Le Mans Trivia

1. When was the first 24 Hours of Le Mans held?

From Quiz 90 Years at Le Mans

Answer: 1923

The first 24 Hours of Le Mans was held over the 26th and 27th May, 1923. 33 cars entered the race, which was originally organised to be one of three races held to complete the Rudge-Whitworth triennial cup. The race, which was primarily participated in by French drivers in French cars, was won by Andre Legache and Rene Leonard, driving a Chenard et Walcker. The pair managed a total of 128 laps, covering a distance of just under 2210 kilometres, winning by 4 laps from the runners-up. In a surprising turn of reliability, only three teams were not classified as finishers after the 24 hours.

From Quiz The Accident at Le Mans

Answer: 24-hour sports car endurance race

The first race was held on the 26th and 27th of May 1923. Since then, its been held annually except for cancellations including 1936-Great Depression, and during World War II.

From Quiz 24 Hours of Le Mans History

Answer: Mirage

This was the first of three wins overall for the Ickx/Bell driving tandem, and the first in a stretch of three straight for Ickx.

From Quiz Le Mans History

Answer: 26th May, 1923

It was held on 26th May, 1923 and was won by Andre Lagache and Rene Leonard.

From Quiz 90 Years at Le Mans

Answer: Woolf Barnato

Woolf Barnato was the first man to win the 24 Hour three times, and also win the race in three successive years. His first win was in 1928, which was also the year of his debut. Driving for Bentley, the company of which he was also a director, he won alongside Bernard Rubin, completing 154 laps. His next win, in 1929, was alongside Henry Birkin, the pair leading home a Bentley 1-2-3-4, the British manufacturer dominating the race. Barnato and Birkin completed 174 laps, 7 more than the next car. His third and final win was in 1930, this time alongside Glen Kidson. The pair completed 179 laps, leading home a Bentley 1-2. 1930 would be the last Bentley victory at Le Mans for over half a century. The company was in financial difficulty, eventually purchased by Rolls-Royce in 1931.

From Quiz The Accident at Le Mans

Answer: It varies

The circuit is called the Circuit de la Sarthe. It is a semi-permanent track that utilizes country roads that are open to the public most of the year.

From Quiz 24 Hours of Le Mans History

Answer: Geoff Brabham/Christophe Bouchut/Eric Helary

Brabham, Bouchut, and Helary took an unlikely win driving a Peugeot 905B. Gachot/Herbert/Weidler won in 1991, Warwick/Dalmas/Blundell in 1992, and Haywood/Dalmas/Baldi in 1994.

From Quiz Le Mans History

Answer: Chenard and Walcker

From Quiz 90 Years at Le Mans

Answer: Workers Strike

33 cars were expected to participate in the 1936 24 Hours of Le Mans. However, with the election of the Popular Front after French elections, a general strike was called in May of 1936. This resulted in no workers being available to prepare the circuit for racing. Therefore, the organised had no choice but to cancel the event. Apart from the war years, and 3 years of reconstruction afterwards, it is the only time in 90 years of Le Mans that the race was cancelled.

From Quiz The Accident at Le Mans

Answer: A nearby town

Le Mans, France, is an old town which is the birthplace of famous Frenchmen. They are Henry II of England (1133), Geoffrey V d'Anjou, the forefather of the Plantagenent dynasty (b. 1113), Geoffrey de Goreham, the Abbot of St. Albans in 1119, and Gilles-Francois de Beauvais, a Jesuit writer and preacher (b. 1693).

From Quiz 24 Hours of Le Mans History

Answer: 3

The 1923 race was held in May, the 1956 running was in July, and the 1968 race in September. The 1968 race was originally scheduled for June but postponed due to the French workers' strike.

From Quiz Le Mans History

Answer: 1955

Pierre Levegh's Mercedes struck the rear of an Austin Healey driven by Lance Macklin on the pit straight. The car rammed the bank, exploded, and its engine flew into the packed grandstand, killing 80 people. Levegh died instantly, and the entire Mercedes team was withdrawn, including Stirling Moss and Juan-Manuel Fangio. This precipitated the complete withdrawal from motorsport for Mercedes.

From Quiz 90 Years at Le Mans

Answer: 5

After the success, but then demise, of Bentley in the 1930s, it was now up to Jaguar to represent British interests in the 1950s. Jaguars were privately entered before 1951, the company deciding to enter works entries for the 1951 edition, racing the Jaguar XK-120C. Peter Walker and Peter Whitehead dominated the race in 1951, completing 267 laps, winning by 9 whole laps. More success followed in 1953, Tony Ralt and Duncan Hamilton winning with the Jaguar C-Type. The Jaguar D-Type would then win three consecutive races. First, the disastrous 1955 race, with Mike Hawthorn and Ivor Bueb, though their win was overshadowed by the deaths of over 80 spectators. Further wins followed in 1956 and 1957, the last win by Ron Flockhart and Ivor Bueb leading home a Jaguar 1-2-3-4-6. Jaguar pulled out of racing after 1957, though D-Types were raced in private hands with limited success for a few years afterwards.

From Quiz The Accident at Le Mans

Answer: 50

Racers compete in teams of three cars at two people a vehicle. Also, it doesn't only matter how many laps a car completes, it also depends on the distance the car travels. For example, at the beginning lineup, cars #49 and #50 are at the end. After 24 hours, car number 49 crosses the finish line followed immediately by number 50. Number fifty would win because it started behind number 49 and therefore it traveled farther.

