The ultimate Ringmeister

Stefan Bellof (1957 – 1985) was a German racing driver. A formidable talent, Bellof was the winner (with Derek Bell) of the 1984 Drivers’ Endurance Championship, driving for the Rothmans Porsche factory team.

His lap record on the 22 km long Nürburgring, set while qualifying for the 1000 km race in 1983, stood for 35 years!

His pole time for that race of 6 minutes, 11.13 seconds is unofficially the fastest ever lap driven on the Nordschleife (picture below) in its current configuration, taking pole position by five seconds (!), at an average speed of 202.073 km/h (125.562 miles per hour).

Stefan Bellof also competed with the Tyrrell Formula One team during 1984 and 1985, showing his immense talent at Monaco in 1984 in the pouring rain. Sadly, Bellof was killed in an accident during the 1985 1000 km of Spa, when he tried to pass Ickx’s Porsche at the Eau Rouge, and the cars collided.