‘The best die young’ – Ralf Waldmann would have turned 60 today

‘The best die young’ is a frequently used cliché, and yet it was once again bandied about quite often after 10 March 2018. On that Saturday, the tireless former racing driver Ralf Waldmann died unexpectedly of a heart attack at the age of just 51.

There is no doubt that ‘Waldi’ – as he was affectionately known to everyone – fulfilled all the criteria for this saying from a purely sporting perspective. He lined up on the starting grid for 169 Grands Prix and won 20 of them. This makes the Ennepetal native the second most successful German solo racing driver in terms of GP victories, behind Toni Mang.

Unfortunately, he was never awarded a world championship title, though this did nothing to detract from his popularity. Quite the contrary: it was above all his personal qualities that turned the successful sportsman into a universally popular and highly regarded star. There are practically no people who did not get on with him. Being friendly towards the media is no great feat, and yet some people still fail to manage it. Being friendly towards all fans and never dismissive, no matter how hectic things might be at the time, on the other hand, is. It was a skill that ‘Waldi’ mastered like few others, making him almost unique. Quite simply, he was a fine chap. This was underlined by the fact that, at his funeral and memorial service on 20 March 2018 in Ennepetal – his birthplace and long-time home town – not only did several hundred people attend, but even his former rival Max Biaggi from Italy made the journey.

Yet life had not always been kind to him. Bad advisers and charlatans flocked around him and, time and again, deprived him of the money he had earned through hard work and many sacrifices. His marriage to the racing driver Astrid Grünfelder broke down. Their son Leo did try his hand at mini-bikes, but soon lost interest. Contact with his other son, who lived with his mother in Bavaria, also gradually dwindled.

One of the better decisions he made in his life – and one he made entirely on his own – was to pull out early from Martin Wimmer’s doomed MZ project. With his new partner, Heike Teschner, he had clearly hit the jackpot, and by the time he was hired by Eurosport as a pit lane expert, he was back on a more stable financial footing.

All the fans at the Sachsenring, as well as everyone directly and indirectly connected to the circuit, should be particularly grateful – and no doubt are. For it is largely thanks to him that the German Motorcycle Grand Prix has been held at the Sachsenring since 1998. Last weekend, the event reported a new record attendance for the fifth year running, with a total of 261,813 visitors. Given this, it would be hard to believe that the event was operating at a loss.

When the Motorcycle GPs at the Nürburgring in 1996 and 1997 were something of a disaster in terms of spectator numbers, it was ‘Waldi’, a long-standing resident living near the Nürburgring, who spoke out publicly and vociferously in favour of moving the German Motorcycle World Championship round to where presumably the most and best motorcycling fans are based – the Sachsenring. Mind you, the Motorcycle World Championship had already adopted very high safety standards and professional practices by that time. At the Sachsenring, racing was partly held on roads in an industrial estate, and the teams had only containers available as pit accommodation. It was therefore only fitting that the infamous Turn 11 at the Sachsenring, in its current form, has officially been known as the ‘Ralf Waldmann Turn T11’ since 22 June 2018.

However, the Sachsenring as a race track did not treat him particularly well. In his comeback year of 1998, Waldi was riding a hopelessly outclassed 500cc Modenas, yet still managed to secure his best result of the season with 7th place at the Sachsenring. A year later, he raced to third place on the podium in the 250cc class, but his career was gradually drawing to a close.

The rain-soaked race at Donington Park in 2000 remains unforgettable: he was the only rider to start on wet tyres rather than intermediates, narrowly avoided being lapped by Olivier Jacque at one stage, but then made up ground so quickly on a properly wet track that he was able to snatch victory from the Frenchman in the final metres.

The story of how he competed in the 1988 Nürburgring Grand Prix with an external fixator on his lower leg – the result of a road traffic accident – only for him to crash and the truth to come to light, is also legendary.

Ralf Waldmann’s international career gradually began to take off in 1987, when he scored his first World Championship point by finishing tenth in the 80cc race at his home Grand Prix at the Hockenheimring. It took him four years to finally make it to the very front.

In 1991, again at Hockenheim, he made his first podium appearance, and did so straight away as the winner of the 125cc race. This was also a memorable and unique day because, on that 26 May, there were three German Grand Prix victories in a single day: Helmut Bradl in the 250cc class and the sidecar duo of Ralph Bohnhorst and Bruno Hiller.

Up to and including 1993, Ralf Waldmann won four more times in the 125cc class, finishing the World Championship season in 3rd, 3rd and 4th place respectively, before moving up to the 250cc class. It wasn’t long before his first major success came in that class. At the eighth race of the season (Mugello), he once again lifted the top trophy.

By 2000, he had racked up 14 Grand Prix victories in his new class, with 1996 and 1997 being his best years, although he narrowly lost out to Massimiliano ‘Max’ Biaggi in the battle for the World Championship title on both occasions.

After his active GP career, he was involved in a wide range of projects and returned from time to time as a racing driver, for example in the IDM.

Ten years ago, on 14 July 2016 – which fell on a Thursday – ‘Waldi’ was already at the Sachsenring for the German World Championship round as part of his work as a TV pundit. Without further ado – though in fact it had been planned well in advance by his closest friends – his 50th birthday was celebrated in a small, intimate circle. Those who were there will forever remember that evening, with ‘Waldi’ at its heart.