Otto Stuppacher

Born : March 3 1947
Deceased : August 13 2001

Biography Otto Stuppacher

Otto Stuppacher was born in Vienna (Austria). His mother had inherited one of the largest property management companies in Austria.  From his early childhood, Stuppacher only had one dream: becoming a race driver and even F1 World Champion.  Because of his mother’s inheritance, money was no problem. The wealth allowed Stuppacher to chase his dreams and become a race driver. During his career, Stuppacher raced largely as an independent. Otto Stuppacher recorded 4 attempts to compete in a World Championship Formula 1 Grand Prix, and all of them ended in disaster. As a result, he is regarded one of the most unsuccessful Formula 1 drivers in history.

Sportscar Racing

His first race appearance dates back to 1968 when he drove a Mini Cooper. Later he bought himself a Porsche 906 Carrera 6 in some national sportscar events. Just one year later,  Stuppacher already started competing in international events in his Porsche 906. In the 1969 World Sportscar Championship, he finished second in class, 12th place overall in the 1000 Km of Monza, sharing the wheel with Kurt Rieder in his Porsche 906, entered by the Bosch Racing Team. In July of that year, he finished eighth in the Eröffnungs-Rennen, the inaugural race at the newly opened Österreichring, in a Porsche 910 and a month later, in the 1000 Km of Zeltweg, he shared the same car with another youngster from Wien, named Niki Lauda.

Later in the season, Stuppacher took part in national sportscar races, driving the Porsche 910. He took a class victory in the Preis von Tirol, at Innsbruck in October 1969. In 1970, Stuppacher continued racing the Bosch Racing Team’s Porsche 910. He took one outright win on the Těrlicko street circuit in Czechoslovakia. In 1971, Stuppacher progressed to a 3-litre Porsche 908/02 spyder he purchased from Lauda, driving the car in the Interserie and achieving the best success of his career by winning the Austrian Hillclimb Championship.

In the World Sportscar Championship in 1972, Otto Stuppacher took a solid ninth place in the 1000 Km of Brands Hatch, once again with his friend Kurt Rieder as teammate. Then he shared the Bosch Racing Team’s Porsche 908/02 with different co-drivers, all from Austria, including Helmut Marko in the 1000 Km of Monza – they failed to start the race because of engine failure -, Lambert Hofer and Walter Roser. With the latter, Stuppacher made his debut in the 24 Hour of Le Mans. The pair started 21st on the grid, but the car lasted only two hours before Stuppacher crashed. In the final round of the European season, the 1000 Km of Zeltweg, Stuppacher and Rieder drove an Abarth 2000 for Bosch Racing Team, not finishing the race. Otto had raced the car in Austrian hillclimbs during the season.

Stuppacher and Formula 1

In 1976, Stuppacher aimed even higher and started his Formula 1 adventure. Just before the Austrian Grand Prix in August 1976 at the Österreichring, the Austrian ÖASC Racing Team purchased a two-year-old Tyrrell 007-Ford Cosworth, formerly driven by Jody Scheckter, and a March 761-Ford Cosworth. They planned to enter the cars in the race for Otto Stuppacher and Karl Oppitzhauser. Both drivers were refused to participate in the event due to their lack of experience. Their request to the other F1 teams for support remained unanswered.

Unlike Stuppacher, Oppitzhauser decided not to make any further attempts at Formula 1. Stuppacher instead filed an entry in the subsequent Italian Grand Prix at Monza, scheduled to be contested a month later. He tried to qualify for the race but his #39 Tyrrell 007 was the slowest car of the pack of 29 cars. Since only 26 cars were allowed to start the race,  Stuppacher’s 2nd attempt to start an F1 race seemed to remain unsuccessful too. A bitterly disappointed Stuppacher left the circuit and flew back home to Austria, immediately after Saturday’s qualifying session.

But, on race day John Watson, James Hunt, and Jochen Mass were penalized due to fuel irregularities. As a result, these three drivers could not start the race. And that placed the 3 slowest drivers, among them Arturo Merzario and Otto Stuppacher on the start grid. Unfortunately for him, Stuppacher was already in Austria when he was summoned, and he missed the opportunity for his Formula 1 debut. 

The Monza adventure had an inspiring effect on Otto Stuppacher’s ambitions. His team’s convoy moved to America with considerable effort to take part in the Grands Prix of Canada at Mosport Park, and USA at Watkins Glen with the Tyrrell. But in Canada Stuppacher was almost eight seconds slower than the 24th and last qualified car – the Wolf Williams FW05-Ford Cosworth of Merzario. The other drivers banded together and asked Stuppacher to give up. Their action bothered him, but only briefly. One week later, at Watkins Glen, Stuppacher tried again to qualify. Under pouring rain, his qualifying time was over 27 seconds off the time of Hunt’s pole position, a record gap in an official Formula 1 race that still stands today. With that vain qualifying attempt, Stuppacher’s Formula 1 career came to an end.

After the disillusion of his Formula 1 adventure, Stuppacher didn’t have the fun he used to have in racing. His name only showed up on entry lists every once and a while. Little is known about the activities of Stuppachter after 1977. It looks like he lived an anonymous life in Vienna, where he was found dead in his apartment August 13 2001.

