Le Mans 24 hour race 1949

The race winners Lord Selsdon (left) and Luigi Chinetti (center). On the right, Chinetti's wife Marion

The Ferrari 166MM with the starting number 22, the winning car of Luigi Chinetti and Lord Selsdon

Delahaye 135MS

The restored Bentley 4 1/4 Paulin, with which Tommy Wisdom and Soltan Hay achieved sixth place in the overall standings

The 17th 24-hour race of Le Mans , the 17th ^e Grand Prix d'Endurance les 24 Heures du Mans , also 24 Heures du Mans, Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans , took place from June 25th to 26th, 1949 the Circuit des 24 Heures .

The Second World War and the years after

When the 24-hour race took place in June 1939 , it was not foreseeable that ten years would pass before another endurance race would take place on the Sarthe . Shortly after the Second World War broke out on September 1, 1939 , the area was occupied by the French army . A few days later the British army set up a large military camp on the site. When the Wehrmacht invaded France in 1940 , parts of the permanent racetrack became an airport. The Germans also set up a prison camp.

At the end of the war, the facilities were as good as destroyed. The retreating German troops left only ruins. All electrical installations were dismantled and the large timetable destroyed. The pit systems were destroyed to the ground and the wooden stands burned down. The tank system, built in 1934 , was completely dismantled and transported away by the Germans.

In February 1946, Gérard Berthier, general manager of the Automobile Club de l'Ouest , issued a bulletin that was mailed to the club's 30,000 members. In it he described the drastic situation and asked for assistance in activating the race. The response was so great that the ACO began to rebuild the infrastructure of the race with the support of the members. The ACO was still in possession of the property on which the permanent sections of the route ran and began cleaning up in the summer of 1946. The public roads have been repaired. However, two years passed before both the boxes and grandstands were set up to such an extent that a race could be considered again. The ACO agreed to hold the first race after the war in June 1949. Since the officials of the ACO were not sure how great the interest in the race would be, it was decided to invite 13 starters from 1939 directly. This system of invitation races, created in 1949, has been maintained to this day.

The race

Contrary to the fears of the ACO, 39 additional reports were received, so that 49 vehicles were qualified for the race after training. Some new cars were added to the many pre-war models. For the first time, vehicles of the Ferrari brand were at the start. Luigi Chinetti - who had already won the race in 1932 and 1934 - had emigrated to the United States during the war and had since taken on American citizenship. Chinetti earned his living importing and selling Ferrari vehicles and was building his own racing team. In Le Mans, however, he started the race as a partner of Peter Mitchell-Thomson, 2nd Baron Selsdon , who had reported a Ferrari 166MM . Almost all reports were submitted by private teams, including for the first time later motorsport greats such as Charles Pozzi and Rob Walker .

The Delettrez brothers use their own construction with a diesel engine . Two small Aero Minor came from Czechoslovakia and the three Gordini Type 8s came to the racetrack just a few minutes before the start.

Eugène Chaboud dominated the first four hours of the race in a Delahaye 175S before the car burned out after an engine fire. Pierre Louis-Dreyfus - also a Le Mans veteran from the 1930s - took the lead, but could not use the advantage because just one lap later in front of the Mulsanne he over-revved the engine of his Ferrari and broke down with engine failure. Guy Mairesse was now leading in Talbot-Lago, which was soon overtaken by Chinetti. Chinetti sat in the car non-stop until 4:26 AM when Lord Selsdon took over the car for exactly an hour and 12 minutes. Seldson had food poisoning and was therefore unable to give Chinetti much support.

A slip by Chinetti on Sunday morning put Juan Jover in the lead on a Delage . But the Delage had suspension problems and Jover was only able to do the last few laps at a slow pace. Chinetti caught the Spaniard a few laps before the end and won the race. It was the first win for the Ferrari brand at Le Mans. But Le Mans also had one fatality: the Frenchman Pierre Maréchal had a fatal accident that night .

How important this first 24-hour race after the war was for the French automotive industry, you could see from the fact that the start was carried out by Industry Minister Christian Pineau and President Vincent Auriol was present at the finish.

