Carel Godin de Beaufort

Former F1 driver
Name = Carel Godin de Beaufort

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Caption = Carel Godin de Beaufort's "Ecurie Maarsbergen" badge.
Nationality = flagicon|Netherlands Dutch
Years = F1|1957 - F1|1964
Team(s) = Ecurie Maarsbergen ("privateer Porsche and Cooper")
Scuderia Ugolini ("privateer Maserati")
Races = 31 (28 starts)
Championships = 0
Wins = 0
Podiums = 0
Points = 4
Poles = 0
Fastest laps = 0
First race = 1957 German Grand Prix
First win =
Last win =
Last race = 1964 German Grand Prix
Le Mans drivers
Years = 24hLM|1956 – 24hLM|1960, 24hLM|1962 – 24hLM|1963
Teams = "Wolfgang Seidel"
"Ed Hugus"
"privateer"
Porsche System Engineering
Best Finish = 5th (24hLM|1958)
Class Wins = 1 (24hLM|1957)

Jonkheer Carel Pieter Antoni Jan Hubertus Godin de Beaufort (10 April 1934, Maarsbergen – 2 August 1964, Cologne, Germany) was a motor racing driver from the Netherlands. He competed in Formula One between F1|1957 and F1|1964.

He participated in 31 World Championship Grands Prix, becoming the first Dutchman ever to score points in the Formula One World Championship, and numerous non-Championship Formula One races. He was one of the last truly amateur drivers in F1, and ran his own cars — painted the vibrant Dutch racing colour: orange — under the Ecurie Maarsbergen banner, the team taking its name from de Beaufort's country estate. In early years he was considered something of a mobile chicane, and a danger to other drivers on the track. However, in later years he matured into a competent and popular competitor.

Always a Porsche devotee (he only drove two races in anything else) he was a familiar sight at both Championship and non-Championship races in his orange Porsche 718, bought from the Rob Walker Racing Team. Although the 718 was outclassed even in its first year with him, he persisted with it as it was the only design into which he could fit his burly frame. The size of the car, and a streak of self-deprecating humour in de Beaufort himself, earned it the nickname "Fatty Porsche". With stereotypical aristocratic eccentricity he often drove without shoes, [http://www.gpracing.net192.com/drivers/careers/158.cfm] and at his final race in Germany was even seen taking practice laps wearing a Beatles wig, rather than his helmet. [http://8w.forix.com/beaufort.html]

He died after an accident at the Nürburgring, during practice for the 1964 German Grand Prix. Driving the Porsche 718, the car suddenly veered off the track at the infamous Bergwerk corner. He was thrown out of the car and suffered massive injuries to his head, chest and legs. Initially de Beaufort was taken to a local hospital, but on the arrival of his family he was swiftly transferred to a major neurological hospital in Cologne. Sadly even they could not help him, and he died from his injuries three days after the accident.

Complete Formula One World Championship results

()

^* Formula 2 entry.

References

*Mattijs Diepraam, " [http://8w.forix.com/beaufort.html The last knight of Grand Prix racing] ", 8W, May 2000.
* [http://www.gpracing.net192.com/drivers/careers/158.cfm Full GP results]
*cite web |title= dB: The Carel Godin de Beaufort Tribute Site |url= http://8w.forix.com/db// |accessdate= 2007-03-25