Year: 1968

Date	Race	No.	Car	Drivers	Entrant	Result
6.10.1968	Aspern [SRP]	28	Porsche 906	Otto Stuppacher	Otto Stuppacher	12th
13.10.1968	Preis von Tirol [Sports]		Porsche 906	Otto Stuppacher		DNF

Year: 1969

Date	Race	No.	Car	Drivers	Entrant	Result
25.4.1969	1000 km Monza	57	Porsche 906	Stuppacher / Rieder	Otto Stuppacher	12th
1.6.1969	1000 km Nürburgring	82	Porsche 906	Stuppacher / Rieder	Bosch Racing Team, Vienna	DNA
27.7.1969	Zeltweg [S/P/GT]	14	Porsche 910	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team	8th
27.7.1969	Zeltweg [S/P/GT]	15	Porsche 906	In entry list only	Bosch Racing Team	3rd
10.8.1969	1000 km Zeltweg	25	Porsche 910	Stuppacher / Lauda	Bosch-Racing-Team	21st
21.9.1969	Preis von Salzburg	14	Porsche 910	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team	6th
5.10.1969	Preis von Tirol [SP]	7	Porsche 910	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team	7th
12.10.1969	Salzburgring [SRP]	7	Porsche 910	Otto Stuppacher		raced

Year: 1970

Date	Race	No.	Car	Drivers	Entrant	Result
5.4.1970	Zeltweg International	10	Porsche 910	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing-Team	raced
19.4.1970	500 km Zolder	18	Porsche 906	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team Wien	DNA
19.4.1970	500 km Zolder	20	Porsche 910	Hofer / Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team Wien	5th
25.4.1970	1000 km Monza	27	Porsche 910	Stuppacher / Huber	Bosch Vienna	DNA
9.5.1970	MEZ MR CZ Těrlicko	10	Porsche 910	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team	1st
24.5.1970	Euro 2L Salzburgring	23	Porsche 910	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team	raced
28.6.1970	Interserie Norisring	56	Porsche 910	Otto Stuppacher		DNA
5.7.1970	Euro 2L Hockenheim	33	Porsche 910	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team	DNF
19.7.1970	GP Mugello	70	Porsche 910	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team	raced
20.9.1970	500 km Spa	15	Porsche 910	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team	7th
11.10.1970	1000 km Zeltweg	27	Porsche 910	Stuppacher / Breinsberg	Bosch Racing Team	DNS
11.10.1970	1000 km Zeltweg	32	Porsche 906	Rieder / Stuppacher / Pust	Bosch Racing Team	13th
18.10.1970	Nürburgring [SRP]	43	Porsche 910	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team	DNA
1.11.1970	6 h Jarama	21	Porsche 910	Otto Stuppacher		DNA

Year: 1971

Date	Race	No.	Car	Drivers	Entrant	Result
25.4.1971	1000 km Monza	24	Porsche 908/02	Stuppacher / Rieder	Bosch Racing Team	DNS
6.6.1971	Interserie Zolder	55	Porsche 908/02	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team	DNF
27.6.1971	1000 km Zeltweg	9	Porsche 908/02	Stuppacher / Rieder	Otto Stuppacher	DNA
4.7.1971	Interserie Hockenheim	55	Porsche 908/02	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team Vienna	DNA
22.8.1971	Kassel-Calden [SRP+1.6]		Porsche 908/02	Otto Stuppacher	Otto Stuppacher	3rd
29.8.1971	Mendig [SRP+1.3]	4	Porsche 908/02	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team Austria	DNA
12.10.1971	1000 km Barcelona	5	Porsche 908/02	Stuppacher / Rieder	Bosch Vienna	DNA

Year: 1972

Date	Race	No.	Car	Drivers	Entrant	Result
16.4.1972	1000 km Brands Hatch	2	Porsche 908/02	Stuppacher / Rieder	Bosch Racing Team Vienna	9th
25.4.1972	1000 km Monza	8	Porsche 908/02	Stuppacher / Marko	Bosch Racing Team	DNS
7.5.1972	1000 km Spa		Porsche 908/02	Stuppacher / Hofer	Otto Stuppacher	DNA
11.6.1972	24 h Le Mans	58	Porsche 908/02	Stuppacher / Roser	Bosch Racing Team	DNF
18.6.1972	Mainz-Finthen [SRP+1.6]	9	Porsche 908/02	Otto Stuppacher	Otto Stuppacher	DNA
25.6.1972	1000 km Zeltweg	11	Porsche 908/02	Otto Stuppacher	Bosch Racing Team	DNA
27.8.1972	Can-Am Road America	48	Porsche 908/02	Otto Stuppacher	McGray’s Auto Mart	DNA

Year: 1973

Date	Race	No.	Car	Drivers	Entrant	Result
4.2.1973	24 h Daytona	19	Porsche 908/02	In entry list only	Harry Bytzek	12th

Year: 1977

Date	Race	No.	Car	Drivers	Entrant	Result
17.4.1977	500 km Dijon	9	Deutsch Special Porsche 908	Stuppacher / Plöderl	Deutsch Brothers	DNA
24.4.1977	500 km Monza	8	Deutsch Special Porsche 908	In entry list only	Deutsch Brothers Racing	DNS

Race results courtesy Racing Sports Cars