 | |
| Born | (1928-10-01)1 October 1928 Momignies, Hainaut, Belgium |
|---|---|
| Died | 2 September 1969(1969-09-02) (aged 40) Ostend, Belgium |
| Formula One World Championship career | |
| Nationality |  Belgian |
| Active years | 1960–1963,1965 |
| Teams | Ferrari,ENB,Lotus,Scuderia Centro Sud |
| Entries | 13 (12 starts) |
| Championships | 0 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 1 |
| Careerpoints | 7 |
| Pole positions | 0 |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| First entry | 1960 Belgian Grand Prix |
| Last entry | 1965 Belgian Grand Prix |
Willy Mairesse (French pronunciation:[wi.limɛ.ʁɛs]; 1 October 1928 – 2 September 1969)[1] was aFormula One and sports-car driver from Belgium. He participated in 13 World Championship Grands Prix, debuting on 19 June 1960. He achieved onepodium and scored a total of seven championship points. He committed suicide (overdose of sleeping pills) in a hotel room inOstend after a crash at the1968 24 Hours of Le Mans forced an end to his career.[2]
Peter Revson once described the intensity of Mairesse before a race atSpa, Belgium. Revson looked into his car and saw Mairesse's "furrowed" face, beetled brows, and eyes which were almost tilted and their colour changed. "It was almost like looking at the devil."[3]
Mairesse won first place in the marathon rallyLiege-Rome-Liege in 1956.[4]Mairesse secured third place in the Grand Prix ofMonza in June 1959. Driving aFerrari, he placed behindAlfonso Thiele andCarlo Mario Abate, both also in Ferraris.[5] Mairesse and Mike Parkes of England finished second toPhil Hill andOlivier Gendebien at the1961 24 Hours of Le Mans. Driving aFerrari 250 TR/61, Mairesse and Parkes also eclipsed the previous Le Mans record, covering 2,758.66 miles.[6] In the 196312 Hours of Sebring Mairesse andNino Vacarella placed second afterLudovico Scarfiotti andJohn Surtees. Both teams drove Ferraris.[7] Surtees and Mairesse won the 1000 km of the Nurburgring driving a Ferrari 250P. Thereafter, Surtees and Mairesse led for the 15 hours of the first 18 hours of the 1963 24 Hours of Le Mans before the car caught fire while Mairesse was driving. Mairesse escaped injury. Scarfiotti andLorenzo Bandini won on the French circuit whereChristian Heins had a fatal accident. Mairesse and Surtees retired after a motor fire.[8] A young GermanRed Cross worker was killed in August 1963 when the wheel of a Ferrari driven by Mairesse came off as his car overturned. Guenther Schneider, 19, was hit by a flying wheel during the running of the German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring and died.[9] Mairesse was triumphant in the 1964 Grand Prix ofAngola, run atLuanda. His average speed was 80.78 miles per hour.[10] Mairesse piloted a Ferrari 250 LM to first place in the 500 km sportscar race of Spa in May 1965. He completed the race in 2 hours, 29 minutes, and 45.7 seconds. He achieved an average speed of 126.29.[11][clarification needed] Mairesse and Jean Beurlys of France finished third at the1965 24 Hours of Le Mans in a Ferrari 275 GTB winning the GT category in its debut at Le Mans,[12] whileMasten Gregory andJochen Rindt won the race. In April 1966 Surtees and Parkes won the 1,000 kilometerMonza Auto Race. Mairesse and Herbert Mueller ofSwitzerland came in third in aFord sports car, two laps behind.[13] In May Mairesse and Mueller drove to victory in theTarga Florio, driving aPorsche Carrera 6. Rain caused considerable attrition as only thirteen of seventy starters finished the race.[14] Mairesse and Beurlys again drove a Ferrari to third place in the1967 24 Hours of Le Mans. This event was won by the American teamofDan Gurney andA. J. Foyt.[15]
