Equipe Matra Sports

Matra Company's sports division under the name of Matra Sports, Equipe Matra Elf and Equipe Matra Sports (after a takeover by Simca in 1969 as Matra-Simca Division Automobile) was formed in 1965 and based at Champagne-sur-Seine (1965–1967), Romorantin-Lanthenay (1967–1969) and Vélizy-Villacoublay (1969–1979). In 1979 the sports division was taken over by Peugeot and renamed as Automobiles Talbot.[1]

Equipe Matra Sports
BaseVélizy-Villacoublay, Paris, France
Team principal(s)Jean-Luc Lagardère
Founder(s)Jean-Luc Lagardère
Marcel Chassagny
Noted staffGérard Ducarouge
Ken Tyrrell
Bernard Boyer
Noted driversJohnny Servoz-Gavin
Henri Pescarolo
Jackie Stewart
Jean-Pierre Beltoise
Chris Amon
Formula One World Championship career
First entry1967 Monaco Grand Prix
Races entered61
EnginesFord, Matra
Constructors'
Championships		1 (1969)
Drivers'
Championships		1 (1969)
Race victories9
Podiums21
Points163
Pole positions4
Fastest laps12
Final entry1972 United States Grand Prix
Matra as a Formula One engine manufacturer
Formula One World Championship career
First entry1968 Monaco Grand Prix
Last entry1982 Caesars Palace Grand Prix
Races entered126 (125 starts)
ChassisMatra, Shadow, Ligier
Constructors' Championships0
Drivers'
Championships		0
Race victories3
Podiums24
Points173
Pole positions4
Fastest laps5

Motorsports history

In the mid-1960s, Matra enjoyed considerable success in Formula 3 and F2 racing, particularly with the MS5 monocoque-based car, winning the French and European championships. In 1967, Jacky Ickx surprised the F1 establishment by posting the third-fastest qualifying time of 8:14" at the German Nürburgring in his 1600cc Matra MS7 F2, which was allowed to enter alongside the 3000cc F1 cars. In the race, he failed to finish due to a broken suspension.[2]

Jackie Stewart in 1969 with the Matra MS80-Ford at the Nürburgring. The car wears the Bleu de France, the national racing colour of France.
François Cevert driving the Matra MS670 Group 5 Sports Car in the 1973 1000 km Nürburgring race.
V12 engine in a Matra MS11 F1, 1968.
Chris Amon's Matra MS120B used in the 1971 Argentine Grand Prix
Jackie Stewart pictured with the Matra MS84 at the Nürburgring

Matra entered Formula One in 1968 when Jackie Stewart was a serious contender, winning several Grands Prix in the Tyrrell-run Matra MS10 which competed alongside the works team.

The F1 team was established at Vélizy-Villacoublay in the southwestern suburbs of Paris, France.[3] The car's most innovative feature was the use of aviation-inspired structural fuel tanks. These allowed the chassis to be around 15 kg (33 lb) lighter, while still being stronger than its competitors. The FIA considered the technology to be unsafe and decided to ban it for 1970.

Matra CEO Jean-Luc Lagardère made a strategic decision for the 1969 championship: the Matra works team would not compete in Formula One. Matra would instead focus its efforts on Ken Tyrrell's privateer team (renamed Matra International) and build a new DFV powered car with structural fuel tanks, even though it would only be eligible for a single season. The decision was even more radical given that Matra was seeking a partnership with Simca, which would preclude using Ford-branded engines for the following year. Stewart won the 1969 title easily with the new Cosworth-powered Matra MS80, which was designed by Gérard Ducarouge and Bernard Boyer, and corrected most of the weaknesses of the MS10. It was a spectacular achievement from a constructor that had only entered Formula One the previous year. France became only the third country (after the United Kingdom and Italy) to have produced a winning constructor, and Matra became the only constructor to have won the Constructors' Championship without running its own works team.

Like Cosworth, Lotus and McLaren, Matra experimented with four wheel drive during the 1969 season. Johnny Servoz-Gavin became the one and only driver to score a point with a 4WD car, finishing sixth with the Matra MS84 at the Canadian Grand Prix. The MS84, along with Brabham's BT26A, was one of the last spaceframe cars to compete in Formula One.

