Obermaier-Racing GmbH was a German

auto racing Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non ...

team and tuning garage founded by Hans Obermaier and

Jürgen Lässig Jürgen Lässig (February 25, 1943 – February 17, 2022) was a German racing driver. Lässig began competing in endurance sports car racing, often World Sportscar Championship races in the early 1980s for Obermaier Racing and drove in several ...

. Specializing in

Porsche Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, usually shortened to Porsche (; see below), is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in luxury, high-performance sports cars, SUVs and sedans, headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Th ...

s for much of their history, the team competed at the top level of the

World Sportscar Championship The World Sportscar Championship was the world Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance racing series run for sports car racing, sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), from 1953 World Sportscar Championship, 1953 t ...

from 1983 until 1990 before finding success in the various incarnations of the

Porsche Carrera Cup Porsche Carrera Cup (sometimes abbreviated PCC) is a number of one-make racing by Porsche premier series competed with, initially Porsche 911 Carrera Cup, then later Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars. The cars are specifically built by Porsche for on ...

. The team was later known as Oberbayern Motorsport before their auto racing activities ceased in 2000.

History

Johann Obermaier started his small engine repair company in Halsbach in 1933. A takeover of the Allgaier tractor repair shop in 1952 brought Obermaier their first experience with Porsches through their tractor business. As agriculture sales started to diminish in the 1960s the company moved to automotive repairs until Johann passed away in 1967. Hans took over the company, eventually specializing in Porsche automotive repairs by the early 1970s while still working with agricultural equipment. The move into motorsports began in 1978, as the business was able to cover the cost of racing endeavors of Hans Obermaier with a Porsche Carrera RS and later

Porsche 934 The Porsche 934 is a racing version of the Porsche 911 Turbo, prepared to FIA Group 4 rules, similar to the Porsche 935 which was prepared to FIA Group 5 rules. History The Porsche 934 was introduced for the 1976 racing season. It was manufact ...

. Obermaier had early amateur success, including winning a four-hour race at the

Nürburgring The () is a 150,000-person capacity motorsports complex located in the town of Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It features a Grand Prix motor racing, Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a long configuration, built in the 1920s ...

and aiding the development of a rallying Porsche for

Walter Röhrl Walter Röhrl (; born 7 March 1947) is a German rally and auto racing driver, with victories for Fiat, Opel, Lancia and Audi as well as Porsche, Ford and BMW. Röhrl had 14 victories over his career, with his notable achievements including winnin ...

but became frustrated with Porsche. Instead, a former factory

BMW M1 The BMW M1 (model code E26) is a Mid-engine design, mid-engined sports car produced by German automotive manufacturer BMW from 1978 until 1981. In the late 1970s, Italian automobile manufacturer Lamborghini entered into an agreement with BMW to ...

was purchased for the

Deutsche Rennsport Meisterschaft Deutsche Rennsport Meisterschaft (translated as ''German Racing Championship'') or simply DRM as it was known, was a touring car and Sportscar racing series. It is regarded as a predecessor of the current DTM as Germany's top national series. Hi ...

(DRM) in 1980 for driver

, achieving mixed success over the following years. The pair formally created Obermaier Racing in 1983 following the purchase of a

Porsche 956 The Porsche 956 was a Group C sports-prototype racing car designed by Norbert Singer and built by Porsche in 1982 for the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, FIA World Sportscar Championship. It was later upgraded to the 956B in 1984. I ...

with funding from sponsor

Hugo Boss Hugo Boss AG (stylized in all caps) is a designer fashion company headquartered in Metzingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The company sells clothing, Fashion accessory, accessories, footwear, and Leather, leather goods. Hugo Boss is one of the ...

