola's white with a blue stripe.[43] The new team's first race was at the
Monaco Grand Prix. On the second day of practice for the race, while Caracciola was
showing Chiron around the circuit (it was Chiron's first time in an Alfa Romeo), the
German lost control heading into the Tabac corner. Three of the four brakes failed, which
destabilised the car. Faced with diving into the sea or smashing into the wall, Caracciola
8. instinctively chose the latter.[46] Caracciola later recounted what happened after the
impact:
Only the body of the car was smashed, especially around my seat. Carefully I drew my
leg out of the steel trap. Bracing myself against the frame of the body, I slowly extricated
myself from the seat ... I tried to hurry out of the car. I wanted to show that nothing had
happened to me, that I was absolutely unhurt. I stepped to the ground. At that instant the
pain flashed through my leg. It was a ferocious pain, as if my leg were being slashed by
hot, glowing knives. I collapsed, Chiron catching me in his arms.[47]
Caracciola was carried on a chair to the local tobacco shop, and from there he went to the
hospital.[48] He had sustained multiple fractures of his right thigh, and his doctors doubted
he would race again.[43] He transferred to a private clinic in Bologna, where his injured
leg remained in a plaster cast for six months.[48][49] Caracciola defied the predictions of
his doctors and healed faster than expected, and in the winter Charlotte took her husband
back to Arosa, where the altitude and fresh air would aid his recovery.[43]
The rise to power of the Nazi Party on 30 January 1933 gave German motor companies,
notably Mercedes-Benz and Auto Union, an opportunity to return to motor racing.
Having secured promises of funding shortly after the Nazis' rise to power, both
companies spent the better part of 1933 developing their racing projects.[50] Alfred
Neubauer, the Mercedes racing manager, travelled to the Caracciolas' chalet in Lugano in
November with a plan to sign him for the 1934 Grand Prix season if he was fit. Neubauer
challenged Caracciola to walk, and although the driver laughed and smiled while he did
so Neubauer was not fooled: Caracciola was not yet fit. Nevertheless, he offered him a
contract, provided he prove his fitness in testing at the AVUS track early in the next year.
Caracciola agreed and went to Stuttgart to sign the contract. The trip wore him out so
much he spent much of his time lying on his hotel bed recuperating.[51]
Upon his return to Lugano, another tragedy befell him. In February, Charlotte died when
the party she was skiing with in the Swiss Alps was hit by an avalanche. Caracciola
withdrew almost entirely from public life while he mourned, almost deciding to retire
completely from motor racing.[51][52] A visit from Chiron encouraged him to return to
racing, and despite his initial reservations he was persuaded to drive the lap of honour
before the 1934 Monaco Grand Prix.[51] Although his leg still ached while he drove, the
experience convinced him to return to racing.[53]
Caracciola tested the new Mercedes-Benz W25 at the AVUS track in April, and despite
his injuries—his right leg had healed five 5 centimetres (2.0 in) shorter than his left,
leaving him with a noticeable limp—he was cleared to race.[54] However, Neubauer
withdrew the Mercedes team from their first race, also at the AVUS track, as their
practice times compared too unfavourably to Auto Union's.[55] Caracciola was judged not
fit to race for the Eifelrennen at the Nürburgring,[56] but made the start for the German
Grand Prix at the same track six weeks later. He took the lead from Auto Union driver
Hans Stuck on the outside of the Karussel on the 13th lap, but retired a lap later when his
engine failed.[57] He had better luck at the 1934 Italian Grand Prix in September. In very
9. hot weather, Caracciola started from fourth and moved to second, where he trailed Stuck.
After 59 laps, the pain in his leg overwhelmed him, and he pitted, letting teammate
Fagioli take over his car. Fagioli won from Stuck's car which by then had been taken over
by Nuvolari.[58] His best results in the rest of the season were a second place in the
Spanish Grand Prix—he led before Fagioli passed him, much to the anger of Neubauer,
who had ordered the Italian to hold position—and first at the Klausenpass hillclimb.[59][60]
[edit] 1935–1936: First Championship and rivalry with
Rosemeyer
Caracciola took the first of his three European Drivers' Championships in 1935. Five
Grands Prix—the Belgian, German, Swiss, Italian and Spanish—would be included for
Championship consideration.[60] He opened the Championship season with a win in
Belgium, ahead of Fagioli and von Brauchitsch, who shared the other Mercedes-Benz
W25.[61] Nuvolari won a surprise victory at the Nürburgring in his Alfa Romeo P3, ahead
of Stuck and Caracciola. The Swiss Grand Prix was held at the Bremgarten Circuit in
Bern, and Caracciola won from Fagioli and the new Auto Union star Bernd Rosemeyer.
