1973 24 Hours of Le Mans
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| 1973 24 Hours of Le Mans | |
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The 1973 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 41st Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on June 9 and 10, 1973. It was the eighth round of the World Championship of Makes.
Contents |
[edit] Pre-race
In 1973, Matra competed against Ferrari for the World Champion title, and Ferrari came to Le Mans, as the race could be decisive for the title. The beginning of the championship had showed that the Matra 670s had better handling, but the Ferraris showed better reliability.
The Matras 670s were updated to the 670B specification consisting mainly of larger spoilers. The main weakness of the 1972 670 was the ZF gearbox (the gearbox used in the stock GT40 Mk1 and the de Tomaso Pantera). By the end of the 1972 race, it had showed so much wear that it was obvious that it could not finish a 24 hour race with serious opposition. New Porsche "Type 1983" gearboxes especially built for Matra by Porsche were fitted in the 670B.
For Le Mans, the Ferrari 312PB had a previously unseen longtail bodywork. John Wyer was back with two Cosworth-powered Gulf Mirage M6 roadsters. In 1000 km races the M6s had proven they were serious competitors, and the Matras and Ferraris were only slightly ahead. Alfa Romeo was more affected than Ferrari by strikes and social troubles in Italy. Alfa racing subsidiary Autodelta did not enter the new flat-12 powered cars, and the marque was represented only by a V8 powered private car entered by Scuderia Brescia Corse. A Sigma powered by a Mazda Wankel engine was entered; this was the first Japanese car to qualify for Le Mans, as well as the first Wankel-powered car to race.
[edit] Race
Ferrari sent the Arturo Merzario/Carlos Pace 312PB out first as a rabbit.
Matra raced to their plan and let the Ferrari go. While the Matras were all running at the same speed, the Ferraris had a variety of strategies. Carlos Reutemann and Tim Schenken were running among the Matra. Jacky Ickx and Brian Redman were running with the slowest 3L cars, the Lolas and the private Alfa Romeo.
Ferrari swapped the lead with Matra through the next four hours, but Henri Pescarolo would repeat as winner, with Gérard Larrousse as co-driver.
[edit] Official Results
| Pos | Class | No | Team | Drivers | Chassis | Engine | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | S 3.0 |
11 |  Equipe Matra-Simca Shell |
Henri Pescarolo Gerard Larrousse |
Matra-Simca MS670B | Matra 3.0L V12 | 355 |
| 2 | S 3.0 |
16 |  SpA Ferrari SEFAC |
Arturo Merzario Carlos Pace |
Ferrari 312PB | Ferrari 3.0L Flat-12 | 349 |
| 3 | S 3.0 |
12 | Equipe Matra-Simca Shell |
Jean-Pierre Jaussaud Jean-Pierre Jabouille |
Matra-Simca MS670B | Matra 3.0L V12 | 331 |
| 4 | S 3.0 |
46 |  Martini Racing Team |
 Herbert Müller Gijs van Lennep |
Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.0L Flat-6 | 328 |
| 5 | S 3.0 |
3 |  Escuderia Montjuich - Tergal |
Bernard Chenevière Juan Fernandez Francisco Torredemer |
Porsche 908/3 | Porsche 3.0L Flat-8 | 319 |
| 6 | GT 5.0 |
39 | Automobiles Charles Pozzi |
Claude Ballot-Léna Vic Elford |
Ferrari 365 GTB/4 | Ferrari 4.4L V12 | 316 |
| 7 | S 3.0 |
4 |  Guillermo Ortega - Ecuador Marlboro |
Guillermo Ortega Fausto Merello |
Porsche 908/1 | Porsche 3.0L Flat-8 | 316 |
| 8 | GT 3.0 |
