The Le Mans 24-hour race was created with the aim of testing the quality of production cars and their equipment in race conditions. Over its 93-year long history, the well-known endurance test has more than fulfilled that promise, while writing some of the most glorious pages in motoring history.

1970:Porsche’s first win

1970 was a milestone year for the 24 Hours of Le Mans: firstly, on the sporting front with the battle between Porsche and Ferrari, and also in terms of media coverage with the filming of Steve McQueen’s Le Mans during the race. The clash between Porsche and Ferrari was soon cut short, despite the impressive number of cars fielded: seven 917s and eleven 512 Ss! Floored by technical issues and collisions, the Scuderia lost four of its fastest cars, leaving the way clear for the Porsches, which went on to take overall victory, group and class victories, topping the indexes after starting from pole and beating the lap record! Elsewhere, the presence of Steve McQueen who was there to shoot the race scenes for the film Le Mans caused quite a stir. Legend has it that the American actor secretly drove a night-time stint even though his insurers had forbidden it.

1971: the rolling start

In the 1920s, cars at the 24 Hours of Le Mans were fitted with a removable soft-top. To check that it was secure and could be fitted quickly, the regulations required drivers to fit it at the start of the race and keep it there for the first 20 laps. To prevent drivers from starting to fit the soft-top while they were waiting for the flag to go down, the ACO introduced what is now known as the Le Mans-style run-and-jump start in 1925. However, this was deemed dangerous because many drivers chose not to fasten their harnesses to gain valuable seconds at the start. In protest, Jacky Ickx walked slowly to his car at the 1969 race. He set off from the back of the field but still clinched victory in his GT40! The Le Mans start was modified in 1970: instead of running to their cars, the drivers were already strapped in as they waited for the race to begin. In 1971, there was another change: this time a starting grid was formed along the pit wall, ready for a rolling start, marking a new era in the history of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

1991: Mazda’s triumph

What with the improvement works done at the circuit and hesitations over the FIA regulations, the 1991 race looked somewhat different to previous runnings of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The Sauber-Mercedes were expected to dominate although many spectators had their eye on the Peugeot 905’s debut. The race lived up to expectations: the Sauber-Mercedes ruled the roost and the #1 car looked well on its way to victory until disaster struck with just three hours to go to the finish. At 12:54, the car came into the pits with a mechanical problem and retired shortly afterwards. The Mazda driven by Gachot/Herbert/Weidler had put in a reliable performance with its rotary engine. It took the lead and stayed out in front till the finish. This remains the only victory for a Japanese constructor at Le Mans to this day.