Despite good weather throughout the race, attrition was high, leaving only twelve classified finishers. There were a number of major accidents, the most serious of which caused the death of Brazilian driver Christian Heins and bad injuries to Roy Salvadori and Jean-Pierre Manzon. This was the first win for a mid- or rear-engined car, and the first all-Italian victory – with F1 drivers Ludovico Scarfiotti and Lorenzo Bandini winning in their Ferrari 250 P. In fact, Ferrari dominated the results list filling the first six places, and the winners’ margin of over 200km (16 laps) was the biggest since 1927.
Le Mans in 1963The race was won by a Ferrari 250 P. This example is claimed to be the actual car.
Regulations
In 1963 the CSI (Commission Sportive Internationale - the FIA’s regulatory body) lifted the 4.0 litre engine restriction on its GT classes, as well as introducing a sliding scale for minimum weight versus engine size. That change again opened the field to large American V8s, used on the AC Cobras and Lola Mk6 that year. It also revised the equivalence ratio for forced induction/turbo engines from 1.2 up to 1.4. The minimum height for cars was increased to 850mm (33.5 inches).[2]
The Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) renamed its ‘Experimental’ category as ‘Prototype’ and lifted the 4.0 litre engine restriction for those classes as well. The main change for the race was the starting positions on the grid were now to be determined by the fastest times in practice rather than in order of engine size.[2][3] In a nod to driver safety, the wearing of safety-belts was now recommended.[4]
Entries
The ACO received 80 entries but after a number of withdrawals there were 55 cars to practice. The proposed entry list comprised:
Category
Classes
Prototype Entries
GT Entries
Total Entries
Large-engines
3.0+, 3.0, 2.5L
14
13
27
Medium-engines
2.0, 1.6, 1.3L
2
10
12
Small-engines
1.15, 1.0, 0.85L
15 (+2 reserves)
0
15
Total Cars
31 (+2 reserves)
23
54 (+1 experimental)
Once again Ferraris easily dominated the entry list with eleven cars. SEFAC Ferrari brought three new prototypes. The 250 P was an innovative mid-engined design of Mauro Forghieri that was a longer version of the Dino. The hefty 3-litre V12 generated 310bhp.[5] The team's regular Formula 1 drivers were assigned: John Surtees with Willy Mairesse, and Ludovico Scarfiotti with Lorenzo Bandini. The third car was driven by sports-car regulars Mike Parkes and Umberto Maglioli
There were also three new 330 LMB 4-litre front-engined prototypes run by privateer teams. While Ferrari stalwart Pierre Noblet ran a works-supported entry, the North American Racing Team (NART) ran another (for Dan Gurney and Jim Hall) as well as the 330 TRI/LM, for Pedro Rodriguez and Roger Penske, that had won the race the previous year.[6] There was also a new British team – Ronnie Hoare's Maranello Concessionaires entered a 330 LMB for Jack Sears and Mike Salmon.[7]
Four manufacturers lined up against the big Ferrari prototypes: Aston Martin, Maserati, Lister and Lola. John Wyer had convinced the ACO to accept the Aston Martin DP214 prototypes as GT-derivatives of the DB4 cars. The successor DP215 had a new 4.0-litre engine capable of 323bhp. It was driven by Phil Hill and Lucien Bianchi.[8]
Maserati returned with an updated Tipo 151 coupé for their French agency. Lightened and now fitted with a fuel-injected 5-litre V8 engine, it was the biggest car in the field and produced an impressive 430bhp capable of 290kp/h (180mph). It would be raced by French veteran André Simon and Lloyd ‘Lucky’ Casner (owner of the American Camoradi team racing Maserati cars).[9]
For their second foray into Le Mans, Lola rushed their revolutionary Mk6 GT prototype. The Eric Broadley / Tony Southgate design had a steel monocoque chassis with fibreglass body and intricate suspension design. Initially fitted with a mid-mounted Ford 4.2-litre Indycar engine generated 350bhp, it was subsequently uprated to the 4.7 litre Ford engine. The car was so light that it needed ballast to reach its 875kg minimum weight. However it was undergeared and could only reach a maximum 240kp/h (150mph).[10] The car would be raced by David Hobbs and debutante Richard Attwood
Porsche (now entered as Porsche System Engineering, a Swiss-registered entity for the works team) had the 2-litre class to itself. They arrived with a pair of developed 718-series cars that had won the Targa Florio when the Ferrari s had failed. One a coupé (for ‘Jo’ Bonnier/Tony Maggs), the other a spyder (for Edgar Barth/Herbert Linge), they used the new 2-litre flat-8 Formula 1 engine.[11]
Once again the smaller-engined classes were strongly contested. Charles Deutsch (last year's victor), after the withdrawal of Panhard's engines, signed a deal with German manufacturer Auto Union-DKW. The 750cc three-cylinder, two-stroke engine could develop 80bhp and with the streamlined body, could reach 225kp/h (140mph).[12] His erstwhile partner, René Bonnet had four works entries. Their new streamlined version was now named the “Aerodjet”.[4] Their French opposition however was from a new team: Jean Rédélé's Alpine marque (also running with 1-litre Renault engines). The new A110 came to Le Mans in its streamlined M63 longtail version.
