Manfred Winkelhock (6 October 1951 – 12 August 1985) was a German

racing driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...

. He participated in 56

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship ...

Grands Prix (with 47 starts) between 1980 and 1985, driving for Arrows, ATS,

Brabham Brabham () is the common name for Motor Racing Developments Ltd., a British racing car manufacturer and Formula One racing team. Founded in 1960 by Australian driver Jack Brabham and British-Australian designer Ron Tauranac, the team won fo ...

and RAM Racing, with a best finish of fifth at the

1982 Brazilian Grand Prix The 1982 Brazilian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Autódromo Internacional Nelson Piquet, Jacarepaguá on March 21, 1982. It was the second round of the 1982 Formula One season. Many drivers suffered exhaustion because of the inte ...

. He is the older brother of

Joachim Joachim (; ''Yəhōyāqīm'', "he whom Yahweh has set up"; ; ) was, according to Christian tradition, the husband of Saint Anne and the father of Mary, the mother of Jesus. The story of Joachim and Anne first appears in the Biblical apocryphal ...

and Thomas Winkelhock and father of Markus Winkelhock, who are all also racing drivers.

Racing career

Born in Waiblingen on 6 October 1951, Manfred Winkelhock was the older brother of

Joachim Winkelhock Joachim Winkelhock (born 24 October 1960) is a German motor racing driver. The younger brother of the late Manfred Winkelhock, Winkelhock was born in Waiblingen, near Stuttgart. The youngest brother, Thomas Winkelhock, and Manfred's son Ma ...

. He began racing in Formula Two in 1978 and survived a major crash at

Nürburgring The is a 150,000 person capacity motorsports complex located in the town of Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It features a Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a long "North loop" track, built in the 1920s, around the village a ...

Nordschleife circuit, when he flipped his March at the very steep rise-and-fall Flugplatz corner. Winkelhock along with Hervé Poulain and Marcel Mignot drove a BMW M1 Group 4 racing version that was painted by pop artist

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore the relationsh ...

for the 1979 24 Hours of Le Mans. They completed came in 6th overall and 2nd in their class. Winkelhock's first attempt at qualifying for a

Grand Prix race was in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, when he stood in for the injured Jochen Mass at Arrows. He was able to land a drive with ATS in . As BMW became the team's engine supplier in , he qualified well on several occasions in 1983 and , but the car was rarely reliable, so there were few results and a lot of accidents. His son, Markus Winkelhock, is also a racing driver.

Death

At the same time he was a regular

sports car A sports car is a car designed with an emphasis on dynamic performance, such as handling, acceleration, top speed, the thrill of driving and racing capability. Sports cars originated in Europe in the early 1900s and are currently produced by ...

and

touring car Touring car and tourer are both terms for open cars (i.e. cars without a fixed roof). "Touring car" is a style of open car built in the United States which seats four or more people. The style was popular from the early 1900s to the 1930s. Th ...

driver, winning the 1000km Monza with Marc Surer in 1985. He was killed in the summer of 1985 when he crashed heavily at the fearsome Turn 2 at Mosport Park of Bowmanville near

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

, Canada, during the Budweiser 1000 km World Endurance Championship event, driving a Porsche 962C for Kremer Racing with co-driver Marc Surer. The crash was Sunday, 11 August and he succumbed to injuries the next day

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. n ...

wire story. Title "West German racer dies at Toronto. Accessed 29 August 2021. Link: https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1928&dat=19850810&id=6pQgAAAAIBAJ&sjid=_2cFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1485,2017867 while at the Sunnybrook Medical Center in Toronto. At the time of Winkelhock's death, he was a driver for the

Skoal Bandit U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company (formerly United States Tobacco Company) manufactures smokeless tobacco products, notably dipping tobacco, but also chewing tobacco, snus, and dry snuff and is a subsidiary of Altria. Its corporate headquarters ar ...

sponsored RAM Racing team in Formula One, though it had been a frustrating season with a best finish of 12th in the 1985 French Grand Prix at

Paul Ricard Paul Louis Marius Ricard (; July 9, 1909 – November 7, 1997) was a French industrialist and creator of an eponymous pastis brand which merged in 1975 with its competitor Pernod to create Pernod Ricard. Ricard was also an environmentalist and ...

. His death saw him replaced by Northern Irish driver Kenny Acheson, though lack of money saw the team fold before the end of the season.

Racing record

Complete European Formula Two Championship results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete Formula One results

( key)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Winkelhock, Manfred 1951 births 1985 deaths People from Waiblingen Sportspeople from Stuttgart (region) German racing drivers German Formula One drivers Arrows Formula One drivers ATS Wheels Formula One drivers Brabham Formula One drivers RAM Racing Formula One drivers European Formula Two Championship drivers Racing drivers who died while racing Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters drivers Sport deaths in Canada Accidental deaths in Ontario 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers Racing drivers from Baden-Württemberg World Sportscar Championship drivers