Helmuth Koinigg (3 November 1948 – 6 October 1974) was an
Austrian racing driver who died in a crash in the
1974 United States Grand Prix
The 1974 United States Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on October 6, 1974, at the Watkins Glen Grand Prix Race Course in Watkins Glen, New York. It was race 15 of 15 in both the 1974 World Championship of Drivers and the 1974 Inter ...
, in his second Grand Prix start.
Racing career
Koinigg was born in
Vienna. Like several other Formula One drivers, Koinigg's first racing car was a
Mini Cooper, which he had purchased from
Niki Lauda. He raced in
touring cars,
Formula Vee and
Formula Ford before a period in
sports car racing. He subsequently found the finance to buy a seat with
Scuderia Finotto driving their Brabham at his home Grand Prix in 1974, and although he failed to qualify, this led to a contract with
Surtees for the last two races of the season.
After a good showing at the
1974 Canadian Grand Prix
The 1974 Canadian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Mosport Park on 22 September 1974. It was race 14 of 15 in both the 1974 World Championship of Drivers and the 1974 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers.
Niki Lauda wa ...
, Koinigg was beginning to establish himself as a good prospect for 1975. But running near the back in the
US Grand Prix at
Watkins Glen, Koinigg's car suffered a suspension failure at turn 7, pitching it head-on into the
Armco barrier
Traffic barriers (sometimes called Armco barriers,AK Steel (formerly Armco) genericized trademark also known in North America as guardrails or guard rails and in Britain as crash barriers) keep vehicles within their roadway and prevent them from ...
. The speed at which Koinigg crashed was relatively low, and he ought to have escaped the accident uninjured. However, as with a number of other circuits at that time, the Armco was insecurely installed and the bottom portion of it buckled as the vehicle struck it. The car passed underneath the top portion, which remained intact, decapitating Koinigg and killing him instantly. Koinigg's accident was reminiscent of the death of Formula One driver
François Cevert at the same track the previous year, and
Romain Grosjean's non-fatal crash at the
2020 Bahrain Grand Prix
The 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2020) was a Formula One motor race that took place over 57 laps on 29 November 2020 on the 'Grand Prix Circuit' configuration at the Bahrain Internationa ...
.
Complete Formula One results
(
key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
)
24 Hours of Le Mans results
References
External links
Koinigg's profile at www.grandprix.com
1948 births
1974 deaths
Sportspeople from Vienna
Austrian racing drivers
Austrian Formula One drivers
Deaths by decapitation
Racing drivers who died while racing
Sports deaths in New York (state)
24 Hours of Le Mans drivers
Formula Super Vee Champions
Silvio Moser Racing Team Formula One drivers
Surtees Formula One drivers
World Sportscar Championship drivers
{{F1-bio-stub
Formel Super Vau drivers
Porsche Motorsports drivers