Austin-Healey had a new body designed by Frank Costin for their Sebring Sprite. The 1100cc BMC engine developed 95bhp.[13] Another British boutique sports-car manufacturer, Deep Sanderson, entered its new 301 prototype.
Since 1953 the ACO had offered a prize for a turbine-drive car to complete the 24-hour event. Yet it was only this year that a formal entry was received. Rover had worked on turbines for twenty years and the previous year their fourth prototype had done demonstration laps at Le Mans. Based on a BRM Formula 1 car, the twin turbines generated 150bhp but only gave a maximum speed of 230kp/h (145mph). Unable to run on regulation fuel, (it ran on paraffin) the car was not on the official entry list, and given number “00”. And without a heat exchanger, the turbine's fuel consumption was so great (7mpg) that it could not run with a regulation fuel-tank.[14] BRM, in turn, released their grand prix drivers, Richie Ginther and current World Champion Graham Hill.[15][4]
Aston Martin had got two of their DP214 cars homologated, running with the same 3.7-litre engine as the DB4. The works team had Grand Prix drivers Bruce McLaren and Innes Ireland in one and Bill Kimberly / Jo Schlesser in the second. Jean Kerguen also returned with his French Aston Martin for the third year.
Briggs Cunningham was back this year with three of the Jaguar E-type ‘Lightweight’ specials overseen by Lofty England. The fuel-injected 3.8-litre Straight-6 engine now developed 310bhp. Cunningham drove with Bob Grossman while his other regular drivers Walt Hansgen and Roy Salvadori were paired with Augie Pabst and Paul Richards respectively.[16]
After his success in winning the 1959 race, Carroll Shelby had been working with Derek Hurlock, owner of AC Cars, to fit the new 260cu in (4.2-litre) small-block Ford V8 to the AC Ace chassis that was already race-proven at Le Mans. Put into production, it was the Mk 2 version with the bigger 289cu in (4.7-litre) Ford Windsor engine that was entered for the race. One from AC Cars (for Ninian Sanderson and Peter Bolton) was managed by Stirling Moss and the other came from Ed Hugus, who had run the car's race development in America.[17]
In the smaller categories the Porsche works team had a pair 356 B 2000 GS Carrera GT Dreikantschaber for their regular Dutch drivers Carel Godin de Beaufort and Ben Pon. The cars were now fitted with a new 2.0-litre flat-4 engine.[11] They would be up against a privateer MG MGB, the manufacturer's latest model, driven by top British rally driver Paddy Hopkirk.[18] In the 1600cc class a pair of works Sunbeam Alpines were matched against three Alfa Romeos run by the teams Scuderia Sant Ambroeus and Scuderia Filipinetti. The two Team Elite Lotuses had the 1300cc to themselves when the Equipe Nationale Belge Elite entry was withdrawn.
Practice
Twenty-three cars availed themselves of the testing weekend over 6–7 April. It was the first appearance of the Ferrari 330 LMB and in it works driver Mike Parkes became the first driver to officially break 300kp/h (186mph) on the long Mulsanne Straight. But it was John Surtees who put in the best time over the weekend, with a blistering 3 min 45.8 s.[7][3] Later, in official qualifying, Phil Hill was also calculated to have hit that magical 300kp/h barrier on the Mulsanne in his Aston Martin prototype.[8]
Rushing to have their Lola GTs ready in time, Eric Broadley drove the first car himself across from their Bromley factory. Although arriving after inspections had officially closed, the ACO, perhaps surprisingly, still allowed the car to enter. The second car, still unassembled, had to be scratched.[10][3]
Further late withdrawals and no-shows left only 49 cars to practice. The honour of the first Pole Position by qualification went to Pedro Rodriguez in the NART Ferrari with a lap-time of 3 min 50.9 s on Wednesday night.[3] The works Ferrari 250s were second and third (Bandini ahead of Parkes). In fact all eleven Ferraris qualified in the top sixteen places. Hill got his Aston Martin to 4th, with his teammates in 8th and 10th, while the big Maserati was 6th on the grid.
