Willi Heeks

Willi Heeks (15 February 1922 - 13 June 1996) was a German racing driver who made a single Formula One World Championship appearance. Born in Germany, Heeks competed in the 1952 German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring, driving a Veritas-Meteor. He qualified 33rd on the grid in the large field and finished 14th in the race, completing 16 of the 18 laps. This represented his only World Championship start, though he competed in German domestic racing during the early 1950s.

Heeks drove for Veritas, a small German constructor that briefly competed in Formula One during the early years of the World Championship. The Veritas cars were generally uncompetitive against the dominant Italian teams of the era, but provided opportunities for German drivers to compete in their home Grand Prix and other events. The 1952 German Grand Prix featured a particularly large entry with numerous German privateers and local drivers, reflecting the enthusiasm for motorsport at the Nürburgring and the opportunity for German competitors to participate in a World Championship event. Heeks was part of the generation of German drivers who helped rebuild German motorsport following World War II, competing during a period when Germany was recovering from the war and before Mercedes-Benz and other German manufacturers would return to international racing in the mid-1950s.

Beyond his single Formula One appearance, Heeks participated in various German national racing events, hillclimbs, and sports car races during the early to mid-1950s. He raced at circuits and venues across Germany, competing in the active German motorsport scene of the era. After his racing career ended, Heeks returned to private life and maintained connections to German motorsport circles. He passed away in June 1996 at the age of 74, remembered as one of the many privateer drivers who contributed to Formula One's early history and represented German motorsport during the championship's formative years.