RIP Jean Pierre Beltoise

[FB]

Winner of the 1972 Monaco Grand Prix, Jean Pierre Beltoise, has died aged 77. Beltoise raced in the 125 and 250cc motorcycle Grands Prix before moving on to F1. As (probably) the leading French driver of his generation he was helped by Matra's involvement in F1 and raced alongside Jackie Stewart during his Championship year in 1969.

Beltoise's only victory came in a BRM at a very wet Monaco in 1972 and his F1 career ended in 1974. After F1 he won two French Touring Car Championships with BMW and the French Rallycross title in an Alpine-Reanults

Jean Pierre Beltoise - 26th April 1937 to 5th January 2015.

 

[Incubus]

His Monaco victory was also BRM's last Grand Prix win.

He also won the F2 race at Hockenheim when Jim Clark was killed. I remembr seeing a video of him on the podium immediately after he was told of what had happened...

 

[Olivier]

Reposez en paix Mr Beltoise

 

[gethinceri]

He was a very accomplished racer and it's sad to hear of his passing. He should be remembered as one of the great motorsport participants.

 

[Mephistopheles]

This is the first time I've ever heard of him, but RIP anyway..

 

[cider_and_toast]

He was Francois Ceverts brother in law.

 

[Mephistopheles]

That clears that up then...

 

[siffert_fan]

One of the things that is often forgotten is that J-P B had one hand that was severely limited (not unlike Robert Kubica's) from an accident early in his career. I found it laudable that he could rise to the level he did under those circumstances.

One of the most unfortunate aspects of his career is that he caused the death of Giunti by insisting on pushing his disabled car to the pits in Argentina, but not keeping it out of the racing line, where Giunti never saw it and ran into it at racing speed. A truly needless tragedy.