Jo Bonnier got his two-litre Porsche in a very credible 17th with a 4 min 07.9 s, well ahead of his nearest competition – his teammates in 23rd (4 min 13.2 s), and the GT Porsche in 26th with a distant 4 min 35.8 . The fastest of the small cars was the Alpine of Richard/Frescobaldi with 4 min 42.8 s (29th). The Rover turbine did a 4 min 22.0 s that would have qualified it mid-field, but being outside the field it had to start 30 seconds after flagfall at the back of the field.[15][3]
Race
Start
The Aston Martin DP215 of Hill/Bianchi, which retired early in the race
It was a sunny start for the race at 4 pm. Phil Hill got his Aston Martin off the line first, ahead of the Ferraris. But it was the Frenchman André Simon in his Maserati who delighted the local crowd. He blasted past them, nudging Surtees out the way at Mulsanne then overtaking Hill before Arnage to lead the first lap.[6] Pat Ferguson planted his Lotus Elite into the sandbank at Mulsanne on the first lap. He eventually managed to extricate it, only to drop it back in exactly the same spot on his next lap.[19][20] On the second lap André Guilhaudin, owner-driver of the CD-DKW, crashed it at Indianapolis, and the damage was terminal.[12] Then on only the fifth lap, as the leaders were lapping the tail-enders, Roger Masson's Bonnet clipped the verge on the brow after the Dunlop bridge. It spectacularly somersaulted twice but Masson got out unharmed.[7] Both Phil Hill, now running fourth, and Peter Sargent's Lister hit debris and damaged their gearboxes trying to slow but were able to keep on running. Simon continued to lead throughout his opening 2-hour stint before handing over to his co-driver ‘Lucky’ Casner. However, only an hour into his race, Casner brought the Maserati in with terminal gearbox problems.[9] Likewise the earlier stress on the Hill Aston Martin and Sargent Lister took its toll and they too retired early with broken transmissions.[8][21]
Ferraris now assumed the top five positions. At the 4-hour mark the works 250s of Surtees/Mairesse and Parkes/Maglioli were ahead of the NART 330 TRI/LM then Scarfiotti/Bandini in the other 250 P and Noblet's privateer 330. Sixth place was Bruce McLaren in the Aston Martin, leading the GT category. However at 8.20pm, a piston shattered in the engine while he was at speed going into the Mulsanne kink.[22] McLaren managed to get the car safely to the roadside but the long oil slick from the holed sump started a catastrophic chain reaction of accidents: Jean Kerguen's DB4 Aston Martin spun out into a ditch, wrecking its differential. Sanderson endured a series of spins in his Cobra but luckily hit nothing and carried on.[17] Then Salvadori's Jaguar arrived and spun at 265kp/h (165mph) and crashed into the banking. Fortunately, Salvadori (who had been unable to do up his full harness) was thrown out the rear window as the car burst into flames, then helped by Kerguen.[22][16] This was then hit by Jean-Pierre Manzon's little Bonnet which rebounded into the middle of the track. Manzon, son of the great French racer Robert Manzon, was seriously injured and thrown onto the road. Christian Heins, leading his class and the Index of Performance, managed to avoid Manzon and the wrecks but in doing so, his Alpine-Renault went out of control, rolled and hit a lamp-post then exploded into flames. ‘Bino’ Heins, whose Willys franchise built the Alpines in Brazil, was killed instantly.[23][8][22][24]
Night
As night fell, Ferrari's fortunes began to change: the Noblet/Guichet car had to retire after a Ferrari mechanic forgot to replace the oil filler cap.[7] Then Parkes and Maglioli were delayed, losing ten laps, to change the distributor.[5][25] Carlo Abate, in the works-run GTO, was running third just about midnight when he got off-line going through the tricky Maison Blanche corner. He crashed at speed, wrecking the car, but was not injured.[26] Not so fortunate was Bob Olthoff who crashed his Sebring Sprite there soon afterwards and was taken to hospital with a broken collarbone.[13]
Through the night Surtees and Mairesse continued to build their lead over their teammates. The NART Ferrari had charged back up to third after being delayed. However around 2am an oil-line burst and destroyed Penske's engine. Jo Bonnier, whose Porsche was running 7th and leading the medium-sized classes, came through the huge plume of engine smoke unsighted and crashed heavily in the trees. Bonnier was lucky to get away uninjured.[23][11]
