The competition, which is held near the town
of Le Mans, starts at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday
until 4:00 p.m. Sunday. The winner is the
vehicle that covers the greatest distance in
24 hours of continuous running.
The pilots they can not
I drover more than four
hours straight.
No pilot may
drive over 14
hours in total.
the race goes on with about 15 hours
daylight and 9 hours at night
in intervals of:
One of the great icons of
the German factory. he was a great
advance in terms of design
and engineering. His success consolidated
Porsche’s reputation as
sports car manufacturer
high perfomance.
Usually around 50 vehicles compete
simultaneously in different classes of sports prototypes
and grand tourers.
Three deadly seconds in 24 hours
The Le Mans disaster was a multiple crash that happened
June 11, 1955. Pilot Pierre Levegh died
and 83 viewers. It is considered the greatest tragedy
of motorsport history.
Two hours and 35 laps had passed when
the riders hit the main straight in a scramble
in the lead between Hawthorne (Jaguar) and the Mercedes
by Lavegh and Fangio.
The alloy body
magnesium, highly flammable
began to burn on the spot.
Chased by the Mercedes,
Hawthorne overtakes Macklin
to the left and it crosses
slowing down to
enter the pits
Surprised and no time to
curb Macklin dodges
Hawthorne turning towards his
left…
…and it is the moment in which the
mercedes of Walking Levegh
the straight at 240 km/h impact on
the back left of
Macklin.
The Mercedes is thrown and hits
against the wall where it disintegrates.
The engine, front axle and part of
the bodywork they fly and hit
the spectators.
Lavegh die, 83 viewers
and hundreds are injured.
4 cylinders in line
110hp
195km/h
8 cylinders in line
310hp
290km/h
6 cylinders in line
241hp
280km/h
top speed comparison
4:00 p.m.
Start – 58 pilots
02:00 – Mercedes retires
36 pilots remain
16:00 – Final
Win Mike Hawthorn
21 pilots finish
As a consequence of the accident
Mercedes withdrew from the
competitions until his return in 1989.
Derek Bell
Frank Biella
Emanuele Pirro
s.buemi
Y. Dalmas
O. Gendebien
H. Pescarolo
W. Barnato (GBr), R. Capello (Ita), L. Chinetti (USA), M. Fässler (Sui),
B. Hartley (Aus), H. Haywood (USA), P. Hill (USA), A. Holbert (USA),
A. Lotterer (Germany), K. Ludwig (Germany), A. McNish (GBr), K. Nakajima (Japan),
B. Tréluyer (Fra), M. Werner (Ale)
F. Alonso, E. Bamber (Aus), T. Bernhard (German), H. Birkin (GBr),
I. Bueb (GBr), R. Dumas (Fra), R. Flockhart (GBr), J. Järvilehto (Fin),
JP Jaussaud (Fra), G. Larrousse (Fra), M. Reuter (Ale), A. Rossignol (Fra),
R. Sommer (Fra), HJ Stuck (Ale), G. Van Lennep (PBa), JP Wimille (Fra),
A. Wurz (Aut).
marc gene (2009) and Fernando Alonso (2018 and 2019) are the only
Spaniards who have achieved absolute victory. antonio garcia ha
added 3 GT victories (two GT1 and one LMGTE-Pro). antonio garcia
(16), jesus couple (13), marc gene (8) and Tomas saldana (7) are the
who have played the test the most times.
The competition, which is held near the town
of Le Mans, starts at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday
until 4:00 p.m. Sunday. The winner is the
vehicle that covers the greatest distance in
24 hours of continuous running.
4:00 p.m.
five pm
18:00
7:00 p.m.
20:00
21:00
22:00
23:00
12:00 p.m.
01:00
02:00
03:00
04:00
05:00
06:00
07:00
08:00
09:00
10:00
11:00
12:00
13:00
2:00 p.m.
15:00
4:00 p.m.
The pilots don’t
can drive
more than four
hours straight.
no pilot
will be able to drive
more than 14 hours
total.
It takes place with about 15 hours of
light and 9 hours of night in intervals of:
The worst accident in history
The Le Mans disaster was a multiple crash
happened on June 11, 1955. The pilot died
Pierre Levegh and 83 spectators. is considered
the greatest tragedy in motorsport history.
Two hours and 35 laps had passed when
the riders hit the main straight in a scramble
in the lead between Hawthorne (Jaguar) and the Mercedes
by Lavegh and Fangio.
Mike Hawthorn
Jaguar D-Type
lance macklin
austin healey 100s
Pierre Levegh
Mercedes 300 SLR
Pursued by the Mercedes, Hawthorne overtakes
to Macklin on the left and crosses decreasing
the speed to enter the pits.
Surprised and no time to slow down Macklin
dodge Hawthorne by veering to his left…
…and it is the moment in which Levegh’s Mercedes
that travels the line at 240 km/h hits the part
Macklin’s left rear.
The Mercedes is thrown and hits the wall
where it disintegrates The engine, front axle and
part of the body fly and impact against
the spectators.
Lavegh die, 83 viewers
and hundreds are injured.
As a consequence of the accident
Mercedes withdrew from the
competitions until his return in 1989.
d.bell
F. Biella
E. Pirro
s.buemi
Y. Dalmas
O. Gendebien
H. Pescarolo
*W. Barnato (GBr), R. Capello (Ita), L. Chinetti (USA),
M. Fässler (Sui), B. Hartley (Aus), H. Haywood (USA),
P. Hill (USA), A. Holbert (USA), A. Lotterer (Germany),
K. Ludwig (Germany), A. McNish (GBr), K. Nakajima (Japan),
B. Tréluyer (Fra), M. Werner (Ale)
**F. Alonso, E. Bamber (Aus), T. Bernhard (Ale),
H. Birkin (GBr), I. Bueb (GBr), R. Dumas (Fra),
R. Flockhart (GBr), J. Järvilehto (Fin),
JP Jaussaud (Fra), G. Larrousse (Fra),
M. Reuter (Ale), A. Rossignol (Fra), R. Sommer (Fra),
HJ Stuck (Ale), G. Van Lennep (PBa),
JP Wimille (Fra), A. Wurz (Aut).
Marc Gené (2009) and Fernando Alonso (2018 and 2019) are the only
Spaniards who have achieved absolute victory. Antonio Garcia has
added 3 GT victories (two GT1 and one LMGTE-Pro).
Antonio García (16), Jesús Pareja (13), Marc Gené (8) and Tomas
Saldaña (7) are the ones who have contested the test the most times.