Stefan Bellof - Death

Death

Regarded as a likely future Formula One World Champion, Bellof was racing at the 1000 km of Spa World Sportscar Championship race at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit in Belgium on 1 September 1985, the seventh race of that season's championship. Bellof was making his fourth appearance of 1985 in the series, despite there not being any clashes with his Tyrrell campaign in Formula One. Partnering Thierry Boutsen as he had done in his other appearances during the season, their Brun Motorsport Porsche 956 would start the race from third on the grid, 0.86 seconds adrift of the pole position-winning Lancia LC2.

On lap 78, Bellof was racing Jacky Ickx's works Porsche 962C from the La Source hairpin on the run to Eau Rouge corner. Both drivers had just commenced their stints in their respective cars after Boutsen and Jochen Mass started them. Entering the left kink leading into Eau Rouge, Bellof moved to the left of Ickx in an attempt to set up a pass for the immediate right-hand corner up the hill. Bellof's right front came into contact with Ickx's left rear, and both drivers spun into the barriers. Ickx's car hit the wall on the right rear side, while Bellof's car went straight into the barriers, breaking through and hitting a secondary wall. The Brun Porsche caught fire moments after the wreck, while Ickx – able to climb unaided from his car – attempted to help safety workers in extricating Bellof. During the caution period, members of the Brun team also arrived to aid in the rescue. With smoke pouring from the wreckage, the emergency medical team struggled for over 10 minutes before extricating him. Bellof was pronounced dead of massive internal injuries after he had reached the track hospital.

Out of respect for Bellof, the race organisers chose to end the event some 150 kilometres (93 miles) earlier than planned. The entire incident was recorded on an in-car camera that Ickx's 962C was carrying. Even after the accident, the camera continued to work, and was pointed in the direction of Bellof's wreckage. The accident involving Bellof was the second in the space of three weeks in which a driver was killed at the wheel of a Porsche. At the previous World Sportscar race at Mosport Park in Canada, Bellof's compatriot Manfred Winkelhock died of severe head trauma after crashing into a concrete wall while at the wheel of a Kremer Racing-run Porsche 962C. Many of the customer teams had concerns with using the 956 for the remainder of the season, and the 956 was eventually withdrawn from the series by the end of the 1986 season, taking victory on its final start at the 1000 km of Fuji.