An hour later, the Gurney/Hall NART Ferrari, now running third, suddenly slowed at Maison Blanche. Hall coasted towards the pits then pushed it the final distance only to be told that the half-shaft had broken.[7] The Kimberly/Schlesser Aston Martin inherited the place but the curse of third place struck again soon before 2am, when they were forced to retire with piston problems, ending Aston Martin's challenge.[8][25]
By the halfway mark at 4am, there were only 21 cars left running. However, Ferrari had the numbers to outlast their opposition. Surtees/Mairesse had done 189 laps, with a lap's lead over Scarfiotti/Bandini. The works cars already had a massive 10-lap lead over the remaining NART Ferrari of Gregory/Piper, and the two Belgian GTOs. Sixth was the Barth/Linge Porsche 718 moving past the Maranello Ferrari and Cunningham's Jaguar, with the Parkes’ Ferrari charging back up the field in 9th. The Rover was cruising quietly just outside the top-10[22]
Morning
As dawn broke among the rising mist, David Hobbs in the Lola had a big accident at Maison Blanche. After running as high as 8th, the team had been battling the gearbox most of the night, losing two hours in the pits. Hobbs had been trying to change down for the corner when the gearbox finally jammed.[10] A few hours later the leading Porsche of Barth/Linge, now up to 5th, lost a rear wheel coming up to the main straight. Edgar Barth pushed it the half kilometre to the pits where it was repaired and carried on.[11][22]
Briggs Cunningham and Bob Grossman had steadily moved their Lightweight Jaguar into the top-10 through the night. However, on Sunday morning the brake pedal snapped as Grossman came to the end of the Mulsanne straight. The car slammed through three rows of haybales, scattering spectators, but he was able to get the car back to the pits.[27] Stealing parts from their third car that had retired in the first hour, they lost two hours but got back into the race.[16][22]
After leading for fifteen hours, Surtees and Mairesse had built up a two-lap lead. However at 10.45 Surtees pitted for fuel and a driver change. Mairesse got no further than the Esses when the car burst into flames. Fuel had carelessly been spilt in the engine bay and an electrics spark applying the brake lights ignited it. Mairesse got out, overalls on fire, before the car came to a halt. The mild burns to his face and arms kept him out of racing for two months.[5]
Their teammates Scarfiotti and Bandini moved up to take the lead they would not cede.[23]
Finish and post-race
In the end they won easily – by 16 laps. In a record distance, it was the widest winning margin since Bentley's epic 1927 win (350km).[4] With Scarfiotti, Bandini and Ferrari it was the first all-Italian Le Mans victory, as well as being the first win for a mid- or rear-engined car. In a dominant display Ferrari took the top six places. The Scuderia shared the top places with the two Belgian GT teams racing each other: Parkes and Maglioli chased hard and only failed to catch the Equipe Nationale Belge GTO, in second, by just over 100 metres.[23] Fourth was the Ecurie Francorchamps GTO barely a lap behind. The Belgian drivers all celebrated together by driving to Paris two days later, and going to a nightclub until 4am leaving their respective racing cars parked outside.[26]
The Maranello Concessionaires Ferrari came in 5th after battling overheating issues for most of the race.[7][25] Sixth, and last surviving Ferrari, was the NART 250 GTO/LMB of Gregory and Piper. It had been out of alignment since 8am when Gregory had gone off at Arnage taking an hour to dig it out of the sand-trap.[26]
After a remarkably trouble-free run (needing no mechanical work or even a change of tyres), the Rover turbine easily exceeded its 3600km minimum distance (an average of 150km/h) and was awarded the ACO's FF25000 prize. Although not classified, it covered sufficient distance that it would have finished 7th and beaten the 1958 winning car.[15][4][28] In fact, classified 7th was the Sanderson/Bolton AC Cobra
After their troubles, the Barth/Linge Porsche came in 8th and Cunningham's Jaguar was 9th. After the race-start antics the Lotus Elite of Ferguson and Wagstaff, finished tenth and class-winner.