Caracciola won the Spanish Grand Prix from Fagioli and von Brauchitsch; although his
transmission failed at the Italian Grand Prix and he was forced to retire, his three wins
allowed him to take the Championship.[62]
Caracciola leads Auto Union driver Bernd Rosemeyer in a 1936 race. The two had an
intense rivalry on track, which was only broken when Rosemeyer died trying to beat
Caracciola's speed record on the Autobahn in January 1938.
In the other races of the 1935 season, Caracciola won the Eifelrennen at the Nürburgring
and finished second at the Penya Rhin Grand Prix in Barcelona.[63] He also won the
Tripoli Grand Prix, organised by the Libyan Governor-General Italo Balbo. The Grand
Prix was held in the desert, around a salt lake, and because of the intense heat Neubauer
was concerned that the tyres on the Mercedes-Benz cars would not last. Caracciola
started poorly, but moved to third, after four pit stops to change tyres, by lap 30 of 40. He
inherited the lead from Nuvolari and Varzi when the two Italians pitted, and held it to the
finish, despite a late charge from Varzi.[48] Caracciola later wrote that this was the race
10. where he began to feel he had recovered from his crash in Monaco two years before, and
he was now back among the contenders.[64]
Remaining in such a position would require Mercedes-Benz to produce a competitive car
for the 1936 season. Although the chassis of the W25 was shortened, and the engine was
significantly upgraded to 4.74 litres, the car proved inferior to the Type C developed by
Auto Union.[65] Mercedes had not improved the chassis to match the engine, and the W25
proved uncompetitive and unreliable.[63][66] Despite this, Caracciola opened the season
with a win in the rain at the Monaco Grand Prix, after starting from third position. He led
the Hungarian Grand Prix early but retired with mechanical problems.[67] At the German
Grand Prix, he retired with a failed fuel pump, before taking over his teammate Hermann
Lang's car; he later retired that car with supercharger problems.[68] Caracciola led the
Swiss Grand Prix for several laps, Rosemeyer trailing him closely, but the Clerk of the
Course ordered Caracciola to cede the lead to Rosemeyer on the ninth lap after he was
found to be blocking the Auto Union.[65] The two had a heated argument after the race
despite Caracciola's later retirement with a rear axle problem.[69] Mercedes were so
uncompetitive in 1936—Caracciola won only twice, in Monaco and Tunis—that
Neubauer withdrew the team mid-season, leaving Rosemeyer to take the Championship
for Auto Union.[70]
[edit] 1937: Second Championship
A streamlined Mercedes-Benz, similar to the one driven by Caracciola, on the steeply
banked north curve of the AVUS track in 1937
Mercedes-Benz returned to Grand Prix racing at the start of the 1937 season with a new
car. The W125 was a vast improvement on its predecessor, its supercharged eight
cylinder 5.6-litre engine delivered significantly more power than the W25: 650 brake
horsepower compared to 500.[71][72] The first major race of 1937 was the Avusrennen
where 300,000 people turned out to see the cars race on the newly re-constructed track. In
order to keep speeds consistently high, the north curve was turned into a steeply banked
turn, apparently at the suggestion of Adolf Hitler.[73] Driving a streamlined Mercedes-
Benz, Caracciola won his heat against Rosemeyer, averaging around 250 kilometres per
hour (160 mph), although a transmission failure forced him to retire in the final.[74][75]
Following the AVUS race, Caracciola, along with Rosemeyer, Nuvolari and Mercedes'
11. new driver, Richard Seaman, went to race in the revived Vanderbilt Cup in America, and
in doing so missed the Belgian Grand Prix, which took place six days later.[76] Caracciola
led until lap 22, when he retired with a broken supercharger.[75]
Caracciola started from the second row of the grid at the German Grand Prix, but was
into the lead soon after the start. There he remained to the finish, in front of von
Brauchitsch and Rosemeyer.[77] He took pole position at the Monaco Grand Prix three
weeks later, and was soon engaged in a hard fight with von Brauchitsch.[78] The
Mercedes-Benz drivers took the lead from each other several times, but von Brauchitsch
won after a screw fell into Caracciola's induction system during a pit stop, costing him
three and a half minutes.[79] Caracciola won his second race of the season at the Swiss
Grand Prix. Despite heavy rain which made the Bremgarten Circuit slippery and