From Quiz 24 Hours of Le Mans History

Answer: 1976

Jacky Ickx and Gijs van Lennep won the race in a turbocharged Porsche 936/76. Turbocharged cars would win 11 of the 12 Le Mans races from 1976-1987, with 10 of those 11 wins going to Porsches.

From Quiz Le Mans History

Answer: 1969

From Quiz The Accident at Le Mans

Answer: June 11, 1955

The race is always held in June. Although it has been moved to two different months: July (1956) and September (1968), the later because of nationwide political turmoils in spring.

From Quiz 24 Hours of Le Mans History

Answer: JJ Lehto

Lehto won driving a McLaren F1 GTR - BMW in 1995. Kinnunen (1970 and 1976) and Rosberg (1991) did not finish any of their Le Mans starts. Stefan Johansson did win Le Mans in 1997, but he is from Sweden.

From Quiz Le Mans History

Answer: Ickx

Jackie Ickx won the Le Mans race for 6 times. In 1969, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1981 and 1982

From Quiz 90 Years at Le Mans

Answer: GT40

Having originally trying to buy Ferrari, Ford instead decided to buy their own car, determined to beat the Italians at Le Mans. They built the iconic GT40 as the weapon to beat Ferrari, though their first foray in 1964 wasn't a successive, their three cars entered not seeing the chequered flag. 1965 wasn't any better, Ferrari winning for the sixth year in a row as all cars retired. 1966 was make or break. Ford has spent millions developing the GT40 with little success achieved. They simply had to win. Ford dominated the event, won by Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon, the New Zealand pair leading home a Ford 1-2-3. Ford would win again with the GT40 in 1967, 1968 and 1969, their last win one of the most exciting in history, the Ford of Jacky Ickx and Jackie Oliver beating the Porsche of Hans Herrmann and Gerard Larrousse by only 120 metres, having completed 372 laps in 24 hours.

From Quiz The Accident at Le Mans

Answer: Pierre Levegh

Levegh inadvertantly crashed and caused the deaths of many people. Though it was not his fault.

From Quiz 24 Hours of Le Mans History

Answer: Masanori Sekiya

Sekiya won along with JJ Lehto (see previous question) in 1995. Toshio Suzuki finished 2nd in 1999 driving a Toyota GT-ONE. Kazuyoshi Hoshino's best finish was 3rd in 1998 in a Nissan R390. Masahiro Hasemi's best finish was 5th in 1990 in a Nissan R90CP, a car he shared with Hoshino and Suzuki.

From Quiz Le Mans History

Answer: Porsche

Porsche has 7 consecutive victories from 1981 to 1987, followed by Ferrari with 6 between 1960 and 1965.

From Quiz 90 Years at Le Mans

Answer: Hans Herrmann / Richard Attwood

Porsche left nothing to chance for the 1970 24 Hours of Le Mans. 20 cars, of various make, were entered, by either the factory or privateers. Hans Herrmann and Richard Attwood won the 1970 edition, the first outright victory for the marque. The win was particularly special for Herrmann, having raced in 13 events with no outright victory, finishing as runner-up by only 120 metres the previous year. Attwood would finish second for Porsche in 1971. As for Herrmann, he had taken his crowning achievement. Keeping a promise he made to his wife, he retired at the end of the 1970 race.

From Quiz The Accident at Le Mans

Answer: Mercedes-Benz

After the accident, the other Mercedez-Benz cars drove on for awhile until the company pulled them out of the race out of respect for the dead. They stopped racing altogether for a few decades. Hawthorn drove a Jaguar, Macklin drove an Austin-Healey, and Fangio drove another Mercedes-Benz.

From Quiz 24 Hours of Le Mans History

Answer: 1990

An FIA ruling that no straight could be longer than 2km led to the installation of the chicanes in 1990. The year before, Jean-Louis Schlesser blasted his Sauber C9 - Mercedes-Benz down the Mulsanne at 248mph (399km/hr) in qualifying!

From Quiz Le Mans History

Answer: 8

With different lenghts between 8.450 miles and 10.726 miles.

From Quiz 90 Years at Le Mans

Answer: Rondeau

Jean Rondeau was the first man to win Le Mans in a car constructed and bearing his own name (he was the second independent after Mirage won in 1975). Driving the Rondeau M379 alongside Jaussaud, the pair covered 338 laps, with a second Rondeau M379 also finished in third. More success followed in 1981, with Rondeau cars finishing second and third. But with changing regulations, and increasing financial pressures, the team was disbanded at the end of 1983. Rondeau would be killed in a car accident in 1985, his place in Le Mans history assured and unlikely to ever be matched.

From Quiz The Accident at Le Mans

Answer: Somersaulting

The car, after hitting Macklin, somersaulted on top of the barrier with the hood and axle flying into the air, then landing on the crowd while the engine cut through the spectators. The car then burst into flames which killed a few more people.

From Quiz 24 Hours of Le Mans History

Answer: Rosier

Louis and Jean-Louis Rosier shared a Lago-Talbot T26C-GS in 1950. Mario and Michael Andretti have come close twice, finishing 3rd in 1983 sharing with Philippe Alliot and 6th in 1988 sharing with nephhew/cousin John, both times in Porsches. Derek and Justin Bell also came close in 1995, finishing 3rd in a McLaren F1 GTR - BMW.

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