, setting their sights on international motorsport with the

Interserie Interserie is the name of a European-based motorsport series started in 1970 that allows for a wide variety of racing cars from various eras and series to compete with less limited rules than in other series. Created in 1970 by German Gerhard Här ...

and European Sportscar Championship with their new Porsche. Lässig with co-driver Axel Plankenhorn completed the European Endurance Championship for Drivers in seventh place, finishing all races during the season. Belgian

Hervé Regout Hervé Regout (born 4 November 1952) is a Belgian racing driver. He competed in the 24 Hours of Le Mans nine times between 1980 and 1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of ...

became Lassig's new teammate for the

from

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

onward before later being joined by Spaniard

Jesús Pareja Jesús Ángel Pareja Mayo (born 6 March 1955) is a retired Spain, Spanish Auto racing, racing driver. Pareja drove in the World Sportscar Championship, FIA World Sports-Prototype Championship, the Spanish Touring Car Championship and Global GT Cha ...

, earning consistent top-ten finishes over the years. During this time Obermaier also made an entry in the

Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft The Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft (DTM) was a touring car racing series held from 1984 to 1996. Originally based in Germany, it held additional rounds elsewhere in Europe and later worldwide. The original DTM had resumed racing with produc ...

(DTM) with a BMW 635 CSi for

Harald Grohs Harald Grohs (born 1944) is a racing driver and team owner from Essen, Germany. Grohs took part in more than 50 24 Hours endurance racing races, mainly 24 Hours of Le Mans and 24 Hours Nürburgring. Career as driver *1973 first races in a Por ...

, finishing third in the championship in 1984 and 1985. Obermaier upgrade to a new Porsche 962C in 1987 as well as new sponsorship from French company Primagaz brought by new driver Pierre Yver. The highlight of the year was a second-place finish at the

24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans () is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the city of Le Mans, France. It is widely considered to be one of the world's most prestigious races, and is one of the races—along with ...

, one of only 14 cars to complete the race duration. Meanwhile, Grohs competed in Porsche's new 944 Turbo Cup series, finishing in third place in 1986 and 1988. Lässig and Yver returned for a full World Championship campaign in

1989 1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...

but earned no points over the season.

Otto Altenbach Otto Altenbach (born 31 May 1948) is a retired 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. In North America, the term i ...

joined the team as a driver and team principal in 1990, purchasing a second 962C for the team but the season was yet again fruitless. Obermaier partnered with Antoine Salamin's eponymous team for the

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

campaign with the best finish of fourth at the Nürburgring for Altenbach and

Jürgen Oppermann Jürgen or Jurgen is a popular masculine given name in Germany, Estonia, Belgium and the Netherlands. Notable people named Jürgen include: A * Jürgen Ahrend (1930–2024), German organ builder *Jürgen Alzen (born 1962), German race car driv ...

. The team rounded out their 962 era with two final appearances at Le Mans in

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

and

1993 The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...

with a seventh-place finish in latter event. The team instead concentrated on the new

Porsche Supercup The Porsche Supercup (officially known as Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, known as Porsche Michelin Supercup prior to 2007 and often abbreviated as PSC) is an international One-design racing, one-make production stock car racing series supporting the ...

series starting in 1993, although international sports car racing was kept alive by appearances in the

BPR Global GT Series The BPR Global GT Series (sometimes referred to as the BPR Global GT Endurance Series or simply abbreviated as BPR) was a grand tourer-based sports car racing series which ran from 1994 to 1996 before becoming the FIA GT Championship in 1997. The ...

with Porsche 911 Turbos as well as a joint effort with a

Ferrari F40 The Ferrari F40 (Type F120) is a Rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout, mid-engine, rear-wheel drive sports car engineered by Nicola Materazzi with styling by Pininfarina. It was built from 1987 until 1992, with the LM and GTE race car version ...

at Le Mans in

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

. Obermaier continued to rank in the top five in the Porsche Supercup and Carrera Cup Germany championships, including winning the Supercup teams championship in 1996, until Hans Obermaier ended racing activities in 2000, concentrating instead on motorsport and automotive repairs and restorations.

References

External links

* {{webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161113173345/http://www.kfz-obermaier.com/, date=13 November 2016, title=Official site German auto racing teams 1983 establishments in West Germany 24 Hours of Le Mans teams World Sportscar Championship teams Porsche Supercup teams Auto racing teams established in 1983 Auto racing teams disestablished in 2000