Le Mans 24 hour race, 1925

Lorraine-Dietrich B3-6 Sport, winning car from Gérard de Courcelles and André Rossignol

The Officine Meccaniche factory team before the race

The ten-placed Chenard & Walcker Tank by Raymond Glaszmann and Raphaël Manso de Zuñiga

The third 24-hour race of Le Mans , the 3 ^e Grand Prix d'Endurance les 24 Heures du Mans , also 3emes Grand Prix d'Endurance les 24 Heures du Mans, Circuit Permanenthe de la Sarthe , took place from 20. to 21 June 1925 on the Circuit des 24 Heures .

The Le Mans start

For the 1925 24-hour race, there were some major changes to the process. The Le Mans start was introduced , in which the drivers had to sprint across the lane to their vehicles parked in front of the pit lane and started standing up. This starting process was carried out until 1969 and then replaced by the Indianapolis start for safety reasons. The main grandstands and the pit lane had to be relocated to the end of the Hunaudières straights this year, as it was not possible to agree on a transfer fee with the property owner.

The race

Of the 60 entries, 49 starters were admitted this year. The Bentley success from the previous year increased international interest in the race. Bentley and Sunbeam came to Le Mans in factory cars. For the first time, an Italian team was at the start with two OMs . The strongest car was again the 8-liter factory Chenard & Walcker . The smallest vehicle in the field was a small Austin 7 .

At the beginning the race was marked by a duel between the Bentley and Sunbeam works cars, all of which, except for the cars of Jean Chassagne and Sammy Davis , were canceled. The two OMs, who finished fourth and fifth, were surprisingly competitive. In the end, a French team triumphed: Gérard de Courcelles and André Rossignol won on a Lorraine-Dietrich B3-6.

In 1925 the first fatalities had to be mourned. During training, the Frenchman André Guilbert had a fatal accident on a Ravel. In the race, Marius Mestivier lost control of his Amilcar in the Mulsanne and died at the scene of the accident after a serious accident.

Rudge Whitworth Triennial and Biennial Cup

In 1925 the Rudge Whitworth Triennale Cup, which was launched as a team competition in 1923 and included the races in 1923, 1924 and 1925, ended. The first Biennale Cup, which began in 1924, also ended in 1925. From 1926 this cup was awarded annually as an Index of Performance. The French manufacturer Chenard & Walcker won both ratings .