hazardous, Caracciola set a new lap record, at an average speed of 169 kilometres per
hour (105 mph), and cemented his reputation as the Regenmeister.[80]
For the first time, the Italian Grand Prix was held at the Livorno Circuit rather than the
traditional venue of Monza.[80] Caracciola took pole position, and despite two false starts
caused by spectators pouring onto the track, held his lead for the majority of the race and
won from his teammate Lang by just 0.4 seconds.[81] In doing so Caracciola clinched the
European Championship for the second time.[80] He backed up the win with another at the
Masaryk Grand Prix two weeks later. He trailed Rosemeyer for much of the race until the
Auto Union skidded against a kerb and allowed the Mercedes into the lead.[82]
Caracciola married for the second time in 1937, to Alice Hoffman-Trobeck, who worked
as a timekeeper for Mercedes-Benz.[83] He had met her in 1932, when she was having an
affair with Chiron. She was, at that time, married to Alfred Hoffman-Trobeck, a Swiss
businessman and heir to a pharmaceutical empire.[84] She had taken care of Caracciola
after Charlotte died, and shortly after began an affair with him, unbeknownst to
Chiron.[85] They were married in June in Lugano, just before the trip to America.[86]
[edit] 1938: Speed records and third Championship
The W125 Rekordwagen Caracciola used to reach 432.7 kilometres per hour (268.9 mph)
in January 1938
12. On 28 January 1938 Caracciola and the Mercedes-Benz record team appeared on the
Reichs-Autobahn A5 between Frankfurt and Darmstadt, in an attempt to break numerous
speed records set by the Auto Union team.[87] The system of speed records at the time
used classes based on engine capacity, allowing modified Grand Prix cars, in this case a
W125, to be used to break records. Caracciola had broken previous records—he reached
311.985 kilometres per hour (193.858 mph) in 1935—but these had been superseded by
Auto Union drivers, first Stuck and then Rosemeyer.[88] Driving a Mercedes-Benz W125
Rekordwagen, essentially a W125 with streamlined bodywork and a larger engine,
Caracciola set a new average speed of 432.7 kilometres per hour (268.9 mph) for the
flying kilometre and 432.4 kilometres per hour (268.7 mph) for the flying mile, speeds
which remain to this day as some of the fastest ever achieved on public roads.[87][89] The
day ended in tragedy however; Rosemeyer set off in his Auto Union in an attempt to
break Caracciola's new records, but his car was struck by a violent gust of wind while he
was travelling at around 400 kilometres per hour (250 mph), hurling the car off the road,
where it rolled twice, killing its driver.[90] Rosemeyer's death had a profound effect on
Caracciola, as he later wrote:
What was the sense in men chasing each other to death for the sake of a few seconds? To
serve progress? To serve mankind? What a ridiculous phrase in the face of the great
reality of death. But then—why? Why? And for the first time, at that moment, I felt that
every life is lived according to its own laws. And that the law for a fighter is: to burn
oneself up to the last fibre, no matter what happens to the ashes.[91]
The Grand Prix formula was changed again in 1938, abandoning the previous system of
weight restrictions and instead limiting piston displacement.[92] Mercedes-Benz' new car,
the W154, proved its abilities at the French Grand Prix, where von Brauchitsch won
ahead of Caracciola and Lang to make it a Mercedes 1–2–3.[93] Caracciola won two races
in the 1938 season: the Swiss Grand Prix and the Coppa Acerbo; finished second in three:
the French, German and Pau Grands Prix; and third in two: the Tripoli and Italian Grands
Prix, to take the European Championship for the third and final time.[94] The highlight of
Caracciola's season was his win in the pouring rain at the Swiss Grand Prix. His
teammate Seaman led for the first 11 laps before Caracciola passed him; he remained in
the lead for the rest of the race, despite losing the visor on his helmet, severely reducing
visibility, especially given the spray thrown up by tyres of the many lapped cars.[95]
[edit] 1939: Claims of favouritism towards Lang
The 1939 season took place under the looming shadow of the coming Second World
War, and the schedule was only halted with the Invasion of Poland in September.[96] The
Championship season began with the Belgian Grand Prix in June. In heavy rain,
Caracciola spun at La Source, got out and pushed his car off into the safety of the trees.
