| Toni Ulmen | |||||||||||||
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| Nationality |  German | ||||||||||||
| Born | Anton Ulmen (1906-01-25)25 January 1906 | ||||||||||||
| Died | 4 November 1976(1976-11-04) (aged 70) | ||||||||||||
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Anton "Toni" Ulmen (25 January 1906 – 4 November 1976) was a German motorcycle andracing driver fromDüsseldorf,Germany. His racing career started in 1925 on a 250 ccVelocette. In 1927 he won the opening race of theNürburgring on a 350 cc Velocette. In 1929 he won the 350 cc class on the Eilenriede, a non-permanent race course nearHannover. From 1949 to 1952, he was four times German sports car and Formula 2 champion.
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.[1] They become the representatives ofOpel for Düsseldorf.
It was in 1925 that Ulmen began his career in motorsport, at the Großen Deutschland-Rundfahrt on a 250ccVelocette motor cycle. Two years later can riding a 350 cc Velocette he won the firstEifelrennen, to claim the Deutsche Tourist-Trophäe, the inaugural race held on theNürburgring. In 1929, he won another major German race, the 350cc race of Eilenridederennens inHanover. By 1930, Ulmen was a works rider forNSU.
After the war, he turned to car racing, taking a second place in his first major sportscar race, the Karlsruhe-Durlach, abroad aBMW 328.[2] 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 theSolituderennen[3] and theDMV Grenzlandringrennen.[4] He was won races atMünchen, Nürburgring,[5]Sachsenring[6] andKölner Kurs.[7] He also recorded seven second place that season. 1950 saw the firstGroßer Preis von Deutschland afterWorld War II, at the Nürburgring, where he finished fourth in his open-wheelVeritas RS. In this car, he also recorded a surprising third place in the Preis der Ostechweiz-Erlen[8] in Switzerland, beaten only by theScuderia Ferraris ofLuigi Villoresi andRoberto Vallone. Prior to 1950, there was a ban on German cars and drivers completing in foreign events, after the war.[9] He retained his German Champion title, he first won in 1949.[10]
With victories atHockenheim,[11] theSchauinsland Hillclimb,[12] and the Grenzlandring,[9] Ulmen was clear champion in the 2-litre Sports Car class.[10] He participated in two World Championship Grands Prix in 1952, debuting on 18 May 1952, in theGrosser Preis der Schweiz,[13] but retired due to fuel tank issues. He returned for theGroßer Preis von Deutschland, where despite his Veritas's power disadvantage compared to his rivals, his finished eighth.[14] That season also saw Ulmen win the DMV Grenalandringrennen again.[15] During the season, he suffered a heavy crash during a practise session on the Sachsenring[10] from which he escaped almost unscathed. He arrived at the final meeting of the 1952 season, theAvusrennen, 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.[10]
Despite his retirement early 1953, Ulmen was soon, albeit briefly, behind the wheel, sharing aJaguar D-Type withHerman Roosdorp to third place in his only 24-hour endurance race, the1953 24 Heures de Spa Francorchamps.[16]
Following his racing retirement, Ulmen become president of theDeutscher Motorsport Verband (DMW) and he received theSilbernes Lorbeerblatt award from President of Germany,Theodor Heuss for his successes in motorsport, the highest national award in Germany for an athlete.
(key)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | WDC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | Toni Ulmen | Veritas-Meteor | Veritas Straight-6 | SUI Ret | 500 | BEL | FRA | GBR | GER 8 | NED | ITA | NC | 0 |
| Year | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Pos. | Class Pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1953 |  Herman Roosdorp | Herman Roosdorp | Jaguar C-Type | S | 3rd | 3rd |