Career
He competed in international Grand Prix motorcycle racing from the 1962 to 1964 seasons in the 50, 125, 250 and 500 cc classes. His best finish was a sixth place in the 1964 50 cc World Championship. In 1963 he was racing a 1.1-litre Rene Bonnet sports car.
His career almost ended with a huge crash in the Reims 12-hour sports car endurance race, in which he suffered a broken arm, so severely damaged, that its movement was permanently restricted.
In 1966, Beltoise drove in the German Grand Prix at the Nurburgring in a Formula Two (F2) one litre Matra MS5-Cosworth. However, it was his only Grand Prix that season.
In 1967 Beltoise competed in three Grands Prix with a Formula Two Matra MS7 1.6 litre Cosworth, and finished seventh at both Watkins Glen and Mexico City. In 1968 Beltoise began the season again with an F2 car but from the second race onward had machinery and finished second in the 1968 Dutch Grand Prix.
In 1969 he was placed in Ken Tyrrell"s Matra team, whilst the works V12 engine was developed driving alongside Jackie Stewart, and finished second in the French grand Prix.
Beltoise returned to the works Matra team for both 1970 and 1971. In 1971, racing in the Matra sports car team, he was involved in the accident in which Ignazio Giunti died during the 1000 km Buenos Aires, and his international racing license was suspended for some time. In 1971 Matra signed Chris Amon as team leader which frustrated Beltoise"s ambitions.
He spent three seasons with Biological Response Modifiers, without much success and finally retired from Formula 1 at the end of the 1974 season.
In 1981 he returned to touring cars and raced for Peugeot throughout the 1980s. He was also a regular ice racer.
In fiction, Beltoise frequently appeared in the Michel Vaillant series of comic books, amongst others being part of the winning Vaillante Le Mans team Beltoise died at his holiday home in Dakar, Senegal, on 5 January 2015, aged 77, following two strokes.
(key) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
(key) (races in italics indicate fastest lap)
In the 1969 German Grand Prix, Beltoise was classified 12th on the circuit but was the 6th car behind six Formula 2 cars, thus scoring one World Championship point.