Later in the race, Seaman left the track at the same corner, his car bursting into flames
upon impact with the trees, where he was burnt alive in the cockpit. He died that night in
hospital, after briefly regaining consciousness. The entire Mercedes team travelled to
London for his burial.[97] In the rest of the season, Caracciola won the German Grand Prix
for the sixth and final time, again in the rain, after starting third on the grid.[98][99] He
13. finished second behind Lang at the Swiss and Tripoli Grands Prix. The latter race was
seen as a major win for Mercedes-Benz. In a effort to halt German dominance at the
event, the Italian organisers decided to limit engine sizes to 1.5 litres (the German teams
at the time ran 3-litre engines), and announce the change at the last moment. The change
was, however, leaked to Mercedes-Benz well in advance, and in just eight months the
firm developed and built two W165s under the new restrictions; both of them beat the
combined might of 28 Italian cars, much to the disappointment of the organisers.[100]
Caracciola believed that the Mercedes-Benz team were favouring Lang during the 1939
season; in a letter sent to Mercedes' brand owner Daimler-Benz CEO Dr. Wilhelm Kissel,
he wrote:
I see little chance of the situation changing at all. Starting with Herr Sailer [Max Sailer,
then the head of the Mercedes racing division] through Neubauer, down to the
mechanics, there is an obsession with Lang. Herr Neubauer admitted frankly to Herr von
Brauchitsch that he was standing by the man who has good luck, and whom the sun
shines on ... I really enjoy racing and want to go on driving for a long time. However, this
presupposes that I fight with the same weapons as my stablemates. Yet this will be hardly
possible in the future, as almost all the mechanics and engine specialists in the racing
division are on Lang's side ...[101]
Despite Caracciola's protests, Lang was declared the 1939 European Champion by the
NSKK (Nationalsozialistisches Kraftfahrkorps, or National Socialist Motor Corps)—
although this was never ratified by the AIACR, and Auto Union driver Hermann Paul
Müller may have a valid claim to the title under the official scoring system—and motor
racing was put on hold upon the outbreak of war.[102]
[edit] War, comeback and later years
Caracciola and his wife Alice returned to their home in Lugano. For the duration of the
war he was unable to drive; the rationing of petrol meant motor racing was unfeasible.
The pain in his leg grew worse, and they went back to the clinic in Bologna to consult a
specialist. Surgery was recommended, but Caracciola decided against that option,
deterred by the minimum three months it would take to recover from the operation.[103]
He spent much of the last part of the war—from 1941 onwards—attempting to gain
possession of the two W165s used at the 1939 Tripoli Grand Prix, with a view to
maintaining them for the duration of the hostilities.[104] When they finally arrived in
Switzerland in early 1945, they were confiscated as German property by the Swiss
authorities.[105]
He was invited to participate in the 1946 Indianapolis 500, and originally intended to
drive one of the W165s, but was unable to have them released in time.[106] Nevertheless,
he headed to America to watch the race. Joe Thorne, a local team owner, offered him one
of his Thorne Engineering Specials to drive,[107] but during a practice session before the
race Caracciola was hit on the head by an object, believed to be a bird, and crashed into
the south wall.[106] His life was saved by a tank driver's helmet the organisers insisted he
14. wear, in spite of which he suffered a severe concussion and was in a coma for several
days.[106][108]
Caracciola returned to racing in 1952, when he was recalled to the Mercedes-Benz
factory team to drive the new Mercedes-Benz 300SL in sports car races.[109] The first
major race with the car was the Mille Miglia, alongside Karl Kling and his old teammate
Hermann Lang. Kling finished second in the race, Caracciola fourth. It later emerged that
Caracciola had been given a car with an inferior engine to his teammates, perhaps
because of a lack of time to prepare for the race.[110] Caracciola's career ended with his
third major crash; during a support race for the 1952 Swiss Grand Prix, the brakes on his
300SL locked and he skidded into a tree, fracturing his left leg.[54][111]
After his retirement from racing, he continued to work for Daimler-Benz as a salesman,
targeting NATO troops stationed in Europe. He organised shows and demonstrations
which toured military bases, leading in part to an increase in Mercedes-Benz sales during
that period.[112] In early 1959, he became sick and developed signs of jaundice, which
worsened despite treatment. Later in the year he was diagnosed with advanced
cirrhosis.[112] On 28 September 1959, in Kassel, Germany, he suffered liver failure and
died, aged 58.[4][113] He was buried in his home town of Lugano.[114]
[edit] Nazi connections
The house flag of the NSKK, a Nazi organisation which Caracciola, like most of his
fellow German racing drivers, joined.