Results

Pilots by nationality

76 French	8 British	z Italians	3 Belgians	2 Spaniards
1 Canadian	1 Swiss

Final ranking

Item	class	No.	team	driver	chassis	engine	tires	Round
1	5.0	5	Lorraine-Dietrich et Cie	Gérard de Courcelles André Rossignol	Lorraine-Dietrich B3-6 Sport	Lorraine-Dietrich 3.5L I6	E.	129
2	3.0	16	Sunbeam Motor Company	Jean Chassagne Sammy Davis	Sunbeam 3 Liter Super Sports	Sunbeam 3.0L I6	R T	125
3	5.0	4th	Lorraine-Dietrich et Cie	Henry Stalter Édouard Brisson	Lorraine-Dietrich B3-6 Sport	Lorraine-Dietrich 3.5L I6	E.	124
4th	2.0	29	Officine Meccaniche	Tino Danieli Mario Danieli	OM Tipo 665S Superba	OM 2.0L I6	P	119
5	2.0	30th	Officine Meccaniche	Giulio Foresti Aimé Vassiaux	OM Tipo 665S Superba	OM 2.0L I6	P	119
6th	3.0	11	Société des Automobile Ariès	Louis Wagner Charles Flohot	Ariès Type S GP2	Ariès 3.0L I4	M.	119
7th	2.0	23	SA des Établissements Rolland-Pilain	Jean de Marguenat Louis Sire	Rolland-Pilain C23 Super Sport	Rolland-Pilain 2.0L I4	M.	117
8th	1.5	41	Société Française des Automobiles Corre	Louis Balart Robert Doutrebente	Corre La Licorne V16 10CV Sport	SCAP 1.5L I4	E.	110
9	1.5	42	Société Française des Automobiles Corre	Waldemar Lestienne Robert Lestienne	Corre La Licorne V16 10CV Sport	SCAP 1.5L I4	E.	109
10	1.1	50	Chenard & Walcker	Raymond Glaszmann Raphaël Manso de Zuñiga	Chenard-Walcker Z1 Spéciale	Chenard & Walcker 1.1L I4	M.	109
11	2.0	21st	Societa Anonima Autocostruzioni Diatto	Edmond Garcia Mario Botto	Diatto Tipo 30	Diatto 2.0L I4	E.	109
12	2.0	33	Établissements Industriels Jacques Bignan	Henri Springuel Pierre Clause	Bignan 2 Liter Sport	Bignan 2.0L I4	E.	108
13	1.1	49	Chenard & Walcker	Robert Sénéchal Albéric Loqueheux	Chenard-Walcker Z1 Spéciale	Chenard & Walcker 1.1L I4	M.	105
14th	1.5	39	Establishments Henri Precioux	Jean d'Aulan René Dély	EHP DT Spéciale	CIME 1.5L I4	E.	103
15th	1.5	35	Gendron et Compagnie	Adrien Drancé Marcel Michelot	GM GC2	GM 1.5L I4	D.	100
16	1.1	44	SARA	Lucien Erb Gaston Mottet	SARA ATS	SARA 1.1L I4	E.	93
Not classified
17th	5.0	7th	Grand Garage Saint-Didier Paris	Henri Stoffel Lucien Desvaux	Chrysler 70 Six	Chrysler 3.3L I6	B F
18th	3.0	14th	Societa Anonima Autocostruzioni Diatto	Giorgio Rubielti Tulio Vesprini	Diatto Tipo 35	Diatto 2.9L I4	E.
19th	3.0	18th	SA of the automobile Ravel	Eugène Van den Bossche Abel Smeets	Ravel 12CV Sport	Ravel 2.5L I4	D.
20th	2.0	22nd	SA des Établissements Rolland-Pilain	Gaston Delalande Paul Chalamel	Rolland-Pilain C23 Super Sport	Rolland-Pilain 2.0L I4	M.
Disqualified
21st	1.5	37	Automobiles Talbot-Darracq	Théodore Le Du Alphonse Auclair	Talbot-Darracq Type C	Talbot 1.5L I4	E.	73
22nd	2.0	24	SA des Établissements Rolland-Pilain	Paul Stremler Pierre Salles	Rolland-Pilain C23 Super Sport	Rolland-Pilain 2.0L I4	M.	70
23	1.1	47	Automobiles Doriot-Flandrin-Parant SA	Émile Lacharnay Jacques Millies	DFP VA Type 7cv	CIME 1.1L I4	E.	60
24	3.0	17th	Établissements Charles Montier et Cie	Charles Montier Albert Ouriou	Montier special	Ford 2.9L I4	E.	54
Failed
25th	3.0	13	Societa Anonima Autocostruzioni Diatto	François Lecot Eugène Renaud	Diatto Tipo 35	Diatto 3.0L I4	E.	109
