Jochen Richard Mass (September 30, 1946 – May 4, 2025) was a German racing driver who competed in Formula 1 from 1973 to 1982. He scored his only F1 win at the 1975 Spanish Grand Prix while driving for McLaren. Mass died on May 4, 2025 due to complications from a stroke.
Team Surtees
Mass made his Formula 1 debut at the 1973 British Grand Prix with Team Surtees, owned by 500cc and Formula 1 world champion John Surtees. He only competed in three events total that season. He remained with the team for 1974, his first full F1 season, but failed to score points.
McLaren
The German driver raced for McLaren from 1975 until 1977, scoring his win and all seven of his F1 podiums with the British outfit. His three seasons with McLaren would yield his best career finishes: 8th, 9th, and 6th, respectively.
ATS Racing
Mass drove for ATS Racing for the 1978 F1 season, which proved to be a turbulent one for the German team. He had no fewer than six different teammates that year.
Arrows Racing
1979 and 1980 were spent with another British team, Arrows Racing. Mass raced both seasons alonside Riccardo Patrese. His best result with Arrows was a 4th place finish at the 1980 Monaco Grand Prix.
March Grand Prix
After sitting out in 1981, Mass made a return in 1982 with March Grand Prix. He was unfortunately involved in the qualifying crash that took the life of Gilles Villeneuve at Zolder that season. Six rounds later, Mass retired from F1 after a high speed crash at the 1982 French Grand Prix.
Heuer
Heuer has included a Jochen Mass edition (Ref. 42980/43980) in its line of F1 Cavallino helmet clocks from the mid to late 1970s. Mass appeared alongside names like Mario Andretti, James Hunt, Jacky Ickx, Niki Lauda, Jochen Mass, Alain Prost, Clay Regazzoni, and Jody Scheckter.
ELYSEE
Mass was signed as an ambassador for German watch brand ELYSEE in 2008, the second F1 driver after Wolfgang von Trips. Several Jochen Mass special edition watches were released during his time with the brand, mostly around 2013 and 2014.
Related Pages
References
https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/jochen-mass-dies-aged-78/10719887/
https://tagheuerenthusiast.blogspot.com/2018/12/auction-watch-heuer-helmet-alarm-clocks.html
https://magazine.tagheuer.com/en/2024/11/26/2024-04-week4_en_a-matter-of-time-podcast-season-3-the-grand-story-of-formula-1/
https://www.onthedash.com/document/1978-catalog/
https://elysee-watches.com/en/pages/uber-elysee
https://www.ablogtowatch.com/elysee-jochen-mass-magny-court-special-edition-watch-review/
https://www.watchtime.net/brands/elysee/elysee-zeit-maas
https://allwatches.org/de/elysee-jochen-mass-18007~76-p12825/
https://longislandwatch.com/elysee-18008-chronograph-18008/