Caracciola first met Adolf Hitler, the leader of the Nazi Party, in 1931. Hitler had ordered
a Mercedes-Benz 770, at that point Mercedes' most expensive car, but due to the amount
of time spent upgrading the car in line with the Nazi leader's wishes, the delivery was
late. To mollify Hitler's anger, Caracciola was dispatched by Mercedes to deliver the car
to the Brown House in Munich. Caracciola drove Hitler and his niece Geli Raubal around
Munich to demonstrate the car.[115] He later wrote (after the fall of the Nazi Party) that he
was not particularly awed by Hitler: "I could not imagine that this man would have the
requirements for taking over the government someday."[116]
Like most German racing drivers in Nazi Germany, Caracciola was a member of the
NSKK,[117] a paramilitary organisation of the Nazi Party devoted to motor racing and
motor cars; during the Second World War it handled transport and supply.[118] In reports
15. on races by German media Caracciola was referred to as NSKK-Staffelführer Caracciola,
the equivalent of a Squadron Leader. After races in Germany the drivers took part in
presentations to the crowd coordinated by NSKK leader Adolf Hühnlein and attended by
senior Nazis.[119] Although he wrote after the fall of the Nazi regime that he found such
presentations dull and uninspiring, Caracciola occasionally used his position as a famous
racing driver to publicly support the Nazi regime; for example, in 1938, while supporting
the Nazi platform at the Reichstag elections, he said, "[t]he unique successes of these new
racing cars in the past four years are a victorious symbol of our Führer's (Hitler's)
achievement in rebuilding the nation."[120]
Despite this, when Caracciola socialised with the upper Nazi echelons he did so merely
as an "accessory", not as an active member, and at no time was he a member of the Nazi
Party.[121] According to his autobiography, he turned down a request from the NSKK in
1942 to entertain German troops, as he "could not find it in myself to cheer up young
men so that they would believe in a victory I myself could not believe in".[122] Caracciola
lived in Switzerland from the early 1930s,[123] and despite strict currency controls, his
salary was paid in Swiss francs. During the war, he continued to receive a pension from
Daimler-Benz, until the firm ceased his payments under pressure from the Nazi party in
1942.[124]
[edit] Legacy
Caracciola's statue in his birthplace of Remagen
Caracciola is remembered—along with Nuvolari and Rosemeyer—as one of the greatest
pre-1939 Grand Prix drivers.[125] He has a reputation of a perfectionist, who very rarely
had accidents or caused mechanical failures in his cars, who could deliver when needed
regardless of the conditions.[48][126] His relationship with Mercedes racing manager Alfred
Neubauer, one of mutual respect, is often cited as a contributing factor to his
success.[126][127] After Caracciola's death, Neubauer described him as:
... the greatest driver of the twenties and thirties, perhaps even of all time. He combined,
to an extraordinary extent, determination with concentration, physical strength with
intelligence. Caracciola was second to none in his ability to triumph over
shortcomings.[128]
16. His trophy collection was donated to the Indianapolis Hall of Fame Museum,[129] and he
was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1998.[130] In 2001, on the
100th anniversary of his birth, a monument to Caracciola was erected in his birth town of
Remagen,[131] and on the 50th anniversary of his death in 2009 Caracciola Square was
dedicated off of the town's Rheinpromenade.[132] Karussel corner at the Nürburgring was
renamed after him, officially becoming the Caracciola Karussel.[4] As of 2011,
Caracciola's record of six German Grand Prix victories remains unbeaten.