45 | Porsche Kremer Racing Team |
Paul Keller Erwin Kremer Clemens Schickentanz |
Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 2.8L Flat-6 | 316 |
| 9 | GT 5.0 |
40 | Automobiles Charles Pozzi |
Alain Serpaggi José Dolhem |
Ferrari 365 GTB/4 | Ferrari 4.4L V12 | 315 |
| 10 | GT 3.0 |
63 | Gelo Racing Team |
Georg Loos Jürgen Barth |
Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 2.8L Flat-6 | 311 |
| 11 | T 5.0 |
51 | BMW Motorsport |
Toine Hezemans Dieter Quester |
BMW 3.0CSL | BMW 3.3L I6 | 307 |
| 12 | GT +5.0 |
30 | Greder Racing Team |
Henri Greder Marie-Claude Charmasson |
Chevrolet Corvette | Chevrolet 7.0L V8 | 303 |
| 13 | GT 5.0 |
38 |  North American Racing Team |
François Migault Luigi Chinetti Jr. |
Ferrari 365 GTB/4 | Ferrari 4.4L V12 | 299 |
| 14 | GT 3.0 |
48 | Porsche Sonauto BP Racing |
Peter Gregg Guy Chasseuil |
Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 2.8L Flat-6 | 298 |
| 15 | S 3.0 |
60 | Scuderia Brescia Corse |
Carlo Facetti Sergio Morando Teodoro Zeccoli |
Alfa Romeo Tipo 33TT3 | Alfa Romeo 3.0L V8 | 298 |
| 16 | GT 3.0 |
41 | Schiller Racing Team |
Jean Selz Florian Vetsch |
Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 2.7L Flat-6 | 297 |
| 17 | GT 3.0 |
42 | René Mazzia |
Pierre Mauroy Marcel Mignot |
Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 2.8L Flat-6 | 290 |
| 18 | GT +5.0 |
69 | J.C. Aubriet / Écurie Léopard |
Jean-Claude Aubriet "Depnic" |
Chevrolet Corvette | Chevrolet 7.0L V8 | 282 |
| 19 | S 3.0 |
18 | Claude Laurent |
Claude Laurent Martial Delalande Jacques Marché |
Ligier JS2 | Maserati 2.9L V6 | 270 |
| 20 | GT 5.0 |
34 | .svg/22px-Flag_of_Belgium_(civil).svg.png){kind=small} Ecurie Francorchamps |
Jean-Claude Andruet Richard Bond |
Ferrari 365 GTB/4 | Ferrari 4.4L V12 | 270 |
| 21 | S 3.0 |
52 | André Wicky Racing Team |
André Wicky Max Cohen-Olivar Philippe Carron |
Porsche 908/2 | Porsche 3.0L Flat-8 | 270 |
[edit] Did Not Finish
| Pos | Class | No | Team | Drivers | Chassis | Engine | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 | S 3.0 |
15 | SpA Ferrari SEFAC |
Jacky Ickx Brian Redman |
Ferrari 312PB | Ferrari 3.0L Flat-12 | 332 |
| 23 | S 2.0 |
25 | Michel Dupont |
Michel Dupont Paul Blancpain |
Chevron B23 | Ford Cosworth FVC 1.8L I4 | 229 |
| 24 | GT 5.0 |
6 | North American Racing Team |
Sam Posey Milt Minter |
Ferrari 365 GTB/4 | Ferrari 4.4L V12 | 254 |
| 25 | T 3.0 |
55 | Ford Motorwerke |
Dieter Glemser John Fitzpatrick Hans Heyer |
Ford Capri RS | Ford 3.0L V6 | 239 |
| 26 | S 3.0 |
7 | Équipe Gitanes Cigarettes France |
Jean-Louis Lafosse Reine Wisell Hughes de Fierlandt |
Lola T282 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8 | 164 |
| 27 | GT 5.0 |
36 | North American Racing Team |
Lucien Guitteny Bob Grossman |
Ferrari 365 GTB/4 | Ferrari 4.4L V12 | 192 |
| 28 | GT 5.0 |
33 | J.C. Bamford Excavators Ltd. |
Neil Corner Willie Green |
Ferrari 365 GTB/4 | Ferrari 4.4L V12 | 163 |
| 29 | GT 5.0 |
37 | North American Racing Team |
 Luis Di Palma Nestor Garcia Veiga |
Ferrari 365 GTB/4 | Ferrari 4.4L V12 | 211 |
| 30 | S 3.0 |
8 | Gulf Research Racing |
Derek Bell Howden Ganley |
Mirage M6 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8 | 163 |
| 31 | GT 5.0 |
56 | Shark Racing Team |
Jean-Claude Guérie Cyril Grandet |
Ferrari 365 GTB/4 | Ferrari 4.4L V12 | 174 |
| 32 | S 3.0 |
19 | Automobiles Ligier |
Jean-Pierre Paoli Alain Couderc |
