Karl Kling is a racing driver from Germany who last raced in Formula 1 for Mercedes. Kling has recorded 0 wins and 2 podiums from 11 starts.[1]
A Racer Rating of 6,075 ranks Kling 170th of 40,105 indexed drivers, on an Elo scale where the strongest reach the high 8,000s. It is built from every indexed race in the driver's file, decayed for time since their last race.
| 1955-09-11 | Autodromo Nazionale di Monza | DNF | +8 |
| 1955-07-16 | Aintree | P3 | +112 |
| 1955-06-19 | Zandvoort | DNF | โ143 |
| 1955-06-05 | Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps | DNF | โ48 |
| 1955-01-16 | Autรณdromo Juan y Oscar Gรกlvez | P4 | +74 |
| Rating won | Race | Series | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| +147 | Reims-Gueux 1954 | Formula 1 | P2 |
| +113 | Aintree 1955 | Formula 1 | P3 |
| +104 | Nรผrburgring 1954 | Formula 1 | P4 |
| +88 | Silverstone 1954 | Formula 1 | P7 |
| +88 | Circuit de Pedralbes 1954 | Formula 1 | P5 |
| Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Podiums | DNFs | Poles | Points | Pos | Gain/Loss | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | โธFormula 1 | Mercedes | 5 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 5 | P9 | +3 | 6,250 |
| 1954 | โธFormula 1 | Mercedes | 6 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 12 | P5 | +4,897 | 6,247 |
| Rival | Rating | Raced | Ahead | Behind | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ๐ฆ๐ท Juan Fangio | 6,889 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 0% |
| ๐ฆ๐ท Roberto Mieres | 6,059 | 11 | 5 | 6 | 45% |
| ๐ซ๐ท Jean Behra | 5,968 | 11 | 8 | 3 | 73% |
| ๐ซ๐ท Maurice Trintignant | 5,961 | 11 | 4 | 7 | 36% |
| ๐ฌ๐ง Mike Hawthorn | 6,504 | 10 | 4 | 6 | 40% |
| ๐ฌ๐ง Stirling Moss | 6,330 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 56% |
| ๐บ๐ธ Harry Schell | 6,087 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 100% |
| ๐ซ๐ท Robert Manzon | 5,500 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 88% |
| ๐ฎ๐น Luigi Musso | 6,124 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 57% |
| ๐ฎ๐น Luigi Villoresi | 6,019 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 86% |
| ๐ฎ๐น Nino FarinaHigher-rated, 1ร champion | 6,495 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 33% |
| ๐ฆ๐ท Josรฉ Froilรกn GonzรกlezHigher-rated | 6,286 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 17% |
| # | Driver | Series | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 160 | ๐ซ๐ท Jacques Laffite | FIA GT Championship | 6,099 |
| 161 | ๐ฉ๐ช Jochen Mass | Formula 1 | 6,098 |
| 162 | ๐ฉ๐ช Phil Hill | 24H Series | 6,095 |
| 163 | ๐ณ๐ฟ Nick Cassidy | Formula E | 6,093 |
| 164 | ๐ณ๐ฑ Robin Frijns | WEC | 6,092 |
| 165 | ๐บ๐ธ Shane van Gisbergen | NASCAR Cup Series | 6,092 |
| 166 | ๐บ๐ธ Harry Schell | Formula 1 | 6,087 |
| 167 | ๐จ๐ญ Marc Surer | Formula 1 | 6,086 |
| 168 | ๐ฌ๐ง David Coulthard | Formula 1 | 6,078 |
| 169 | ๐ง๐ท Bruno Senna | WEC | 6,075 |
| 170 | ๐ฉ๐ช Karl Kling | Formula 1 | 6,075 |
| 171 | ๐ฎ๐น Alex Caffi | FIA GT Championship | 6,074 |
| 172 | ๐ณ๐ฟ Mike Thackwell | International Formula 3000 | 6,073 |
| 173 | ๐ฎ๐น Alessandro Nannini | FIA GT Championship | 6,072 |
| 174 | ๐ฌ๐ง David Hobbs | Formula 1 | 6,070 |
| 175 | ๐บ๐ธ Tony Bettenhausen | Formula 1 | 6,070 |
| 176 | ๐ฌ๐ง Mike Hailwood | Formula 1 | 6,069 |
| 177 | ๐ฌ๐ง Taylor Barnard | Formula E | 6,068 |
| 178 | ๐ณ๐ฑ Carel Godin de Beaufort | Formula 1 | 6,067 |
| 179 | ๐ช๐ธ Marc Gene | WEC | 6,067 |
| 180 | ๐บ๐ธ Paul Russo | Formula 1 | 6,067 |
Karl Kling was an established professional racing driver who competed in Formula 1 for Mercedes across 1954 and 1955. He took two podium finishes from 11 starts in the world championship and finished ninth in the 1955 standings.[1]
Kling raced in a Formula 1 field that ran from amateurs to graded professionals. Against the strongest drivers of his era he was a regular midfield runner; he usually finished behind Juan Fangio, who won five world championships between 1951 and 1957, but matched Roberto Mieres closely across their meetings. He took a podium over Mike Hawthorn, who would become the 1958 world champion, and twice finished ahead of Piero Taruffi, an established driver with 18 Formula 1 starts to his name. Mercedes fielded him alongside drivers who would go on to shape the sport's early years.[2]