Collaboration: Antonio Carlos Mello Cesar
An insignificant news item, the year 1967: "GP Germany, Nurburgring race track, Jim Clark - Lotus pole position 8 min. 4 sec. 1 tenth, Denny Hulme - Brabham second 8:13:5. Due to the circuit's 22.834 km length, the organization decided to put F2 and F1 cars together in the same race. Big surprise in qualifying, Jacky Ickx, a 22 year old Belgian and his small Matra F2 with the third best time 8:14:0".
Incredible, but who was this boy of such daring that I had never heard of? Ahead of three-time champion Jack Brabham, the Ferraris, the other Lotus driven by Graham Hill, and only half a second behind Hulme, the current championship leader.
The next day the newspaper ran a headline about the capture of the red light bandit, highlighting the Pan American Games, and Brazil's third place finish below the USA and Canada. A considerable article and the triumph of the Alfa Romeo Giulia TI 1600 with Piero Gancia in the streets of Piracicaba, São Paulo's countryside, followed by 30 thousand people without adequate security.
Laconic text, almost a mere record, Denny Hulme's victory at the Nurburgring, had extended the championship lead to thirteen points, and no word on Jacky Ickx or Jim Clark, a driver impossible to beat at the green hell. The periodical reported an accident in the Gran Turismo class, preliminary race, Roland Katz went off the track hitting fans, a woman was killed and three others injured.
Well, the race took place on August 6th and the only way was to wait for specialized magazines to hit the stands in September and get more information about the German GP or maybe, with luck, listen to some synopsis on AM radio. As for TV, zero coverage.
Some bookstores, few it's true, sold newspapers, imported magazines. A Portuguese magazine about cars and tourism, the ideal option for a monoglot, gave generous space to F1, beautiful photos, exquisite reviews, three, four pages and one problem, it landed in Brazil 60 days late.
Fascinated by the Germanic race track, I learned its history and tradition, which began during the German Empire. King William, at the request of the car manufacturers, decided to support the construction of not only a track, but also a permanent test site for the German automotive industry.
As a result of the First World War, the project, although completed, was forgotten. In 1918, William abdicated the throne, the monarchy ended, and Germany was devastated by war, inflation, unemployment, and poverty.
Otto Creutz, president of the Deutsche Automobile Club, never gave up on the Nurburgring, and convinced the mayor of Cologne to go ahead with the project. The benefits would be manifold, employing 2,500 workers, and stimulating development and progress in the region.
Construction begins 1925, first race 1927, winner Rudolf Caracciola. Then came the second war (1939), the racetrack, its facilities and grandstands, served for refugees from bombed German cities.
Green plains, around the track, were transformed into vegetable gardens, pastureland, and finally completing the destruction, the asphalt was seriously compromised by the circulation of allied tanks after the invasion of the country. After years of renovation (1949) it emerged again, challenging, extensive, terrifying.
Back to the Nurburgring 1967... Ickx, with his time in practice, would occupy the front row in a 3-2-3 formation, but the organizers decided that the F2s would be positioned at the rear of the main category, 30 meters apart. Jacky pole position in his class, 23.9 seconds faster than the second best F2, will start in P18, with seventeen F1 cars ahead of him.
On a warm, sunny afternoon, Ickx set off fast, snaking through the forest, halfway up the Eifel hills around Adenau. End of lap one and he was in P12 - Lap three in P5, he had passed twelve F1 cars with the 1600 cc Matra - Lap four Jim Clark breaks down, Dan Gurney leads - Jacky overtakes Cris Amon's Ferrari on lap five, now occupies P4 and is closing in on third Jack Brabham.
The machine shows signs of fatigue, succumbs to the fury of its driver and the hardships of the circuit, Amon regains position. Ickx holds on to fifth place, but with three laps to go he gives up for good, with a broken suspension.
Surrounded by a plethora of reporters, Jacky is discreet: "There are 17 points where the cars lose contact with the ground. I raced twice at the Nurburgring, long races through the night, first with a Mustang, then in the Lotus Cortina, I know the track very well.
Two months later Jacky Ickx debuts in F1, Monza, and P6 driving a Cooper-Maserati, the following year 1968 hired by Ferrari. The first victory was achieved in the French GP. Fifth race for the house of Maranello, as always in adverse conditions where the braves shine.
Rouen-les-Essarts... It used streets and roads of the region, without escape areas, blind spot with unevenness in the downhill curves, very dangerous circuit and a lot of rain during the French stage. One driver, Jo Schlesser, Honda team, would burn to death in this race. Jacky Ickx won, leading from the first to the last lap.
Asked if he liked the rain, he replied: "I hate racing in the wet, it involves too much danger, I think occasionally my opponents get even more upset. A polemic attitude was to leave the GPDA, the drivers' association led by Stewart in defense of safety: "I can't imagine a race interrupted because of rain, or boycotting a certain track on the grounds of insecurity, our work represents risk, winning without difficulty is like winning without honor.
Jacques Bernard Ickx raced in 114 GPs with 50 retirements, 8 victories, two of them in the selective Nurburgring, two others, France and Holland in the rain, the remaining four in normal conditions. Six times winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, champion of the Can-Am series (1979) and one victory in the Paris-Dakar Rally.
Antonio Carlos Mello Cesar
São Paulo - SP