Ligier JS2 | Maserati 3.0L V6 | 174 |
| 33 | T 5.0 |
50 | BMW Motorsport |
Chris Amon Hans Joachim Stuck |
BMW 3.0CSL | BMW 3.3L I6 | 160 |
| 34 | T 3.0 |
53 | Ford Motorwerke |
Jean Vinatier Helmut Koinigg Gerry Birrell |
Ford Capri RS | Ford 3.0L V6 | 152 |
| 35 | GT 3.0 |
49 | Jean Egreteaud |
Jean Egreteaud Jean-Claude Lagniez |
Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 2.8L Flat-6 | 139 |
| 36 | S 2.0 |
22 | Raymond Touroul |
Raymond Touroul Jean-Pierre Rouget |
Porsche 910 | Porsche 2.0L Flat-6 | 142 |
| 37 | S 3.0 |
5 | Duckhams Oil |
Alain de Cadenet Chris Craft |
Duckhams LM (Lola T280) |
Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8 | 81 |
| 38 | S 3.0 |
17 | SpA Ferrari SEFAC |
 Tim Schenken Carlos Reutemann |
Ferrari 312P/B | Ferrari 3.0L Flat-12 | 182 |
| 39 | S 3.0 |
10 | Équipe Matra-Simca Shell |
François Cevert Jean-Pierre Beltoise |
Matra-Simca MS670B | Matra 3.0L V12 | 157 |
| 40 | S 2.5 |
26 |  Sigma Automotive |
Tetsu Ikuzawa Hiroshi Fushida Patrick Dal Bo |
Sigma MC73 | Mazda 12A 2.3L 2-Rotor | 79 |
| 41 | GT 3.0 |
44 | Porsche Club Romand |
Jean-François Piot Peter Zbinden |
Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 2.8L Flat-6 | 110 |
| 42 | GT 3.0 |
78 | Jean Sage |
Hervé Bayard René Ligonnet |
Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 2.8L Flat-6 | 95 |
| 43 | GT 3.0 |
43 | Max Moritz Racing Team |
Gerd Quist Manfred Laub Jürgen Zink |
Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 2.8L Flat-6 | 103 |
| 44 | S 3.0 |
9 | Gulf Research Racing |
Mike Hailwood John Watson Vern Schuppan |
Mirage M6 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8 | 112 |
| 45 | S 2.0 |
21 | Pierre Maublanc |
Pierre Maublanc Robert Mieusset |
Chevron B23 | BMW 2.0L I4 | 90 |
| 46 | S 3.0 |
14 | Equipe Matra-Simca Shell |
Patrick Depailler Bob Wollek |
Matra-Simca MS670B | Matra 3.0L V12 | 84 |
| 47 | S 2.0 |
28 | Jacques Henry |
Jacques Henry Fred Stalder Gernard Grobot |
Lola T292 | Ford Cosworth FVC 1.9L I4 | 84 |
| 48 | S 3.0 |
47 | Martini Racing Team |
Reinhold Joest Claude Haldi |
Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.0L Flat-6 | 54 |
| 49 | S 2.0 |
27 | Escuderia Montjuich |
José Juncadella Jorge de Bagration |
Chevron B23 | Ford Cosworth FVC 1.9L I4 | 52 |
| 50 | S 3.0 |
61 | Daniel Rouveyran |
Daniel Rouveyran Christian Mons Christian Ethuin |
Lola T280/82 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8 | 38 |
| 51 | GT +5.0 |
29 | John Greenwood |
John Greenwood Bob Johnson |
Chevrolet Corvette | Chevrolet 7.0L V8 | 37 |
| 52 | S 3.0 |
62 | Automobiles Ligier |
Guy Ligier Jacques Laffite |
Ligier JS2 | Maserati 3.0L V6 | 24 |
| 53 | T 3.0 |
54 | Ford Motorwerke |
Gerry Birrell Hans Heyer |
Ford Capri RS | Ford 3.0L V6 | 4 |
| 54 | S 2.0 |
2 | Blancpain Total Dinitrol |
Roger Dubois Christine Beckers Pierre Pagani |
Chevron B21/23 | Ford Cosworth FVC 1.8L I4 | 9 |
| 55 | T 5.0 |
58 | André Wicky Racing Team |
Walter Brun Cox Kocher Jean-Pierre Aeschlimann |
BMW 3.0CSL | BMW 3.3L I6 | 1 |
[edit] Statistics
- Pole Position - #16 SpA Ferrari SEFAC - 3:37.50
- Fastest Lap - #10 Equipe Matra-Simca Shell - 3:39.60
- Distance - 4853.945km
- Average Speed - 202.247km/h
[edit] Trophy Winners
- Index of Thermal Efficiency - #45 Porsche Kremer Racing Team
[edit] References
- (French) 24 heures du Mans 1973 in Automobile Historique n°49, June/July 2005
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