Despite the good weather, attrition was high and the number of major accidents meant there were only fourteen cars running at the end, of the 49 starters. The sole surviving Bonnet won the Index of Thermal Efficiency, driven by Claude Bobrowski and young debutante motorcyclist Jean-Pierre Beltoise
Official results
Finishers
Results taken from Quentin Spurring's book, officially licensed by the ACO[29] Class winners are in Bold text.
Note: Only the top ten positions are included in this set of standings.
Index of Performance
Taken from Moity's book, at odds with Quentin Spurring's book.[30]
Pos
Class
No
Team
Drivers
Chassis
Score
1
P 3.0
21
SpA Ferrari SEFAC
Ludovico Scarfiotti Lorenzo Bandini
Ferrari 250 P
1.236
2=
GT 3.0
24
Equipe Nationale Belge
“Beurlys” (Jean Blaton) Gérard Langlois van Ophem
Ferrari 250 GTO
1.178
2=
P 3.0
22
SpA Ferrari SEFAC
Mike Parkes Umberto Maglioli
Ferrari 250 P
1.178
4
P 3.0
22
SpA Ferrari SEFAC
Mike Parkes Umberto Maglioli
Ferrari 250 P
1.174
5
P 2.0
28
Porsche System Engineering
Edgar Barth Herbert Linge
Porsche 718/8 W-RS Spyder
1.141
6
GT 3.0
26
North American Racing Team
Masten Gregory David Piper
Ferrari 250 GTO/LMB
1.138
7
P 1.15
53
Automobiles René Bonnet
Claude Bobrowski Jean-Pierre Beltoise
Bonnet Aérodjet LM6
1.121
8
P +3.0
12
Maranello Concessionaires Ltd.
Mike Salmon Jack Sears
Ferrari 330 LMB
1.120
9
GT 1.3
39
Team Elite
Pat Ferguson John Wagstaff
Lotus Elite Mk14
1.102
10
GT +3.0
3
AC Cars Ltd
Ninian Sanderson Peter Bolton
AC Cobra Hardtop
1.097
Note: Only the top ten positions are included in this set of standings. A score of 1.00 means meeting the minimum distance for the car, and a higher score is exceeding the nominal target distance.
Statistics
Taken from Quentin Spurring's book, officially licensed by the ACO
Fastest lap in practice– P.Rodriguez, #10 Ferrari 330 TRI/LM – 3m 50.9s; 209.87km/h (130.41mph)
Fastest lap– J.Surtees, #23 Ferrari 250 P – 3:53.3secs; 207.71km/h (129.07mph)
Ludovico Scarfiotti was a Formula One and sports car driver from Italy. Just prior to entering Formula One, he won the 1963 24 Hours of Le Mans for Ferrari. He later participated in 12 World Championship Formula One grands prix, and many non-championship races. He won one World Championship race, and scored a total of 17 championship points. A motor sports competitor for a decade, Scarfiotti won the 1962 and 1965 European Hillclimb Championship. He was proclaimed Italy's best driver in both 1962 and 1965.
The 1981 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 49th Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 13 and 14 June 1981. It was also the eighth round of the World Endurance Championship of Drivers, and the fifth round of the World Championship for Makes.
The 1975 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 43rd Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 14 and 15 June 1975. Colloquially called the “Le Mans Economy Run”, stringent refuelling regulations were put in place. Unable to match the requisite 7mpg fuel economy the manufacturer teams from Ferrari, Alfa Romeo withdrew and Matra had retired from the sport at the end of 1974. Therefore, this only left Gulf and Ligier as front-running works-teams.
The 1974 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 42nd Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 15 and 16 June 1974. It was the fifth round of the 1974 World Championship for Makes. After Alfa Romeo had won the first race of the season at Monza, it had been Matra all the way and they came to Le Mans as firm favourites for a third consecutive outright victory, especially after Alfa Romeo withdrew its cars just before raceweek.
The 1973 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 41st Grand Prix of Endurance and took place on 9 and 10 June 1973. It was the eighth round of the 1973 World Championship of Makes.
The 1972 24 Hours of Le Mans was a motor race staged at the Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans, France on 10 and 11 June 1972. It was the 40th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the ninth race of the 1972 World Championship for Makes.
The 1971 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 39th Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 12 and 13 June 1971. It was the ninth round of the 1971 International Championship for Makes.
The 1970 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 38th Grand Prix of Endurance and took place on 13 and 14 June 1970. It was the 8th stage of the 1970 World Sportscar Championship season.
