F1 and Le Mans winner Jochen Mass dies aged 78
Jochen Mass achieved plenty of success in sportscars and was a race winner in F1 with McLaren.
F1 race winner and sportscar racing legend Jochen Mass has died at the age of 78.
Mass passed away on Sunday due to complications from a stroke he suffered in February, his family revealed in a heartwarming post on Instagram.
“Today we mourn the loss of a husband, father, grandfather and a racing legend,” the post read.
“It is with heavy hearts that we share the news that Jochen Mass has died today due to complications following a stroke he suffered in February, earlier this year.
“Thank you to everyone for the incredible support we have received. Every single message of positivity was relayed to him, giving him peace and comfort in his last days.
“Beyond mourning his death, we also celebrate his incredible life. A life that he loved sharing with all of you. A life that he lived to the absolute fullest.
“He is racing with all his friends again.”
Mass actively raced in F1 for almost a decade after making his grand prix debut with Surtees at the British GP in 1973.
He received a call-up from McLaren at the end of the 1974 season and scored his first and only F1 race win the following year at the truncated Spanish Grand Prix.
He secured a career-best sixth-place in the championship in 1977, before moving on to ATS Racing, Arrows and eventually March in the twilight years of his F1 career.
He stepped down from grand prix racing at the end of 1982 with eight podiums to his name.
While Mass achieved a fair amount of success in F1, it was in sportscar racing where Moss established himself as a serious contender.
Already a race winner at the Spa 24 Hours with Ford in 1972, Mass finished runner-up at Le Mans in 1982 and won the Sebring 12 Hours outright with Porsche in 1987.
After switching his allegiance to Sauber-Mercedes, he won at Le Mans for the first time with Manuel Reuter and Stanley Dickens in 1989.
He finished his career with 32 victories in world championship-level sportscar competition with Alfa Romeo, Porsche and Sauber-Mercedes.
The German remained affiliated with Mercedes long after hanging up his helmet, serving as both an ambassador and a mentor for the brand’s young drivers.
