# 1979 German Formula Three Championship

The 1979 German Formula Three Championship (German: 1979 Deutsche Formel-3-Meisterschaft) was a multi-event motor racing championship for single-seat open wheel formula racing cars held in Germany. The championship featured drivers competing in two-litre Formula Three racing cars which conformed to the technical regulations, or formula, for the championship. It commenced on 11 March at Circuit Zolder and ended at Kassel-Calden on 7 October after seven rounds (the first Nürburgring round was cancelled due to snowfall).
Klaus Zimmermann Racing Team driver Michael Korten became a champion. He won races at Fassberg, Nürburgring and Kassel-Calden. Hans-Georg Bürger won the race at Diepholz and finished as runner-up. Walter Lechner completed the top-three in the drivers' standings. Ernst Maring, Thierry Boutsen and Michael Bleekemolen were the only other drivers who were able to win a race in the season.

## Teams and drivers

Entry List :
| Team | Driver | Chassis | Engine | Rounds |
| AC Mayen | Konrad Heberer | Derichs D36/F3-76-01 | BMW | 1–2 |
| Andy Wietzke | Andy Wietzke | Ralt RT1 | Toyota | 1–7 |
| Armin Conrad | Armin Conrad | Argo JM1 | Toyota | 8 |
| Auto Zeitung Nachwuchsförderung | Georg Bellof | Ralt RT3/168 | Toyota | 1–3, 5–8 |
| Bernd Heuer | Bernd Heuer | Maco 376/M001 | Ford | 4 |
| Bernd Wicks | Bernd Wicks | Chevron B38 | Toyota | 2–3, 5–7 |
| Bertram Schäfer Racing | Harald Brutschin | Ralt RT1/122 | Toyota | 8 |
| Bertram Schäfer Racing | Hans-Georg Bürger | Ralt RT1/49 | Toyota | 1–3, 5–8 |
| Bertram Schäfer Racing | Heinrich Heintz | Ralt RT1/23 | BMW | 1–2, 4, 6–7 |
| Bertram Schäfer Racing | Hannelore Werner | Ralt RT1/122 | Toyota | 7 |
| Bose HiFi Racing Team | Urs Dudler | Ralt RT1 | BMW | 8 |
| Bose HiFi Racing Team | Peter Kroeber | Derichs D37/F3-78-04 | Toyota | All |
| Dietmar Flöer | Dietmar Flöer | March 712M/7 | BMW | 4 |
| Ecurie Elf | Richard Dallest | Martini MK27 | Toyota | 2, 8 |
| Ecurie Motul Nogaro | Philippe Streiff | Martini MK27 | Toyota | 2, 8 |
| Egert Haglund | Egert Haglund | March 733 | Toyota | 2, 7 |
| Ernst Maring | Ernst Maring | Maco 379/M024 | Toyota | 2–8 |
| Formel Rennsport Club | Bruno Huber | Argo JM1/006-F3 | Toyota | 8 |
| Formel Rennsport Club | Hanspeter Kaufmann | Chevron B38 | Toyota | 6–7 |
| Formel Rennsport Club | Marcus Simeon | March 783 | Toyota | 4, 6, 8 |
| Formel Rennsport Club | Fridolin Wettstein | Ralt RT1/59 | Toyota | 5 |
| Formel Rennsport Club | Marcel Wettstein | Ralt RT1/59 | Toyota | 2, 6 |
| Formel Rennsport Club | Jo Zeller | March 783/1 | Toyota | 2, 8 |
| Franz-Josef Kaiser | Franz-Josef Kaiser | Ralt RT1 | Toyota | 3 |
| Frithjof Erpelding | Frithjof Erpelding | Derichs D37/F3-78-02 | Toyota | 7 |
| Georg Florescu | Georg Florescu | Chevron | Toyota | 2, 4 |
| Gero Fleck | Gero Fleck | Ralt RT1 | Toyota | 7–8 |
| Hans Kitsz | Hans Kitsz | Ralt RT1 | Toyota | 6 |