The 1969 24 Hours of Le Mans was a motor race staged at the Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans, France on 14 and 15 June 1969. It was the 37th Grand Prix of Endurance and was the eighth round of the 1969 International Championship for Makes. The race was open to Group 6 Prototype Sports Cars, Group 4 Sports Cars and Group 3 Grand Touring Cars.
The 1968 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 36th Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 28 and 29 September 1968 on the Circuit de la Sarthe, in Le Mans, France.
The 1967 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 35th Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 10 and 11 June 1967. It was also the seventh round of the 1967 World Sportscar Championship.
The 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 34th Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 18 and 19 June 1966. It was also the seventh round of the 1966 World Sportscar Championship season. This was the first overall win at Le Mans for the Ford GT40 as well as the first win for an American constructor in a major European race since Jimmy Murphy's triumph with Duesenberg at the 1921 French Grand Prix. It was also the debut Le Mans start for two significant drivers: Henri Pescarolo, who went on to set the record for the most starts at Le Mans; and Jacky Ickx, whose record of six Le Mans victories stood until beaten by Tom Kristensen in 2005.
The 1965 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 33rd Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 19 and 20 June 1965. It was also the twelfth round of the World Sportscar Championship.
The 1964 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 32nd Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 20 and 21 June 1964. It was also the ninth round of the 1964 World Sportscar Championship season.
The 1962 24 Hours of Le Mans was a motor race for Experimental cars and Grand Touring cars, staged at the Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans, France on 23 and 24 June 1962. It was the 30th Grand Prix of Endurance and the eighth round of the 1962 International Championship of Manufacturers.
The 1961 24 Hours of Le Mans was a motor race for Sports cars and Grand Touring cars staged at the Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans, France on 10 and 11 June 1961. It was the 29th Grand Prix of Endurance and the fourth race of the 1961 World Sportscar Championship. Ferrari and Maserati were the main contenders, with Aston Martin an outside chance.
The 1960 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 28th 24 Hours of Le Mans Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 25 and 26 June 1960, on Circuit de la Sarthe. It was the fifth and final round of the F.I.A. World Sports Car Championship as well as being the fifth round of the inaugural FIA GT Cup. It was held just a week after the tragic Belgian F1 GP in which four drivers, including Stirling Moss were either killed or seriously injured. The prospect of a duel between the 3-litre (180 cu in) Ferrari versus the 2-litre (120 cu in) Porsche championship-leaders was enough to draw large crowds to the 24 Hours race and some 200,000 spectators had gathered for Europe's classic sports car race, around the 13.5 km (8.4 mi) course.
The 1959 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 27th 24 Hours of Le Mans, Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 20 and 21 June 1959, on Circuit de la Sarthe. It was also the fourth round of the F.I.A. World Sports Car Championship. The prospect of an exciting duel between Ferrari, Aston Martin and giantkillers Porsche was enough to draw large crowds and some 150,000 spectators gathered for France's classic sports car race, around the 8.38-mile course.
The 1958 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 26th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 21 and 22 June 1958, on the Circuit de la Sarthe. It was also the fifth round of the 1958 World Sports Car Championship, which was running to new regulations introduced at the beginning of the season. Some 150,000 spectators had gathered for Europe's classic sports car race, around the 8.38-mile course. The prospect of an exciting duel between Ferrari, Jaguar, Aston Martin and giantkiller Porsche was enough to draw large crowds to the 24 Hours race.
The 1956 24 Hours of Le Mans was a race for Sports Cars which took place on 28 and 29 July 1956 on the Circuit de la Sarthe. The race was won by Ron Flockhart and Ninian Sanderson driving a Jaguar D-Type for the new Ecurie Ecosse team. This race also marked the golden jubilee of the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) founded in 1906, however because of the previous year's disaster, celebrations were deferred to 1957 to go along with the imminent 25th anniversary of the race.
References
Armstrong, Douglas – English editor (1964) Automobile Year #11 1963-64 Lausanne: Edita S.A.
Clarke, R.M. - editor (2009) Le Mans 'The Ferrari Years 1958-1965' Cobham, Surrey: Brooklands Books ISBN1-85520-372-3
Clausager, Anders (1982) Le Mans London: Arthur Barker Ltd ISBN0-213-16846-4
Laban, Brian (2001) Le Mans 24 Hours London: Virgin Books ISBN1-85227-971-0
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