1991-2011 | Johnny Herbert, 20 years to "reach" the podium! – Having fallen ill exiting his car after crossing the finish line in 1991, the British driver was unable to celebrate his sole overall win on the podium with teammates Bertrand Gachot and Volker Weidler, which was also the first for a Japanese marque at Le Mans. However, the Saturday morning preceding the race in 2011, he was given his very own podium ceremony after completing several demonstration laps with the Mazda 787 B for the 20th anniversary of its win.

2011 | Patrick Dempsey and Mazda's national treasure – Two years after his first participation in the 24 Hours, and seven after his victory as a team co-owner in LMGTE Am, driver/actor Patrick Dempsey came to Le Mans in 2011 as a Mazda ambassador to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Japanese marque's win at the race. Like Johnny Herbert, Dempsey also took the track at the wheel of the winning 787 B from 1991…but not without some apprehension: "I was very careful because this car is a true national treasure in Japan!"

2011-2017 | Yojiro Terada and Kamui Kobayashi, Japanese record-setters – Among former drivers present in Le Mans in 2011 for the 20th anniversary celebration of Mazda's win, Yojiro Terada held a special place. The most assiduous Japanese driver at the 24 Hours, he figures third in number of participations with 29 starts, surpassed only by Frenchman Henri Pescarolo (33) and Bob Wollek (30). He made it into the top 10 at the race for the first time in 1991 with his eighth place finish in a Mazda shared with Pierre Dieudonné and Takashi Yorino. Terada clinched his best result in 1995, finishing seventh in a Kudzu-Mazda along with Franck Fréon and Jim Downing. Since joining Toyota in 2016, his teammate Kamui Kobayashi's speed earned the fastest lap record at Le Mans during qualifying in 2017. In 3:14.791 (at an average 251.8 kph), effectively erasing the previous record set by Hans-Joachim Stuck with a Porsche 962 C in 1985 (3:14.88).

2011-2016 | Nissan reigns over the LMP2 class – After becoming the first Japanese marque in 1990 to score the pole at the 24 Hours thanks to British driver Mark Blundell, Nissan made a successful return to LMP2 10 years ago represented by Greaves Motorsport. Before Gibson became the class' sole engine supplier in 2017, Nissan figured at the top of the list in LMP2 with five wins at the race with five different teams: Greaves Motorsport (2011), OAK Racing (2013), JOTA (2014), KCMG (2015) and Signatech Alpine (2016).

2012 | The Nissan DeltaWing, first occupant of Garage 56 – Originally considered in 2009 as a single-seater for the IndyCar Championship, three years later the DeltaWing became the first occupant of Garage 56 dedicated to a non-classified innovative prototype. Designing the car brought together Don Panoz (constructor and founder of the American Le Mans Series), Dan Gurney (1967 24 Hours winner) and Nissan for a project seeking a drastic reduction in aerodynamic drag (resistance to air when the car is in motion), weight and power. Twenty-ninth on the starting grid and driven by Marino Franchitti, Michael Krumm and Satoshi Motoyama, the Nissan DeltaWing was forced to retire after a dust-up on Saturday evening.

2014 | Kazuki Nakajima, a Japanese pioneer – In 2014, Nakajima became the first Japanese driver to clinch the pole at Le Mans (3:21.749 at an average 243 kph), a performance repeated in 2018 then in 2019 to win the FIA World Endurance Championship title. He is also the only Japanese multiple winner at the 24 Hours, with three consecutive victories. Also, since 2017, two Japansese drivers have shared pole position at the race: Kazuki Nakajima and Kamui Kobayashi.

2020 | Kamui Kobayashi, the first Hyperpole king – In 2017, Kamui Kobayashi's lap record earned him the pole, a performance he repeated in 2019. In 2020 and 2021, he triumphed in LMP1 then Hypercar within the new Hyperpole format that groups the six fastest cars from each class after qualifying. If he continues this momentum in 2022, Kobayashi could match Jacky Ickx's record five pole positions, all while becoming the first driver to start from first position four times on the starting grid.

1991-2021 | Mazda and Toyota's two original technical features – In 1991, Mazda earned the only win for a rotary engine (with a very characteristic shrill sound) at the 24 Hours. Though it was not the first constructor to win with hybrid technology (that honor went to Audi in 2012), Toyota has been committed to triumphing at Le Mans over the past ten years as the world leader in on-road hybrids.

1991-2021 | Toyota, the road to victory – From 1991 to 2021, Toyota has claimed 14 podium finishes at the 24 Hours. Its four consecutive wins from 2018 to 2021 were secured by seven different drivers: Sébastien Buemi and Kazuki Nakajima (2018, 2019 and 2020), Fernando Alonso (2018 and 2019), Brendon Hartley (2020), Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and José María López (2021). This year, Toyota also became the first marque to win the new Hypercar class, with the GR010 Hybrid driven by Conway/Kobayashi/López, and joined Alfa Romeo and Ford as four-time winners of the race.

2021 | Toyota TS050 HYBRID, from the track to the museum – With the Toyota le temps de la victoire exhibition on display until 20 February 2022, the 24 Hours Museum has also acquired for its permanent collection the TS050 HYBRID of Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Kazuki Nakajima, the last LMP1 prototype to win Le Mans. "Thanks to the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Toyota has changed the image of hybrid technology which is now efficient while being an integral part of driving pleasure," explained Murata Hisatake, President of Toyota Motorsport GmbH on 17 August during the induction ceremony for the car at the 24 Hours Museum.

PHOTOS (Copyright - ACO ARCHIVES, DOMINIQUE BREUGNOT, ANTONIN VINCENT, LOUIS MONNIER/ACO): LE MANS (SARTHE, FRANCE), CIRCUIT DES 24 HEURES, 24 HOURS OF LE MANS – From top to bottom: the Toyota GR010 HYBRID of Conway/Kobayashi/López, first Hypercar winner at the race; the podium "catch up session" of Johnny Herbert in 2011; Patrick Dempsey (holding his helmet, with Johnny Herbert to his right) preparing to take the wheel of the Mazda 787 B in 2011; the Kudzu-Mazda (#5) with which Yojiro Terada earned his best result at Le Mans in 1995; the Zytek of Greaves Motorsport (#41) and the Alpine A460 (#36) scored Nissan's first and last win in LMP2, in 2011 and 2016, respectively; Marino Franchitti at the wheel of the Nissan-DeltaWing (#0) in 2012; Kazuki Nakajima and Kamui Kobayashi have shared the pole at the race since 2017; in 2011 the Mazda 787 B (#55) returns to Le Mans 20 years after its win; the first victory at the race for Toyota in 2018 with the TS050 HYBRID (#8) of Fernando Alonso (fist raised), Sébastien Buemi (holding the checkered flag) and Kazuki Nakajima (at the wheel); symbolically, Murata Hisatake hands Pierre Fillon the wheel of the winning Toyota in 2020 thanks to Buemi, Nakajima and Brendon Hartley as it joins the 24 Hours Museum collection.