Mairesse was third in the Grand Prix of Europe,1960 Italian Grand Prix. This was the penultimate race of the 1960 Formula One World Championship. Run at theAutodromo Nazionale Monza,Phil Hill was victorious, withRichie Ginther second, and Mairesse third, a lap down.[16] Mairesse qualified fifth for the1962 Belgian Grand Prix atSpa. The pole was won byGraham Hill in aBRM.[17] During the event Mairesseand theLotus ofTrevor Taylor dueled for more than an hour, passing and repassing a number of times each lap. Mairesse wascheered heartily by an enthusiastic partisan crowd. The two cars came together at more than 100 miles per hour in the long, sweepingleft-hand Blanchimont turn. Mairesse's car went off to the left, careering into a hillside behind a ditch and catching fire after flipping over. He was thrown out of his Ferrari and his shoes and the legs of his trousers were torn off. He was conscious, despite numerous scrapes, cuts and burns. Mairesse was loaded into an ambulance and transported to a hospital, where he was reported to be in good spirits and without any serious injuries. Taylor and Mairesse made contact earlier in the season at the Grand Prix ofBrussels.[18] In a race in which only twelve of twenty-one starters finished, Mairesse came in fourth in the1962 Italian Grand Prix. He was only a car length ahead ofGiancarlo Baghetti.[19]
Out of Formula One in 1963, Phil Hill predicted a rough future for the Ferrari team. He said there was too much competition between Mairesse and Surtees. Specifically, he commented "they will harry each other so much that they will force each other to make mistakes".[20] Mairesse's car crashed during the1963 German Grand Prix. The Ferrari turned over multiple times after swerving off the track. He was rushed to the hospital with a broken arm. His teammate, Surtees, won the race, withJim Clark second in a Lotus.[21]
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position)
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position)(Races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Equipe Nationale Belge | EmerysonMk2 | MaseratiL4 | LOM | GLV | PAU | BRX 8 | VIE | AIN DNA | SYR 11 | NAP | LON | SIL | SOL DNA | KAN | DAN | MOD | FLG | OUL | LEW | VAL | RAN | NAT | RSA |
| 1962 | Scuderia Ferrari | Ferrari156 | FerrariV6 | CAP | BRX 1 | LOM | LAV | GLV | PAU | AIN | INT | NAP 1 | MAL | CLP | RMS DNA | SOL | KAN | MED | DAN | OUL | MEX | RAN | NAT | |
| 1963 | Scuderia Ferrari | Ferrari156 | FerrariV6 | LOM | GLV | PAU | IMO DNA | SYR | AIN | INT Ret | ROM | SOL | KAN | MED | AUT | OUL | RAN |
| Year | Team | Co-Driver(s) | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 | Ecurie Francorchamps | Lucien Bianchi | Ferrari 250 TR | S 3.0 | 33 | DNF | DNF |
| 1960 |  Scuderia Ferrari |  Richie Ginther | Ferrari 250 TRI/60 | S 3.0 | 204 | DNF | DNF |
| 1961 | SEFAC Ferrari |  Mike Parkes | Ferrari 250 TRI/61 | S 3.0 | 330 | 2nd | 2nd |
| 1963 | SpA Ferrari SEFAC | John Surtees | Ferrari 250P | P 3.0 | 252 | DNF | DNF |
| 1965 | Ecurie Francorchamps | “Beurlys” (Jean Blaton) | Ferrari 275 GTB | GT 4.0 | 340 | 3rd | 1st |
| 1966 |  Scuderia Filipinetti | Herbert Müller | Ferrari 365 P2 | P 5.0 | 166 | DNF | DNF |
| 1967 | Equipe Nationale Belge | “Beurlys” (Jean Blaton) | Ferrari 330 P4 | P 5.0 | 377 | 3rd | 3rd |
| 1968 | C. Dubois | “Beurlys” (Jean Blaton) | Ford GT40 | S 5.0 | 0 | DNF | DNF |
| Year | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 |  BMW Motorsport | Hubert Hahne | BMW 1800 TI/SA | T 2.5 | DSQ | DSQ | |
| 1966 | BMW Motorsport | Dieter Glemser | BMW 1800 TI | T 2.0 | DNF | DNF |
| International | |
|---|---|
| Other | |