[edit] Complete European Championship results
Yea ED Point Colou Result
Point
Entrant Make 1 2 3 4 5 r s
r C s
Gold Winner 1
Private Mercedes
1931 ITA FRA BEL 46= 22 Silver 2nd place 2
entry -Benz Ret
Bronze 3rd place 3
Alfa Alfa ITA FRA GER
1932 3 9 Completed
Corse Romeo NC 3 1
Green more than 4
Daimler GE IT ES 75%
Mercedes BEL SUI
1935 -Benz R A P 1 11 Completed
-Benz 1 1
AG 3 Ret 1 between
Blue 5
Daimler MO GE 50% and
1936 -Benz
Mercedes SUI IT 6 22 75%
N R Ret
-Benz A Completed
AG 1 Ret
between
Daimler GE MO SU Purple 6
Mercedes ITA 25% and
1937 -Benz BEL R N I 1 13 50%
-Benz 1
AG 1 2 1 Completed
Daimler GE IT Red less than 7
Mercedes FRA SUI 25%
1938 -Benz R A 1 8
-Benz 2 1
Disqualifie
AG 2 3 Black 8
d
Daimler
Mercedes BEL FRA GER SUI Did not
1939 -Benz 3 17 Blank 8
-Benz Ret Ret 1 2 participate
AG
• Races in bold
indicate pole
position.
• Races in italics
indicate fastest
lap.
[edit] Notes
1. ^ a b Bolsinger and Becker (2002), p. 63
2. ^ Reuss (2006), p. 20
3. ^ a b Caracciola (1958), p. 1
17. 4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Biography: Rudolf Caracciola (1901 - 1959)". Daimler
Global Media Site. Daimler AG. 23 June 2009.
http://media.daimler.com/dcmedia/0-921-614226-1-1205843-1-0-0-0-0-0-12635-
614226-0-1-0-0-0-0-0.html. Retrieved 3 July 2009.
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Bolsinger and Becker (2002), p. 64
6. ^ Reuss (2006), pp. 18–19
7. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 2
8. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 215
9. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 12
10. ^ Cimarosti (1986), pp. 65–66
11. ^ a b Caracciola (1958), p. 34
12. ^ Cimarosti (1986), p. 75
13. ^ a b c Rendall (1993), p. 116
14. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 89
15. ^ Caracciola (1958), pp. 38–39
16. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 40
17. ^ Bentley (1959), p. 31
18. ^ Bentley (1959), pp. 31–32
19. ^ Robert Blinkhorn (6 May 1999). "Lords of the 'Ring". 8W. FORIX.
http://forix.autosport.com/8w/ring.html. Retrieved 22 July 2009.
20. ^ Cimarosti (1986), p. 83
21. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 101
22. ^ Bentley (1959), pp. 32–33
23. ^ Rendall (1993), p. 124
24. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 104
25. ^ Bentley (1959), pp. 33–34
26. ^ Bentley (1959), p. 35
27. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 112
28. ^ Rendall (1993), p. 128
29. ^ Rendall (1993), p. 129
30. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 113
31. ^ Hilton (2005), pp. 115–116
32. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 116
33. ^ Bentley (1959), p. 36
34. ^ Cimarosti (1986), p. 90
35. ^ Rendall (1993), p. 131
36. ^ Caracciola (1958), pp. 55–56
37. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 57
38. ^ Hilton (2005), pp. 118–120
39. ^ Rendall (1993), pp. 131–133
40. ^ Rendall (1993), p. 133
41. ^ Bentley (1959), p. 37
42. ^ Reuss (2006), pp. 30–31
43. ^ a b c d Bentley (1959), p. 38
44. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 60
45. ^ Rendall (1993), p. 134
18. 46. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 125
47. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 62
48. ^ a b c d Leif Snellman (August 1999). "Mercedes' most successful driver".