Results

Pilots by nationality

61 French	26 British	3 Czechoslovaks	2 Belgians	2 Spaniards
1 Swiss	1 American

Final ranking

Item	class	No.	team	driver	chassis	engine	tires	Round
1	S 2.0	22nd	Lord Selsdon	Lord Selsdon Luigi Chinetti	Ferrari 166MM	Ferrari 2.0L V12	E.	235
2	S 3.0	15th	Henri Louveau	Henri Louveau Juan Jover	Delage Type D 6-3 liters	Delage 3.0L I6		234
3	S 2.0	3	Mrs. P. Trevelyan	Harold John Aldington Norman Culpan	Frazer Nash High Speed ​​Le Mans Replica	Bristol 2.0L I6		224
4th	S 3.0	14th	WS Watney	Louis Gérard Francesco Godia	Delage Type D 6-3 liters	Delage 3.0L I6		212
5	S 5.0	11	Pierre Meyrat	Georges Grignard Robert Brunet	Delahaye 135CS	Delahaye 4.0L I6		210
6th	S 5.0	6th	HSF Hay	Soltan Hay Tommy Wisdom	Bentley 4¼ Paulin	Bentley 4.3L I6		210
7th	S 2.0	27	Arthur Jones	Arthur Jones Nick Haines	Aston Martin DB1	Aston Martin 2.0L I4		207
8th	S 1.5	35	Ecurie Lapin Blanc	Eric Thompson Jack Fairman	HRG 1500 Lightweight Le Mans	Singer 1.5L I4 |		202
9	S 5.0	12	René Bouchard	René Bouchard Pierre Larrue	Delahaye 135MS	Delahaye 3.6L I6		200
10	S 5.0	9	Henry Leblanc	Henry Leblanc Jean Brault	Delahaye 135CS	Delahaye 3.6L I6		194
11	S 2.0	29	Robert Lawrie	Robert Lawrie Robert Parker	Aston Martin DB1	Aston Martin 2.0L I4		193
12	S 1.1	44	Monopole Poissy	Jean de Montrémy Eugène Dussous	Monopoly sport	Gordini 1.1L I4		185
13	S 3.0	20th	Jack Bartlett	Jack Bartlett Nigel Mann	Healey Elliott	Riley 2.4L I4		180
14th	S 1.1	47	Norbert-Jean Mahé	Norbert-Jean Mahé Roger Crovetto	Simca Huit	Gordini 1.1L I4		178
15th	S 750	58	Let-Aviation	František Sutnar Otto Krattner	Aero Minor Sport 750	Aero Minor 0.7L Flat-2		177
16	S 1.5	41	Auguste Lachaize	Auguste Lachaize Albert Debille	DB tank	Citroën 1.5L I4		176
17th	S 1.1	52	André Guillard	André Guillard Théodore Martin	Simca Huit	Gordini 1.1L I4		156
18th	S 750	60	Ecurie Verte	Emmanuel Baboin Pierre Gay	Simca Six	Simca 0.6L I4		156
19th	S 750	59	Jacques Poch	Ivan Hodač Jacques Poch	Aero Minor Sport 750	Aero 0.7L Flat-2	E.	150
Failed
20th	S 5.0	1	Ecurie Verte	André Chambas André Morel	Talbot-Lago Gran Sport Coupe	Talbot-Lago 4.5L I6		222
21st	S 3.0	18th	Auguste Veuillet	Auguste Veuillet Edmond Mouche	Delage Type D 6-3 liters	Delage 3.0L I6		208
22nd	S 2.0	28	Mrs. RP Hichens	Pierre Maréchal T. ASO Mathieson	Aston Martin DB1	Aston Martin 2.0L I4		192
23	S 5.0	4th	Charles Pozzi	Pierre Flahault André Simon	Delahaye 175S	Delahaye 4.5L I6		179
24	S 1.5	42	René Bonnet	René Bonnet Charles German	DB 5	Citroën 1.5L I4		175
25th	S 1.5	43	GE Phillips	George Phillips RM Dryden	MG TC Special	MG 1.3L I4		134
26th	S 5.0	8th	Louis Villeneuve	Marius Chanal Yves Giraud-Cabantous	Delahaye 135CS	Delahaye 3.6L I6		128
27	S 5.0	10	Rob Walker Racing Team	Tony Rolt Guy Jason-Henry	Delahaye 135CS	Delahaye 3.6L I6		126
28	S 5.0	5	Ets. Delettrez	Jean Delettrez Jacques Delettrez	Delettrez Diesel	Delettrez 4.4L I6		123
29	S 1.1	45	Monopole Poissy	Jean Hémard Raymond Lienard	Monopolies	Simca 1.1L I4		120
30th	S 1.1	48	Just-Émile Vernet	Just-Émile Vernet Claude Batault	Simca Huit	Simca 1.1L I4		118
31	S 1.1	56	Jacques Savoye	Jacques Savoye Marcel Renault	Singer 9 Le Mans	Singer 1.0L I4		97
32	S 5.0	2	Ecurie France	Paul Vallé Guy Mairesse	Talbot-Lago Monoplace Decalee	Talbot-Lago 4.5L I6		95
33	S 1.1	54	Mme Vivianne Elder	Vivianne Elder René Camerano	Simca Huit	Simca 1.1L I4		95
34	S 1.1	46	Robert Redge	Félix Lecerf Robert Redge	Simca Dého	Simca 1.1L I4		89
35	S 1.1	50	Amédée Gordini	Pierre Veyron José Scaron	Simca-Gordini T8	Simca 1.1L I4		88
36	S 1.5	34	Ecurie Lapin Blanche	Jack Scott-Douglas Neville Gee	HRG 1500 Lightweight Le Mans	Singer 1.5L I4		83
37	S 3.0	16	Marc Versini	Marc Versini Gaston Serraud	Delage Type D 6-3 liters	Delage 3.0L I6		58
38	S 2.0	23	Jacques Plisson	Jean Lucas Pierre Louis-Dreyfus	Ferrari 166MM	Ferrari 2.0L V12	E.	53
39	S 5.0	3	Charles Pozzi	Eugène Chaboud Charles Pozzi	Delahaye 175S	Delahaye 4.5L I6		52
40	S 2.0	30th	Peter Monkhouse	Peter Monkhouse Ernest Stapleton	Aston Martin Speed ​​Model	Aston Martin 2.0L I4		45
41	S 1.1	51	Robert Tocheport	Robert Tocheport Roget Carron	Simca Huit	Simca 1.1L I4		45
42	S 1.5	36	Just-Émile Vernet	Georges Trouis Roger Eckerlein	Riley RMA	Riley 1.5L I4		40
43	S 2.0	31	Dudley C. Folland	Anthony Heal Dudley Folland	Aston Martin Speed ​​Model	Aston Martin 2.0L I4		26th
44	S 5.0	7th	Ecurie Rosier	Louis Rosier Jean-Louis Rosier	Talbot-Lago Spéciale	Talbot-Lago 4.1L I6		21st
45	S 1.1	57	Camille Hardy	Camille Hardy Maurice Roger	Renault 4CV	Renault 0.8L I4		21st
46	S 1.5	33	Ecurie Lapin Blanche	Peter Clark Mortimer Morris-Goodall	HRG 1500 Lightweight Le Mans	Singer 1.5L I4		11
47	S 3.0	19th	Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd.	Leslie Johnson Charles Brackenbury	Aston Martin DB2	Lagonda 2.6L I6		6th
48	S 2.0	32	Louis Harrows	Louis Eggen Egon Kraft de la Saulx	Alvis TA 14	Alvis 1.9L I4		6th
49	S 1.1	49	Amédée Gordini	Jean Trévoux Marcel Lesurque	Simca-Gordini TMM	Simca 1.1L I4		5
Not started
50			John Gordon		Lancia Astura	Lancia 3.0L V8		1
51	S 1.5	37	Amédée Gordini	Robert Manzon Maurice Trintignant	Simca-Gordini T15S	Gordini 1.5L I6		2
52	S 1.1		B. Michelot		Simca Huit	Gordini 1.1L I4		3
53	S 1.1		Victor Polledry		Simca Huit	Gordini 1.1L I4		3