26th	1.5	36	Automobiles Talbot-Darracq	Edmond Bourlier Jules Moriceau	Talbot-Darracq Type C	Talbot 1.5L I4	E.	98
27	5.0	2	Chenard & Walcker	André Lagache René Léonard	Chenard-Walcker Type U 22CV Sport	Chenard & Walcker 3.9L I8	M.	90
28	2.0	28	Officine Meccaniche	Ferdinando Minoia Vincenzo Coffani	OM Tipo 665S Superba	OM 2.0L I6	P	81
29	2.0	32	Établissements Industriels Jacques Bignan	Jean Martin Henri-Julien Matthys	Bignan 2 Liter Sport	Bignan 2.0L I4	E.	65
30th	5.0	9	Captain John Duff	Capt. John F. Duff Frank Clement	Bentley 3 Liter Sport	Bentley 3.3L I4	E.	64
31	1.5	40	Société Française des Automobiles Corre	Albert Colomb Fernand Vallon	Corre La Licorne V16 10CV Sport	SCAP 1.5L I4	E.	50
32	3.0	12	Société des Automobile Ariès	Louis Rigal Roger Delano	Ariès Type S GP2	Ariès 3.0L I4	M.	42
33	2.0	20th	Societa Anonima Autocostruzioni Diatto	Louis Dollé Edouard Giroux	Diatto Tipo 30	Diatto 2.0L I4	E.	41
34	1.5	38	Establishments Henri Precioux	Maurice Benoist Michel Doré	EHP DT Spéciale	CIME 1.5L I4	E.	41
35	1.1	45	SARA	Jules de Segovia Gaston Duval	SARA BDE	SARA 1.1L I4	E.	40
36	1.5	34	Gendron et Compagnie	Marcel Gendron Lucien Bossoutrot	GM GC2 Sport	GM 1.5L I4	D.	36
37	1.1	53	Société des Automobile Ariès	Joseph Paul Louis François	Ariès 8-10 CV	Ariès 1.1L I4	M.	35
38	5.0	6th	Lorraine-Dietrich et Cie	Robert Bloch Léon Saint-Paul	Lorraine-Dietrich B3-6 Sport	Lorraine-Dietrich 3.5L I6	E.	33
39	3.0	15th	Sunbeam Motor Company	Sir Henri Segrave George Duller	Sunbeam 3 Liter Super Sports	Sunbeam 3.0L I6	R T	32
40	1.1	46	Automobiles Doriot-Flandrin-Parant SA	Louis Colas Eugène Moraine	DFP VA	CIME 1.1L I4	E.	31
41	5.0	1	Société Nouvelle des Autos Sizaire	Émile De Franconi, Émile Dupont	Sizaire-Berwick 25 / 50CV	Sizaire-Berwick 4.5L I4	E.	23
42	5.0	10	Bentley Motors Ltd.	Herbert Kensington-Moir Dudley Benjafield	Bentley 3 Liter Sport	Bentley 3.3L I4	R T	19th
43	1.1	48	Automobiles Doriot-Flandrin-Parant SA	Jean Porporato Marcel Collet	DFP VA	CIME 1.1L I4	E.	19th
44	1.1	51	Société Nouvelle pour l'Automobile	Marius Mestivier André Morel	Amilcar CGSS Gran Sport	Amilcar 1.1L I4	E.	17th
45	1.1	43	SARA	André Marandet Gonzaque Lécureul	SARA BDE	SARA 1.1L I4	E.	15th
46	1.1	52	Automobiles Majola	Jean Majola Fernand Casellini	Majola type F	Majola 1.1L I4	D.	14th
47	1.1	54	Société des Automobile Ariès	Fernand Gabriel Henri Lapierre	Ariès 8-10 CV	Ariès 1.1L I4	M.	11
48	750	55	Gordon England	Gordon England Sir Francis Samuelson	Austin 7	Austin 0.7L I4	D.	9
49	5.0	3	Chenard & Walcker	André Pisart Jacques Ledure	Chenard-Walcker Type U 22CV Sport	Chenard & Walcker 3.9L I8	M.	6th
Not started
50	5.0	19th	Automobiles Ravel SA	André Guilbert Henri Delhuvenne	Ravel 12CV Sport	Ravel 2.5L I4	D.	1
51	2.0	31	AC of Thames Ditton	Victor Bruce John Joyce	AC Six 16/40	AC 2.0L I6		2
52	2.0	25th	Automobiles Oméga-Six	Jacques Margueritte Louis Bonne	Oméga-Six Type A	Oméga 2.0L I6		3
53	2.0	26th	Automobiles Oméga-Six	Roland Coty Albert Clement	Oméga-Six Type A	Oméga 2.0L I6		4th
54	2.0	27	Automobiles Oméga-Six	Louis Charavel Jacques Boyriven	Oméga-Six Type A	Oméga 2.0L I6		5
55	5.0	8th	Grand Garage Saint-Didier Paris		Chrysler 70	Chrysler 3.3L I6	B F	6th