| Hans-Jürgen Weber | Hans-Jürgen Weber | GRD | Ford | 4 |
| Helmut Bross Racing | Helmut Bross | Chevron B43 | Toyota | All |
| Herbert Rostek | Herbert Rostek | Maco 377/M008 | Toyota | 3 |
| Jägermeister Racing Team | Dieter Bohnhorst | Maco 376/M011 | Toyota | 1, 3 |
| Jim Beam Team | Jo Gartner | Martini MK27 | Renault | 2, 6–8 |
| Jim Beam Team | Willy Weiss | Ralt RT1 | Toyota | 6 |
| Jörg Reto | Jörg Reto | Argo JM1 | Toyota | 7 |
| Klaus Zimmermann Racing Team | Franz Konrad | Chevron B43 | Toyota | 6–7 |
| Klaus Zimmermann Racing Team | Michael Korten | March 783/29 | Toyota | 1–3, 5–8 |
| Konrad Racing | Franz Konrad | Chevron B43 | Toyota | 3, 8 |
| Kurt Lotterschmid | Kurt Lotterschmid | Ralt RT1 | Toyota | 7 |
| KWS Motorsport | Bernd Breil | March 753 | BMW | 4–8 |
| KWS Motorsport | Franz Konrad | Chevron B43 | Toyota | 1–2 |
| KWS Motorsport | Karl Schuchnig | Chevron B47 | Toyota | 2, 5–6 |
| KWS Motorsport | Jürgen Schlich | Chevron B38 | Toyota | 1–2 |
| KWS Motorsport | Alan Smith | Chevron B47/47–79–09 | Toyota | 2, 5 |
| Leo Andersson | Leo Andersson | Ralt RT1/37 | Toyota | 5 |
| Lista Racing Team | Bruno Eichmann | Argo JM3 | BMW | 2, 5, 8 |
| Lista Racing Team | Jürg Lienhard | March 793 | Toyota | 2, 8 |
| Marlboro Valtellina Racing Team | Daniele Albertin | Ralt RT1 | Toyota | 2, 8 |
| MCS Stuttgart | Reinhold Uhl | March 743/3 | BMW | 1–2, 4 |
| Meltonian Racing | Bengt Trägardh | Ralt RT1/12 | Toyota | 6 |
| Peter Cornand | Peter Cornand | Chevron B43 | Toyota | 2–6, 8 |
| Peter Hoffmann | Peter Hoffmann | Ralt RT1/25 | BMW | 7 |
| Peter Wicks | Peter Wicks | Chevron B38 | Toyota | 2–7 |
| Peter Wisskirchen | Peter Wisskirchen | Ralt RT1/137 | Toyota | 1–5, 7–8 |
| Racing Team Holland | Arie Luyendijk | Argo JM3 | Toyota | 2, 8 |
| The RMC Group | Kenny Acheson | March 793/13 | Toyota | 6–7 |
| Roger Heavens Racing | Michael Bleekemolen | March 793/19 | Toyota | 2, 6, 8 |
| Roger Heavens Racing | Thierry Boutsen | March 793 | Toyota | 1–2, 6, 8 |
| RT Gätmo Tuning | Michael Baumann | Eufra H18 | Toyota | 7 |
| RT Gätmo Tuning | Walter Lechner | March 783 | Toyota | All |
| RT Gätmo Tuning | Jürgen Schlich | Chevron B38 | Toyota | 6–8 |
| RT Gätmo Tuning | Willy Weiss | Ralt RT1 | Toyota | 7–8 |
| Sauber Racing | Beat Blatter | Lola T670 | Toyota | 8 |
| Sauber Racing | Max Welti | Lola T670 | Toyota | 8 |
| Scuderia Avus | Olaf Höhn | Derichs D37/F3-78-03 | BMW | 2, 4–6 |
| Scuderia Colonia | Willi Hüsgen | Brabham BT28 | BMW | 1, 4 |
| Schick Toyota Chilean Team | Eliseo Salazar | Ralt RT3/160 | Toyota | 6 |
| Strike Ten Racing Team | Slim Borgudd | Ralt RT1/126 | Toyota | 2, 8 |
| Thomas Holert | Thomas Holert | Maco 378/M017 | Toyota | All |
| Thorbjörn Carlsson | Thorbjörn Carlsson | Ralt RT1/110 | Toyota | 2, 4 |
| Volkswagen Motorsport – Spiess Tuning | Helmut Henzler | March 793 | Volkswagen | 2, 8 |
| Walter Schöch Racing | Walter Schöch | Ralt RT1/45 | Toyota | 4 |

