Matra MS120

Equipe Matra Sports

Company type	Motorsport team
Industry	Formula One racing
Headquarters	Vélizy-Villacoublay , France
Key people	Gérard Ducarouge, Bernard Boyer
Products	Formula One cars (MS9, MS10, MS11, MS80, MS84, MS120)

The Matra MS120 represented the sixth and concluding Formula One chassis crafted by Equipe Matra Sports. It succeeded the earlier MS9, MS10, MS11, MS80, and MS84 models.

Development

The initial MS120 was further refined into the MS120B, MS120C, and MS120D variants. Constructed at Matra’s Formula One facility located in Vélizy-Villacoublay, near Paris, the car's design was overseen by Gérard Ducarouge and Bernard Boyer.

In 1970, following a collaboration with Simca, Matra proposed that Tyrrell Racing adopt its own Matra V12 engine instead of the Cosworth unit. Although Jackie Stewart conducted tests with this engine, Tyrrell’s financial commitments to Ford and Elf’s sponsorship ties with Renault prevented this engine partnership from proceeding.

For the 1970 season, Matra fielded a fully French driver roster featuring Jean-Pierre Beltoise alongside Henri Pescarolo.

1970

During the 1970 South African Grand Prix, Beltoise secured fourth place while Pescarolo finished seventh. Both drivers retired due to engine troubles at the Spanish Grand Prix. Pescarolo earned a podium finish by coming in third at Monaco; however, Beltoise retired because of a differential malfunction. At Belgium, Beltoise achieved third place and Pescarolo came sixth despite electrical difficulties.

In subsequent events, Beltoise placed fifth and Pescarolo eighth at the Dutch Grand Prix; Pescarolo finished fifth while Beltoise ran out of fuel and ended thirteenth in France; both retired from the British Grand Prix due to mechanical failures and accidents.

Pescarolo claimed sixth position in Germany whereas Beltoise withdrew with suspension issues. At Austria, Beltoise finished sixth and Pescarolo came fourteenth. In Italy, Beltoise again reached the podium with third place while Pescarolo retired because of engine failure.

During the Canadian Grand Prix, Pescarolo placed seventh and Beltoise eighth. The United States GP saw Pescarolo finish eighth while Beltoise retired owing to handling complications. Lastly, at Mexico, despite a race delay caused by crowd control problems, Beltoise took fifth and Pescarolo ninth.

For the 1971 campaign, Pescarolo was replaced by New Zealander Chris Amon.

1971

Matra retained French driver Jean-Pierre Beltoise and introduced New Zealander Chris Amon for 1971, competing with the updated Matra MS120B model. After an accident during the 1971 1000 km Buenos Aires event while driving for Matra’s sports car division, Beltoise’s international racing license was suspended. Amon triumphed at the Non-Championship 1971 Argentine Grand Prix and secured fifth place in the season-opening South African Grand Prix. Beltoise returned at the Spanish Grand Prix finishing sixth while Amon achieved third place.

At Monaco, both drivers retired due to differential failures. During the Dutch Grand Prix, Beltoise finished ninth whereas Amon retired following a spin. At Matra’s home race in France, Amon came fifth with Beltoise seventh. The British Grand Prix concluded with Beltoise in seventh place and Amon retiring because of engine failure. Only Amon participated in Germany where he retired after an accident.

Matra did not compete in Austria but entered Amon alone for Italy where he earned pole position and finished sixth, mounting a challenge against Ferrari on their home turf. At Canada, Beltoise retired due to an accident while Amon completed tenth. The season wrapped up at the United States Grand Prix with Beltoise placing eighth and Amon twelfth.

In 1971, Matra designated Amon as team leader, which led to tensions with Beltoise who subsequently moved to British Racing Motors (BRM) for 1972.

1972

In 1972, Chris Amon remained with Matra, commencing the year behind the wheel of the MS120C before transitioning to the MS120D during the season. The campaign started on a challenging note as gearbox malfunctions plagued the team at both the Argentine GP and South African GP, with similar issues recurring at the Spanish GP. Nevertheless, Amon managed to achieve two sixth-place results at the Monaco and Belgium races. At the French GP, he earned pole position and maintained the lead until a tire puncture necessitated a pit stop; despite this setback, he recovered to finish third while setting a new lap record at Charade Circuit. His season also included a fourth-place finish at the British GP and fifth at the Austrian GP. Mechanical difficulties persisted, including brake failure during the Italian GP, but Amon secured sixth place at the Canadian GP. The season concluded with a 15th place at the United States GP. After this season, Matra exited Formula One to concentrate efforts on Le Mans.

Complete Formula One World Championship results

(key) (results in bold denote pole position; results in italics represent fastest lap)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Tyres	Drivers	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	Points	WCC
1970	Equipe Matra Elf	MS120	Template:Goodyear		RSA	ESP	MON	BEL	NED	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	ITA	CAN	USA	MEX	23	7th
				Jean-Pierre Beltoise	4	Ret	Ret	3	5	13	Ret	Ret	6	3	8	Ret	5
				Henri Pescarolo	7	Ret	3	6	8	5	Ret	6	14	Ret	7	8

Non-Championship Formula One Results

(key) (Entries in bold denote pole positions) (Entries in italics signify fastest laps)

Year	Team	Car Model	Engine	Tyres	Drivers	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
Template:F1	Equipe Matra Elf	Matra MS120	Matra V12	Template:Goodyear		ROC	INT	OUL
					Jean-Pierre Beltoise	Retired
Template:F1	Equipe Matra Sports	Matra MS120B	Matra V12	Template:Goodyear		ARG	ROC	QUE	SPR	INT	RIN	OUL	VIC
					Chris Amon	1st		4th		12th
					Jean-Pierre Beltoise					style="background:#EFCFFF;"| Retired