¹ Fatal accident of André Guilbert during training ² Defective radiator during training ³ Not started ⁴ Not started ⁵ Not started ⁶ withdrawn

Only in the entry list

No further entries were made in this race.

Rudge Whitworth Triennale Cup overall ranking

Item	No.	driver	chassis	1923	1924	1925	Overall rating
1	49	Robert Sénéchal Albéric Loqueheux	Chenard-Walcker Z1 Spéciale	+ 49	+ 8	+ 14	71
2	23	Jean de Marguenat Louis Sire	Rolland-Pilain C23 Super Sport	+ 19	+ 5	+ 9	33
3	4th	Henry Stalter Édouard Brisson	Lorraine-Dietrich B3-6 Sport	+ 26	0	+ 6	32
4th	4th	Jean Martin Henri-Julien Matthys	Bignan 2 Liter Sport	+ 50	0	DNF	(50)
5	51	Marius Mestivier André Morel	Amilcar CGSS Gran Sport	+ 40	+ 4	DNF	(44)
6th	9	John Duff Frank Clement	Bentley 3 Liter Sport	+ 33	+ 5	DNF	(38)
7th	22nd	Gaston Delalande Paul Chalamel	Rolland-Pilain C23 Super Sport	+ 12	+ 2	DNF	(14)

Rudge Whitworth Biennale Cup overall ranking

Item	No.	driver	chassis	1924	1925	Overall rating
1	50	Raymond Glaszmann Raphaël Manso de Zuñiga	Chenard-Walcker Z1 Spéciale	+ 8	+ 18	26th
2	4th	Henry Stalter Édouard Brisson	Lorraine-Dietrich B3-6 Sport	0	10	10
3	5	Gérard de Courcelles André Rossignol	Lorraine-Dietrich B3-6 Sport	0	6th	6th
4th	5	Henri Springuel Pierre Clause	Bignan 2 Liter Sport	0	2	2

Class winner

class	driver	driver	vehicle	Placement in the overall ranking
1st Triennial Cup	Robert Sénéchal	Albéric Loqueheux	Chenard-Walcker Z1 Spéciale	Rank 13
1st Biennial Cup - Index of Performance	Raymond Glaszmann	Raphaël Manso de Zuniga	Chenard-Walcker Z1 Spéciale	Rank 10
3001-5000 cc	Gérard de Courcelles	André Rossignol	Lorraine-Dietrich B3-6 Sport	Overall victory
2001-3000 cc	Jean Chassagne	Sammy Davis	Sunbeam 3 Liter Super Sports	Rank 2
1501-2000 cc	Tino Danieli	Mario Danieli	OM Tipo 665S Superba	Rank 4
1101-1500 cc	Louis Balart	Robert Doutrebente	Corre La Licorne V16 10CV Sport	Rank 8
750-1100 cc	Raymond Glaszmann	Raphaël Manso de Zuniga	Chenard-Walcker Z1 Spéciale	Rank 10

Racing data

• Registered: 55
• Started: 49
• Valued: 16
• Race classes: 7
• Spectator: unknown
• Honorary starter of the race: unknown
• Weather on the race weekend: dry and hot
• Route length: 17.262 km
• Driving time of the winning team: 24: 00: 00,000 hours
• Total laps of the winning team: 129
• Total distance of the winning team: 2233.982 km
• Winner's average: 93.082 km / h
• Pole position: unknown
• Fastest race lap: André Lagache - Chenard-Walcker Type U 22CV Sport (# 2) - 9: 10,000 = 112.987 km / h
• Racing series: 3rd run to the Triennale Cup

literature

• Christian Moity, Jean-Marc Teissèdre, Alain Bienvenu: 24 heures du Mans, 1923–1992. Éditions d'Art, Besançon 1992, ISBN 2-909-413-06-3 .
• RM Clarke: Le Mans. The Bentley & Alfa Years 1923-1939. Brooklands Books, Cobham 1998, ISBN 1-85520-465-7 .
• Quentin Spurring: Le Mans The Official History 1923-29 Evro Publishing, Hardcover, 2015, ISBN 1-91050-508-0 .

Web links

Commons : 24 Hours of Le Mans 1925  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Image: Lorraine-Dietrich B3-6, model of the winning car of the 1925 24-hour race
• Final results at 24-hour en-piste