## Calendar

All rounds were held in West Germany, excepting Zolder rounds that were held in Belgium.
| Round | Location | Circuit | Date | Supporting |
| 1 | Heusden-Zolder, Belgium | Circuit Zolder | 11 March | X. AvD/MVBL "Bergischer Löwe" |
| 2 | Nürburg, West Germany | Nürburgring | 1 April | XIV. ADAC Goodyear 300 km Rennen |
| 3 | Fassberg, West Germany | Fassberg Air Base | 6 May | ADAC Flugplatzrennen Faßberg |
| 4 | Wunstorf, West Germany | Wunstorf Air Base | 27 May | ADAC Flugplatz-Rennen Wunstorf |
| 5 | Diepholz, West Germany | Diepholz Airfield Circuit | 22 July | 12. ADAC-Flugplatzrennen Diepholz |
| 6 | Heusden-Zolder, Belgium | Circuit Zolder | 19 August | 13. ADAC-Westfalen-Pokal-Rennen |
| 7 | Nürburg, West Germany | Nürburgring | 23 September | VI. ADAC-Bilstein-Super-Sprint |
| 8 | Kassel-Calden, West Germany | Kassel-Calden Circuit | 7 October | ADAC-Hessen-Preis |

## Results

| Round | Circuit | Pole Position | Fastest Lap | Winning driver | Winning team |
| 1 | Circuit Zolder | Michael Korten | Thierry Boutsen | Thierry Boutsen | Roger Heavens Racing |
| 2 | Nürburgring | The round was cancelled due to snowfall | The round was cancelled due to snowfall | The round was cancelled due to snowfall | The round was cancelled due to snowfall |
| 3 | Fassberg Air Base | Hans-Georg Bürger | no data | Michael Korten | Klaus Zimmermann Racing Team |
| 4 | Wunstorf Air Base | no data | no data | Ernst Maring | Ernst Maring |
| 5 | Diepholz Airfield Circuit | Hans-Georg Bürger | no data | Hans-Georg Bürger | Bertram Schäfer Racing |
| 6 | Circuit Zolder | Hans-Georg Bürger | Kenny Acheson | Michael Bleekemolen | Roger Heavens Racing |
| 7 | Nürburgring | Michael Korten | no data | Michael Korten | Klaus Zimmermann Racing Team |
| 8 | Kassel-Calden Circuit | Michael Bleekemolen | Helmut Henzler | Michael Korten | Klaus Zimmermann Racing Team |

