Le Mans Classic, the party of the century

This year’s Le Mans Classic, celebrating the centenary of the Le Mans 24 Hours, saw a massive crowd 235,000 entering the gates. With over 800 cars, the 11^th running of Le Mans Classic was an event not to be missed. Enjoy this fine selection of images, courtesy of Ondřej Kroutil.

Derek Bell, Brian Redman, Henri Pescarolo, Gérard Larrousse in the car that featured on our cover in issue 8, Emmanuel Collard, Nicolas Minassian, Leopold von Bayern, Eric Hélary, Peter Kox, Thomas Enge, Yannick Dalmas (in a McLaren F1 GTR)… there was no shortage of Le Mans celebrities attending and taking part in this year’s Le Mans Classic.

Rally driver François Delecour had his share of emotions when his Lola T212 caught fire. And what about five of the twelve Prodrive Ferrari 550 Maranello GTS models present?

Six grids and four support races gave an uninterrupted flow of action on the track, even if the schedules quickly became a concept that existed in theory only.

Here are the results.

Grid 1 (1929 – 1939, combined results)

1. Gareth BURNETT / Michael BIRCH – Talbot AV105 1937 #22
2. Max SOWERBY / Daniel BALFOUR / Gareth BURNETT – Talbot AV105 1934 #15
3. Albert OTTEN – BMW 328 Roadster 1939 #54

Grid 2 (1949 – 1956, combined results)

1. Niklas HALUSA / Lukas HALUSA – Jaguar D-Type 1954 #16
2. Frederic WAKEMAN / Patrick BLAKENEY-EDWARDS – Cooper T38 1955 #2
3. Richard WILSON / Richard BRADLEY – Maserati 250S 1958 #5

Grid 3 (1957 – 1961, combined results)

1. Andy WALLACE – 1957 Jaguar D-Type #49
2. Harrison NEWEY / Joe MACARI / Christian HORE – 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB #42
3. Remo LIPS – 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB #2

Grid 4 (1962 – 1965, combined results)

1. Diogo FERRAO – 1965 Ford GT40 #74
2. Emile BREITTMAYER – 1965 Ford GT40 #38
3. Shaun LYNN – 1965 Ford GT40 #2

Grid 5 (1966 – 1971, combined results)

1. David HART / Olivier HART – 1969 Lola T70 Mk.3B #63
2. Steve BROOKS – Lola T70 Mk.3B 1968 #18
3. Christophe GADAIS – Lola T70 Mk.3 1968 #71

Grid 6 (1972 – 1981, combined results)

1. Maxime GUENAT – Lola T286 1976 #50
2. Nicolas MINASSIAN – Lola T298 1979 #68
3. Henry FLETCHER – 1976 Chevron B26 #18

Endurance Racing Legends

Race 1

1. Emmanuel COLLARD -Pescarolo C60 2006 #23
2. François PERRODO -1999 Toyota GT-One #1
3. 3.Olivier HART/David HART -Courage C60 2005 #34

Race 2 (Sprint)

1. Emmanuel COLLARD -Pescarolo C60 2006 #23
2. François PERRODO -Toyota GT-One 1999 #1
3. Olivier HART/David HART -Courage C60 2005 #34

Group C

Race 1

1. Erik MARIS -Peugeot 905 Evo 1 Bis 1992 #3
2. 2.David HART/Olivier HART -Lola T92/10 1992 #4
3. Ivan VERCOUTERE/Ralf KELLENERS -Porsche 962 C 1990 #7

Race 2 (Sprint)

1. Ivan VERCOUTERE/Ralf KELLENERS – Porsche 962 C 1990 #7
2. Kriton LENDOUDIS – Mercedes-Benz C11 1990 #31
3. David HART/Olivier HART – Lola T92/10 1992 #4

Porsche Classic

1. Dominique GUENAT/Maxime GUENAT – 1977 Porsche 935 #182
2. Guillaume DUMAREY/Philippe BRUNN – 1974 Porsche 911 RSR Turbo 2.1L #63
3. Johnny MOWLEM – Porsche 911 Carrera RSR 3.0 1974 #52

Benjafield Bentleys

1. Clive MORLEY – Bentley 4.5L 1926 #58
2. Nicholas SLEEP – Bentley Supersports 1926 #17
3. Carlos SIELECKI/Mathias SIELECKI – Bentley 3 L Super Sport 1926 #9