damn...
Posted on 06/17/2016 7:36:55 AM PDT by MtnClimber
At the 2016 24 Hours of Le Mans, Audi, Porsche, and Toyota will battle for the win with their futuristic hybrid race cars, but another carmaker is getting all of the attention. Ford and its quartet of GTs won’t be in the running for an overall win, but the Blue Oval is nonetheless the biggest Le Mans story this year.
So what’s the big deal?
Basically, it’s a case of déjà vu. Fifty years ago, Ford won Le Mans with its GT40, the culmination of a fierce battle with Ferrari. Today’s GT supercar is inspired by the GT40, and Ford would very much like a win in the GTE Pro class for production cars in order to drive that point home. There’s no feud with Ferrari this time, but Ford’s reputation is definitely on the line.
An epic rivalry
The 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans went pretty well for Ford. Its cars finished 1-2-3, and Ferrari was never really in contention. But that victory came only after defeats in 1964 and 1965, showing the determination of Henry Ford II to beat Enzo Ferrari on the biggest motor sport stage in the world.
Grandson of company founder Henry Ford and referred to as “The Deuce,” Ford’s then boss had offered to buy Ferrari in 1963, but Enzo Ferrari went back on the deal. In his book on Ford/Ferrari rivalry, Go Like Hell, author A.J. Baime argues that Enzo spurned Ford because of concerns he wouldn’t maintain full control of Ferrari’s racing operations. Whatever the reason, Henry Ford II was not happy.
“All right,” he said upon hearing the news that the deal was dead, “We’ll beat his ass. We’re going to race him.”
(Excerpt) Read more at yahoo.com ...
Very nice, I loved those Gulf colors.
Finished 1, 2, 3. Says it all.
They were laps apart and laps ahead of the 4th place car so they formed up for a photo finish.
Bet you can find one on ebay.
for your viewing pleasure
Very cool. Thanks for the ping.
I opted for the 5.0 V8 when I bought my truck.
Thanks
Off to ER again in a few.
I’m getting tired of this being broken carp!!!
damn...
Wow, the Ford GT number 68 wins GT Pro class with the US team. Prototype Toyota with a 1 minute lead over Porsche with 6 minutes to go and has engine problem. Porsche 918 wins overall.
wow- what an ending!
sure was!
six more minutes was six too much
Shame on Fox Sports 1 in America as they were supposed to cover it, instead they have had nothing but GOLF. Un-Freakin' believable...
The lap after the finish is a tradition at Le Mans. All of the track safety crews grab a flag and come to the edge of the track to wave flags to honor the drivers and the drivers wave back to thank them for their support in the race.
Maybe it’s just me, but it seemed more than a lap, I kept waiting for them to pit and go to the podium and they kept going, and going...
How about that - the #5 car is leading, then fails on the final lap, allowing Porsche the overall win. Just like in McQueen's movie.
For some reason they de-tune it in the Explorer and F-150. In something like a big truck you need all the horses you can get.
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