## Championship standings

* Points are awarded as follows:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| 20 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Pos | Driver | ZOL1 | NÜR1 | FAS | WUN | DIE | ZOL2 | NÜR2 | KAS | Points |
| 1 | Michael Korten | 2 | C | 1 | | 3 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 105 |
| 2 | Hans-Georg Bürger | 3 | C | 4 | | 1 | 2 | 6 | Ret | 73 |
| 3 | Walter Lechner | 7 | C | 2 | 3 | 11 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 62 |
| 4 | Ernst Maring | | C | 9 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 13 | 6 | 53 |
| 5 | Helmut Bross | 8 | C | 3 | 2 | 10 | 9 | 5 | Ret | 51 |
| 6 | Georg Bellof | 5 | C | Ret | | 5 | Ret | 3 | 14 | 38 |
| 7 | Franz Konrad | 6 | C | DNS | | | 3 | 7 | 7 | 38 |
| 8 | Peter Kroeber | 4 | C | 10 | 12 | 4 | Ret | Ret | DNS | 25 |
| 9 | Thomas Holert | 15 | C | 6 | 7 | 9 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 24 |
| 10 | Andy Wietzke | DNS | C | 5 | 6 | Ret | 12 | Ret | | 20 |
| 11 | Peter Wisskirchen | 10 | C | 7 | 5 | Ret | | 12 | Ret | 17 |
| 12 | Jürgen Schlich | Ret | C | | | | 13 | 4 | Ret | 15 |
| 13 | Helmut Henzler | | C | | | | | | 10 | 8 |
| 14 | Harald Brutschin | | | | | | | | 12 | 6 |
| 15 | Peter Cornand | | C | 8 | Ret | 13 | Ret | | 16 | 6 |
| 16 | Peter Wicks | | C | Ret | 9 | Ret | Ret | 11 | | 5 |
| 17 | Walter Schöch | | | | 8 | | | | | 4 |
| 18 | Heinrich Heintz | 11 | C | | 10 | | 16 | Ret | | 4 |
| 19 | Konrad Heberer | 9 | C | | | | | | | 3 |
| 20 | Bernd Wicks | | C | Ret | | Ret | Ret | 10 | | 3 |
| 21 | Uwe Reich | | | | | 12 | | | | 2 |
| 22 | Willi Husgen | DNS | | | 11 | | | | | 1 |
| | Herbert Rostek | | | 11 | | | | | | 0 |
| | Reinhold Uhl | 12 | C | | Ret | | | | | 0 |
| | Peter Bonk | 13 | | | | | | Ret | | 0 |
| | Hans-Jürgen Weber | | | | 13 | | | | | 0 |
| | Dieter Bohnhorst | 14 | | Ret | | | | | | 0 |
| | Bernd Breil | | | | Ret | Ret | Ret | Ret | DNS | 0 |
| | Franz-Josef Kaiser | | | Ret | | | | | | 0 |
| | Georg Florescu | | C | | Ret | | | | | 0 |
| | Dietmar Flöer | | | | Ret | | | | | 0 |
| | Olaf Höhn | | C | | Ret | Ret | Ret | | | 0 |
| | Bernd Heuer | | | | Ret | | | | | 0 |
| guest drivers ineligible to score points |||||||||||
| | Michael Bleekemolen | | C | | | | 1 | | 9 | 0 |
| | Thierry Boutsen | 1 | C | | | | Ret | | Ret | 0 |
| | Slim Borgudd | | C | | | | | | 2 | 0 |
| | Kenny Acheson | | | | | | 3 | 2 | | 0 |
| | Alan Smith | | C | | | 2 | | | | 0 |
| | Daniele Albertin | | C | | | | | | 3 | 0 |
| | Jo Gartner | | C | | | | 15 | Ret | 4 | 0 |
| | Thorbjörn Carlsson | | C | | 4 | | | | | 0 |
| | Jürg Lienhard | | C | | | | | | 5 | 0 |
| | Fridolin Wettstein | | | | | 6 | | | | 0 |
| | Hans Kitsz | | | | | | 7 | | | 0 |
| | Leo Andersson | | | | | 8 | | | | 0 |
| | Hanspeter Kaufmann | | | | | | Ret | 9 | | 0 |
| | Marcel Wettstein | | C | | | | 10 | | | 0 |
| | Karl Schuchnig | | C | | | Ret | 11 | | | 0 |
| | Jo Zeller | | C | | | | | | 11 | 0 |
| | Kurt Lotterschmid | | | | | | | 15 | | 0 |
| | Urs Dudler | | | | | | | | 15 | 0 |
| | Jörg Reto | | | | | | | 16 | | 0 |
| | Marcus Simeon | | | | Ret | | Ret | | DNQ | 0 |
| | Bruno Eichmann | | C | | | Ret | | | Ret | 0 |
| | Willy Weiss | | | | | | Ret | Ret | Ret | 0 |
| | Gero Fleck | | | | | | | Ret | DNS | 0 |
| | Arie Luyendijk | | C | | | | | | Ret | 0 |
| | Eliseo Salazar | | | | | | Ret | | | 0 |
| | Bengt Trägardh | | | | | | Ret | | | 0 |
| | Hannelore Werner | | | | | | | Ret | | 0 |
| | Frithjof Erpelding | | | | | | | Ret | | 0 |
| | Peter Hoffmann | | | | | | | Ret | | 0 |
| | Michael Baumann | | | | | | | Ret | | 0 |
| | Egert Haglund | | C | | | | | Ret | | 0 |
| | Richard Dallest | | C | | | | | | Ret | 0 |
| | Philippe Streiff | | C | | | | | | Ret | 0 |
| | Max Welti | | | | | | | | Ret | 0 |
| | Bruno Huber | | | | | | | | Ret | 0 |
| | Beat Blatter | | | | | | | | Ret | 0 |
| | Armin Conrad | | | | | | | | Ret | 0 |
| | Jean-Yves Simeni | | | | | | | | DNQ | 0 |
| | Tryggve Grönvall | | C | | | | | | DNQ | 0 |
| Pos | Driver | ZOL1 | NÜR1 | FAS | WUN | DIE | ZOL2 | NÜR2 | KAS | Points |
| Colour | Result |
| Gold | Winner |
| Silver | Second place |
| Bronze | Third place |
| Green | Points finish |
| Blue | Non-points finish |
| Blue | Non-classified finish (NC) |
| Purple | Retired (Ret) |
| Red | Did not qualify (DNQ) |
| Red | Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) |
| Black | Disqualified (DSQ) |
| White | Did not start (DNS) |
| White | Withdrew (WD) |
| White | Race cancelled (C) |
| Blank | Did not practice (DNP) |
| Blank | Did not arrive (DNA) |
| Blank | Excluded (EX) |