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Jo Siffert - Death at the height of his career

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Created on October 24, 2011

Reading time 9min

Written by:

Thomas Suter

Photos:

Josef und Daniel Reinhard

Sutton Images

Porsche Archiv

Archiv

Josef und Daniel Reinhard

Sutton Images

Porsche Archiv

Archiv

March 701 (1970) - der nicht konkurrenzfähige March schadete Sifferts Ruf

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Lotus 49 (1968) - beim GP von Mexico kämpfte Jo Siffert (Mitte) mit dem späteren Sieger Graham Hill und Jackie Stewart

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BRM P160 (1971) - in diesem Wagen verunglückte Jo Siffert 1971

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Coupes de Paris, Montlhéry 1961, Sieger Siffert auf Lotus (1961)

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Jo Siffert, früh in seiner Karriere (1961)

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GP del Garda 1961, Jo Siffert auf dem Formel Junior (1961)

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5. Platz für Jo Siffert in der Formel Junior (1961)

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Jo Siffert in einem Bugatti an einer Autoausstellung (1966)

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Jo Siffert und Rob Walker in Watkins Glen (1966)

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beim Grand Prix von Österreich 1969, Siffert beim Boxenstop (1969)

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Jo Siffert auf dem BMW F2, Les Rangiers (1967)

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Jo Siffert wird Ehrenmitglied des Formel Rennsport-Club (1969)

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Joseph Siffert Automobiles in Fribourg (1970)

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Chevron B18 (1971) - Paul Blancpain und Jo Siffert betrachten den brandneuen Chevron

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beim Grand Prix von Monaco 1970, Jo Siffert mit vollem Einsatz (1970)

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Porsche 917 (1970) - Jo Siffert testet den schnellsten Porsche 1970 auf dem Hockenheimring

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BRM V12 (1971) - Jo Siffert in Zeltweg 1971

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Jo Siffert in der Werbung für Firestone (1969)

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Jo Siffert auf dem Oktoberblatt eines Kalenders (1971)

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Porsche 917/10 (1971) - Jo Siffert mit Klaus Bischof vor dem CanAm-Racer

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Jo Siffert mit BRM-Team-Manager Tim Parnell in Monza 1971

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Summary

There are events when time stands still. And everyone can still remember the exact moment later. October 24, 1971 was such a date. The (Swiss) motor racing world held its breath and fell silent: on Sunday afternoon, Jo "Seppi" Siffert was killed in an accident in a non-championship Formula 1 race at Brands Hatch - on the very circuit where he had celebrated his first major victory three years earlier. This article looks back and also shows pictures from Jo Siffert's career

This article contains the following chapters

The last page of the checkbook
Catching up in the last race
Death at the peak of his career
The dry spell
Only one Le Mans victory missing
The finest hour at Brands Hatch
Racing was everything
Fourth place in the drivers' championship and then the end
Companions about Jo Siffert

Estimated reading time: 9min

Preview (beginning of the article)

There are events when time stands still. And everyone can still remember the exact moment later. October 24, 1971 was such a date. The (Swiss) racing world held its breath and fell silent: on Sunday afternoon, Jo "Seppi" Siffert had a fatal accident in a non-championship Formula 1 race at Brands Hatch - on the very circuit where he had celebrated his first major victory three years earlier. 40 years ago, conditions on the racetracks were archaic compared to today. Run-off areas and crash barriers were foreign words. The racing car designers in Formula 1 worked empirically on their designs, the laboratory mice were the pilots, the invention of life-saving carbon was a long way off. There were not even any safety tanks or crumple zones on the racing cars. Fatal accidents were inevitable and yet every driver hoped that he would not be hit. In the 1970 / 1971 season alone, no fewer than five established Formula 1 drivers - Jochen Rindt, Bruce McLaren, Piers Courage, Ignazio Giunti and Pedro Rodriguez - lost their lives!

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