8W. FORIX. http://forix.autosport.com/8w/caracciola.html. Retrieved 23 July
2009.
49. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 67
50. ^ Reuss (2006), pp. 77–78
51. ^ a b c Hilton (2005), p. 131
52. ^ Bentley (1959), p. 39
53. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 132
54. ^ a b Bolsinger and Becker (2002), p. 65
55. ^ Rendall (1993), p. 138
56. ^ Rendall (1993), p. 139
57. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 135
58. ^ Hilton (2005), pp. 137–138
59. ^ Bentley (1959), p. 42
60. ^ a b Hilton (2005), p. 138
61. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 141
62. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 147
63. ^ a b Bentley (1959), p. 44
64. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 118
65. ^ a b Cimarosti (1986), p. 104
66. ^ Reuss (2006), p. 199
67. ^ Hilton (2005), pp. 151–152
68. ^ Hilton (2005), pp. 154–155
69. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 156
70. ^ Cimarosti (1986), p. 109
71. ^ Bentley (1959), pp. 44–45
72. ^ Cimarosti (1986), p. 110
73. ^ Reuss (2006), pp. 333–335
74. ^ Reuss (2006), pp. 337–338
75. ^ a b Bentley (1959), p. 46
76. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 158
77. ^ Hilton (2005), pp. 159–160
78. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 161
79. ^ Bentley (1959), pp. 46–47
80. ^ a b c Bentley (1959), p. 47
81. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 164
82. ^ Bentley (1959), p. 48
83. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 119
84. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 124
85. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 142
86. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 120
87. ^ a b Reuss (2006), pp. 314–315
88. ^ Reuss (2006), pp. 211–212
19. 89. ^ "Mercedes speed record cars of the 1930s". DaimlerChrysler. Classic
Driver. http://www.classicdriver.com/uk/magazine/3200.asp?id=11459. Retrieved
26 July 2009.
90. ^ Reuss (2006), p. 317
91. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 127
92. ^ Cimarosti (1986), p. 116
93. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 177
94. ^ Bentley (1959), p. 49
95. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 179
96. ^ Cimarosti (1986), p. 122
97. ^ Hilton (2005), pp. 183–184
98. ^ Bentley (1959), p. 50
99. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 185
100. ^ Bentley (1959), pp. 50–53
101. ^ Reuss (2006), p. 369
102. ^ Richard Armstrong (11 July 2002). "Unfinished Symphony: Why the
1939 European Championship was never won". 8W. FORIX.
http://forix.autosport.com/8w/ec1939.html. Retrieved 26 July 2009.
103. ^ Caracciola (1958), pp. 165–166
104. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 168
105. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 172
106. ^ a b c Rendall (1993), p. 164
107. ^ Caracciola (1958), pp. 180–181
108. ^ Bentley (1959), p. 53
109. ^ Bentley (1959), p. 54
110. ^ Boddy (1983), pp. 22–25
111. ^ Boddy (1983), p. 25
112. ^ a b Zane, Allan H. (Epilogue, 1961) in Caracciola (1958), pp. 212–213
113. ^ Rendall (1993), p. 216
114. ^ Zane, Allan H. (Epilogue, 1961) in Caracciola (1958), p. 214
115. ^ Reuss (2006), pp. 53–54
116. ^ Caracciola (1958), p. 163
117. ^ Reuss (2006), p. 115
118. ^ Reuss (2006), p. 113
119. ^ Reuss (2006), p. 187
120. ^ Reuss (2006), pp. 187–188
121. ^ Reuss (2006), p. 330
122. ^ Caracciola (1958), pp. 168–169
123. ^ Reuss (2006), p. 29
124. ^ Reuss (2006), p. 188
125. ^ Hilton (2005), p. 140
126. ^ a b Bentley (1959), p. 30
127. ^ Mattijs Diepraam, Felix Muelas, Leif Snellman (18 January 2000). "The
Greatest Driver of the Century - The Poll Votes". 8W. FORIX.
http://forix.autosport.com/8w/poll1res.html. Retrieved 31 July 2009.
20. 128. ^ Ross Finlay (30 January 2001). "Rudi Caracciola: Part Two". CAR Keys.
