Austrian
Success Story
In
1966 Kurt Bergmann entered the new racing series “Formula Vee” with his
Austrian racing team Kaimann. In the very same year the Austrian set two single-seater
racing cars on its wheels. Powered by a Volkswagen 1200 cc engine with 45 hp
performance, the racecars accelerated to a top speed of about 160 km/h. The
Kaimann racing team established itself on the scene straight away. For the 1968
racing season the team improved its car with a modified tubular frame and named
it “MK III”. According to Formula Vee regulations it was now allowed to use the
Volkswagen 1300 cc engine. With additional tuning, the engine performance was
brought up to 60 hp. In this season the single-seater racing cars of the
Formula Vee series reached a top speed of up to 180 km/h.
In
the 1969 series Kurt Bergmann relied on the talent of the young Viennese Niki
Lauda, who was only 20 years old. In the previous year Lauda made his racing
debut in a Mini-Cooper and raced straight to 2nd place in his first
hill climb race. Lauda and Erich Breinsberg formed the team, which competed for
Kaimann in the 1969 racing season. With his wins in Monza and Sopron and
several 2nd places, the talented youngster showed that he got along perfectly with
his car and proved his skills. Among insiders the multiply affixed number 7
became the Rookie’s distinctive mark. But in the end it was not enough to win
his first championship title. The title went to his teammate Erich Breinsberg. Lauda
finished third overall; quite a successful year for the Kaimann racing team.
In
1970 Lauda left the Kaimann racing team and moved to the French racing series Formula
Three. One year later he went up to the Formula Two series and finally to the
highest class of single-seater auto racing. With his Formula One titles in 1975,
1977 and 1984 the Austrian went down forever in the history of motorsports.....