Matra kept Frenchman Jean-Pierre Beltoise, and New Zealander Chris Amon joined Matra using the Matra MS120B specification version for 1971. Beltoise was in difficulty following the 1971 1000 km Buenos Aires; racing for the Matra sports car team; he was involved in the accident in which Ignazio Giunti died, and Beltoise's international racing licence was suspended for some time. Amon won the Non-Championship Argentine Grand Prix and finished fifth in the first round in the 1971 season in the South African Grand Prix. Beltoise returned for the Spanish Grand Prix finishing sixth and Amon finished third. The Monaco Grand Prix was a bad race with both retiring with differential failures. The Dutch Grand Prix saw Beltoise ninth and Amon retiring after he spun off. Then came the French Grand Prix which was Matra's and Beltoise's home race, with Amon fifth and Beltoise seventh. Next, the British Grand Prix saw Beltoise seventh and Amon retiring with an engine failure. The German Grand Prix saw Matra only entering Amon and retiring because of an accident. Matra missed the Austrian Grand Prix but entered the Italian Grand Prix, where Matra only entered Amon again who took pole and proved an embarrassment to Ferrari at their home track, and finished sixth. Then the Canadian Grand Prix saw Beltoise back but retiring with an accident, and Amon finish 10th. The final race of 1971 was the United States Grand Prix with Beltoise eighth and Amon 12th.