Anton "Toni" Ulmen (25 January 1906 – 4 November 1976) was a German motorcycle and racing driver from

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian language, Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second- ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. His racing career started in 1925 on a 250 cc

Velocette Velocette is a line of motorcycles made by Veloce Ltd, in Hall Green, Birmingham, England. One of several motorcycle manufacturers in Birmingham, Velocette was a small, family-owned firm, selling almost as many hand-built motorcycles during i ...

. In 1927 he won the opening race of the Nürburgring on a 350 cc Velocette. In 1929 he won the 350 cc class on the Eilenriede, a non-permanent race course near

Hannover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

. From 1949 to 1952, he was four times German sports car and Formula 2 champion.

Craftsman, businessman and racer

After leaving school, Ulmen served an apprenticeship as a machinist with Motorradwerkstatt Hasenclever. When he finished there, he founded Gebrüder Ulmen, with his brother Andreas. They become the representatives of Opel for Düsseldorf. It was in 1925 that Ulmen began his career in motorsport, at the Großen Deutschland-Rundfahrt on a 250cc

motor cycle. Two years later can riding a 350 cc Velocette he won the first

Eifelrennen The Eifelrennen was an annual motor race, organised by ADAC Automobile Club from 1922 to 2003, held in Germany's Eifel mountain region even before the Nürburgring was built there. History Starting from 1922, the first races were held on a 33& ...

, to claim the Deutsche Tourist-Trophäe, the inaugural race held on the Nürburgring. In 1929, he won another major German race, the 350cc race of Eilenridederennens in

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

. By 1930, Ulmen was a works rider for NSU.

After the War

After the war, he turned to car racing, taking a second place in his first major sportscar race, the Karlsruhe-Durlach, abroad a BMW 328. A year later, in 1947 he was awarded the title of best German sports car driver of the year. The 1949 season saw Ulmen win nine races, including the Solituderennen and the DMV Grenzlandringrennen. He was won races at München, Nürburgring,

Sachsenring The Sachsenring () is a motorsport racing circuit located in Hohenstein-Ernstthal near Chemnitz in Saxony, Germany. Among other events, it features the annual German motorcycle Grand Prix of the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing world champ ...

and Kölner Kurs. He also recorded seven second place that season. 1950 saw the first Großer Preis von Deutschland after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, at the Nürburgring, where he finished fourth in his open-wheel Veritas RS. In this car, he also recorded a surprising third place in the Preis der Ostechweiz-Erlen in Switzerland, beaten only by the Scuderia Ferraris of

Luigi Villoresi Luigi Villoresi (16 May 1909 – 24 August 1997) was an Italian Grand Prix motor racing driver who continued racing on the Formula One circuit at the time of its inception. Biography Born in Milan, Lombardy, and nicknamed "Gigi", he was the older ...

and

Roberto Vallone Roberto Vallone (1915–2001) was an Italian racing driver mostly known for his early association with Scuderia Ferrari. He entered 13 sports car races (with 12 starts) between 1947 and 1953, mainly in a Stanguellini S1500 and Ferrari 166's th ...

. Prior to 1950, there was a ban on German cars and drivers completing in foreign events, after the war. He retained his German Champion title, he first won in 1949. With victories at

Hockenheim Hockenheim () is a town in northwest Baden-Württemberg, Germany, about 20 km south of Mannheim and 10 km west of Walldorf. It is located in the Upper Rhine valley on the tourist theme routes "Baden Asparagus Route" () and Bertha Benz M ...

, the Schauinsland Hillclimb, and the Grenzlandring, Ulmen was clear champion in the 2-litre Sports Car class. He participated in two World Championship Grands Prix in 1952, debuting on 18 May 1952, in the Großer Pries der Schweiz, but retired due to fuel tank issues. He returned for the Großer Preis von Deutschland, where despite his Veritas's power disadvantage compared to his rivals, his finished eighth. That season also saw Ulmen win the DMV Grenalandringrennen again. During the season, he suffered a heavy crash during a practise session on the Sachsenring from which he escaped almost unscathed. He arrived at the final meeting of the 1952 season, the

Avusrennen The Automobil-Verkehrs- und Übungsstraße ('Automobile traffic and training road'), known as AVUS, is a public road in Berlin, Germany. Opened in 1921, it was also used as a motor racing circuit until 1998. Today, the AVUS forms the northern par ...

, as leader in the Formula 2 class and 2-litre sport cars. On the AVUS, lost a dramatic slipstream battle with fellow Veritas driver, Fritz Rieß, on the penultimate lap. This meant both drivers were equal on points, and according to the DMV regulations, Rieß was declared champion, as he had scored the better at the Eifelrennen. As consolidation, Ulmen was awarded the Formula 2 title, despite the fact he could take part in this race. After that he competed only occasionally in car races. Despite his retirement early 1953, Ulmen was soon, albeit briefly, behind the wheel, sharing a Jaguar D-Type with Herman Roosdorp to third place in his only 24-hour endurance race, the 1953 24 Heures de Spa Francorchamps.

Away from the track

Following his racing retirement, Ulmen become president of the

Deutscher Motorsport Verband The German Motor Sport Federation (german: Deutscher Motor Sport Bund or ''DMSB'', formerly known as or ''ONS'') is Germany's motor racing governing body. It represents Germany at FIA and FIM. The , founded in 1972 by Herbert Linge as , is cons ...

(DMW) and he received the

Silbernes Lorbeerblatt Silbernes Lorbeerblatt (Silver Laurel Leaf), the highest sports award in Germany, was endowed on 23 June 1950 by the German President Theodor Heuss. It is awarded to athletes and teams of exemplary character that have won medals at Olympic and ...

award from President of Germany,

Theodor Heuss Theodor Heuss (; 31 January 1884 – 12 December 1963) was a German liberal politician who served as the first president of West Germany from 1949 to 1959. His cordial nature – something of a contrast to the stern character of chancellor K ...

for his successes in motorsport, the highest national award in Germany for an athlete.

Racing record

Career highlights

Complete Formula One World Championship results

( key)

Complete 24 Hours of Spa results

References

External links

Biography at conceptcarz.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ulmen, Toni 1906 births 1976 deaths German Formula One drivers German racing drivers Sportspeople from Düsseldorf Racing drivers from North Rhine-Westphalia 24 Hours of Spa drivers DAMC 05 people