For 1970 following the agreement with Simca, Matra asked Tyrrell to use their V12 engine rather than the Cosworth. Stewart got to test the Matra V12, but since a large part of the Tyrrell budget was provided by Ford, and another significant sponsor was French state-owned petroleum company Elf, which had an agreement with Renault that precluded supporting a Simca partner, the partnership between Matra and Tyrrell ended.

Matra V12 engines powered the Shadow DN7 car in two races of 1975 and then the Ligier Formula 1 team from 1976–1978, and again from 1981-1982 (branded as Talbot).

The company was also successful in endurance racing with cars powered by the V12 engine. The sportscar team was based at first at Vélizy-Villacoublay and then moved to Le Castellet, near Marseille, France.[4]

The Matra MS670 won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1972, 1973, and 1974. It also delivered the World Championship for Makes to Matra in both 1973 and 1974.

Racing models

Successes
The F1 Matra MS80 victorious in 1969

Complete Formula One World Championship results

As a constructor

(key) (results in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrants Chassis Engine Tyres Drivers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Points WCC
1966 MON BEL FRA GBR NED GER CAN ITA USA MEX N/A N/A
Matra Sports MS5 Ford Straight-4 D Jean-Pierre Beltoise 8
Jo Schlesser 10
Tyrrell Racing Organisation Jacky Ickx Ret
BRM Straight-4 Hubert Hahne 9
1967 RSA MON NED BEL FRA GBR GER CAN ITA USA MEX 0 -
Matra Sports MS5
MS7		 Ford Straight-4 D G Johnny Servoz-Gavin Ret
Jean-Pierre Beltoise DNQ 7 7
Ecurie Ford-France MS5 D Jo Schlesser Ret
Tyrrell Racing Organisation Jacky Ickx Ret
1968 RSA ESP MON BEL NED FRA GBR GER ITA CAN USA MEX 8 9th1
Matra Sports MS11 Matra V12 D Henri Pescarolo Ret DNS 9
Jean-Pierre Beltoise Ret 8 2 9 Ret Ret 5 Ret Ret Ret
MS7 Ford Straight-4 6 45 3rd1
Matra International MS9
MS10		 Ford Cosworth DFV D 5
Jackie Stewart Ret Inj Inj 4 1 3 6 1 Ret 6 1 7
Johnny Servoz-Gavin Ret 2 Ret Ret
1969 RSA ESP MON NED FRA GBR GER ITA CAN USA MEX 66 1st
Matra International MS10
MS80
MS84		 Ford Cosworth DFV D Jackie Stewart 1 1 Ret 1 1 1 2 1 Ret Ret 4
Jean-Pierre Beltoise 6 3 Ret 8 2 9 12 3 4 Ret 5
Johnny Servoz-Gavin 6 NC 8
MS7 Ford Straight-4 Ret
Matra Sports Henri Pescarolo 5
1970 RSA ESP MON BEL NED FRA GBR GER AUT ITA CAN USA MEX 23 6th
Equipe Matra Elf MS120 Matra V12 G Jean-Pierre Beltoise 4 Ret Ret 3 5 13 Ret Ret 6 3 8 Ret 5
Henri Pescarolo 7 Ret 3 6 8 5 Ret 6 14 Ret 7 8 9
1971 RSA ESP MON NED FRA GBR GER AUT ITA CAN USA 9 7th
Equipe Matra Sports MS120B Matra V12 G Jean-Pierre Beltoise 6 Ret 9 7 7 Ret 8
Chris Amon 5 3 Ret Ret 5 Ret Ret 6 10 12
1972 ARG RSA ESP MON BEL FRA GBR GER AUT ITA CAN USA 12 8th
Equipe Matra Sports MS120C
MS120D		 Matra V12 G Chris Amon Ret 15 Ret 6 6 3 4 15 5 Ret 6 15

1 In the 1968 Constructors' Championship, Matra-Ford finished 3rd (45 points), Matra(-Matra) finished 9th (8 points)

References
  1. "Matra (France)". allcarindex.com. Retrieved 26 December 2016.
  2. Steve Small. The Guinness Complete Grand Prix Who's Who. p. 196. ISBN 0851127029.
  3. "Equipe Matra - F1technical.net". f1technical.net. Retrieved 26 December 2016.
  4. "Constructors: Matra Sports SARL". grandprix.com. Retrieved 26 December 2016.
Sporting positions
Preceded by
Lotus		 Formula One Constructors' Champion
1969		 Succeeded by
Lotus
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