The last knight of Grand Prix racing
Dutch nobleman Carel Godin de Beaufort was Grand Prix racing’s last true amateur. A colourful sportsman purposely wanting to beat the works teams on his own, Carel was a popular figure in the F1, F2 and sportscar paddocks of the late fifties and early sixties. He usually made his towering presence felt by his practical jokes and sledgehammer wit, but his talent couldn’t be underestimated. Often, his Porsches were seen fighting better cars, events which eventually led to Carel becoming Holland’s first F1 World Championship points scorer.
He was respected among his peers, loved by mechanics and adored by the people of his hometown Maarsbergen. Personally faced with the perils of motor racing he left his reckless youth behind and grew into one of the safest pair of hands in the pack. Thus it was a shock when he didn’t return from a practice lap during qualifying for the 1964 German GP.
Carel died 30 years old.