PDRonline. http://www.carkeys.co.uk/features/people/658.asp. Retrieved 31 July
2009.
129. ^ Nick Garton (6 April 2008). "The Indianapolis Hall of Fame".
GrandPrix.com. Inside F1, Inc. http://www.grandprix.com/ft/ftng006.html.
Retrieved 8 August 2009.
130. ^ "Rudolf Caracciola - International Motorsports Hall of Fame Inductee".
International Motorsports Hall of Fame.
http://www.motorsportshalloffame.com/halloffame/1998/Rudolph_Caracciola_ma
in.htm. Retrieved 31 July 2009.
131. ^ "Remagen sightseeing". Remagen.de.
http://www.remagen.de/Tourismus/Stadtrundgang/sightseeing---excursion--
GB_F_NL/. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
132. ^ "Remagen freut sich über seine neue Rheinpromenade" (in German).
Remagen.de. http://www.remagen.de/Buerger/Bauen-und-
Staedtebau/Neugestaltung-der-Rheinpromenade. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
[edit] References
• Bentley, John (1959). The Devil Behind Them: Nine Dedicated Drivers who Made
Motor Racing History. London: Angus & Robertson.
• Boddy, William (1983). Mercedes-Benz 300SL: gull-wing & roadster, 3 litre, 6
cylinder. London: Osprey. ISBN 978-0-85045-501-4.
• Bolsinger, Markus and Becker, Clauspeter (2002). Mercedes-Benz Silver Arrows.
MotorBooks/MBI Publishing Company. ISBN 978-3-7688-1377-8.
• Caracciola, Rudolf (translated by Rock, Sigrid) (1961) [1958]. A Racing Car
Driver's World. New York: Farrar, Straus and Cudahy.
• Cimarosti, Adriano (translated by David Bateman Ltd) (1990) [1986]. The
Complete History of Grand Prix Motor Racing. New York: Crescent Books.
ISBN 978-0-517-69709-2.
• Hilton, Christopher (2005). Grand Prix Century: The First 100 Years of the
World's Most Glamorous and Dangerous Sport. Somerset: Haynes Publishing.
ISBN 978-1-84425-120-9.
• Rendall, Ivan (1993). The Chequered Flag: 100 Years of Motor Racing. London:
Weidenfeld and Nicolson. ISBN 978-0-297-83220-1.
• Reuss, Eberhard (translated by McGeoch, Angus) (2008) [2006]. Hitler's Motor
Racing Battles: The Silver Arrows under the Swastika. Somerset: Haynes
Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84425-476-7.
[edit] External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Rudolf Caracciola
21. Awards and achievements
Preceded by European Hill Climb Champion Succeeded by
(for Sports Cars)
None 1930-1931 Hans Stuck
Preceded by European Hill Climb Champion Succeeded by
(for Racing Cars)
Juan Zanelli 1932 Carlo Felice Trossi
Preceded by
European Drivers' Champion Succeeded by
Tazio Nuvolari
1935 Bernd Rosemeyer
(1932)
Succeeded by
Preceded by European Drivers' Champion
None
Bernd Rosemeyer 1937–1938
(not awarded)
[show]v · d · e European Champions in Grand Prix racing
[show]v · d · eThe Grand Prix Silver Arrows
Cars A•B•C•D
Bigalke • Burggaller • von Delius • Fagioli • Hasse • Heydel • Kautz • Kluge •
Drivers Leiningen • Meier • Momberger • Müller • Nuvolari • Pietsch • Rosemeyer •
Sebastian • Stuck • Varzi
von Eberhorst (designer) • Feuereissen (team manager) • Porsche (designer) •
Personnel
Siebler (designer) • Strobel (designer) • Walb (team manager)
Cars W25 • W125 • Stromlinienwagen • W154 • W165
Bäumer • von Brauchitsch • Brendel • Caracciola • Chiron • Fagioli • Geier •
Drivers
Hartmann • Henne • Kautz • Lang • Seaman • Zehender
Sailer (designer) • Heess (designer) • Neubauer (team manager) • Uhlenhaut
Personnel
(designer) • Wagner (designer)
[show]v · d · e Mercedes GP Petronas
22. Authority control: LCCN: n2003077011 | WorldCat
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