24h Le Mans
Rain is a frequent visitor to the circuit of the 24 hours, and when it arrives it makes the track that much more challenging. It has also helped write some of the finest chapters in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Here are three, from their recent history ..
1968: Henri Pescarolo's mad night. Long before his four victories at Le Mans (1972-73-74-84) the man in the green helmet became a legend of the 24 Hours at the wheel of a Matra 630, when the car's windscreen wiper failed during the night. Second place was within reach but Henri Pescarolo and his team mate Johnny Servoz-Gavin, had to retire three hours from the finish. It is not necessary to win , to enter the history of the 24 Hours.
1979: Paul Newman, a podium in the rain. At the finish of the 24 hours in 1979, the song “Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" from "Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid" (released the same year), would have been very appropriate. The second place of Paul Newman, with Dick Barbour and Rolf Stommelen remains arguably the finest achievement of the actor/driver who continued his passion for racing until his death in 2008.
1980: The rain dance of John Rondeau. How else could we conclude this mini-retrospective of "wet" 24 Hours? The first victory of a manufacturer/driver at Mans moreover, beating the Belgian rain master Jacky Ickx... No forgetting of course the great story of Jean-Pierre Jaussaud who that year, at the age of 43, scores his second victory in La Sarthe.
Jean-Philippe Doret / ACO
Photo: CIRCUIT OF 24 HOURS (Le Mans, Sarthe), 24 HOURS OF LE MANS, 14 & 15 June 1980. By overcoming the rain and the Porsche Jacky Ickx and Reinhold Joest, the M 379C of Jean Rondeau became the only driver to win the 24 Hours at the wheel of a car bearing his name.
