It so happened that 1968 started as his lucky year: in South Africa, the Scot Jim Clark took his 25th grand prix victory and was therefore down at the time became the most successful driver in the 18-year history of Formula 1.
Just weeks later, Clark was killed in a comparatively low-key Formula 2 race in Germany at the daunting Hockenheimring. The cause of this fatal accident was put down to a puncture during a run through the forest section of the high-speed circuit – but there were no eyewitnesses.
His death shook the entire sporting to its core, motorsport lost a true hero. Clark, son of a sheep farmer, was seen as a virtuoso at the steering wheel and will always be regarded as one of the greatest racing drivers of all time if not the absolute GOAT.
On that fateful day, a young cameraman, Marten Taege, was documenting proceedings at an event from which very little footage and very few photos exist – tragically it would be Clark’s last race.
This clip provides a unique and intriguing glimpse into the final hours of a truly great F1 driver.
In closing, imagine any of the modern day drivers tightening wheel nuts or pouring petrol into their race cars. Different times.
Jim Clark: 4 March 1936 – 7 April 1968
Note: This piece was first published in 2016.