¹ not started ² not started ³ reserve ⁴ reserve

Only in the entry list

Here you can find teams, drivers and vehicles that were originally registered for the race, but did not take part for various reasons.

Item	class	No.	team	driver	chassis	engine	tires
54	S 1.5		Amédée Gordini	Pierre Veryon Franco Rol	Simca-Gordini T15S	Gordini 1.5L I6
55	S 1.5		Amédée Gordini	José Scaron Yves Giraud-Cabantous	Simca-Gordini T15S	Gordini 1.5L I6
56			Eugène Chaboud		Delahaye
57			H. Grange		Riley
58	2.0		Luigi Chinetti		Ferrari 166MM
59	2.0		Jacques Plisson		Ferrari 166MM
60	2.0		Jack Bartlett		Aston Martin
61	750		Ecurie Canot		Renault 4CV
62	750		Robert Delpech		Renault 4CV
63	750		Robert Delpech		Renault 4CV
64	750		Amédée Gordini		Simca-Gordini
65	1.5		Amédée Gordini		Simca-Gordini
66	1.5		Amédée Gordini		Simca-Gordini
67			Peter Clark		HRG
68	2.0		Michael Tenbosch		Frazer-Nash
69	750		Guy Lapchin		Panhard Dyna
70			Charles de Cortanze
71	5.0		Louis Villeneuve		Delahaye
72	5.0		Edmond Mouche		Delahaye

Class winner

class	driver	driver	vehicle	Placement in the overall ranking
Index of Performance - 3rd Annual Cup of the ACO	Luigi Chinetti	Lord Selsdon	Ferrari 166MM	Overall victory
15th Biennale Cup	Luigi Chinetti	Lord Selsdon	Ferrari 166MM	Overall victory
3001-5000 cc	Georges Grignard	Robert Brunet	Delahaye 135CS	Rank 5
2001-3000 cc	Henri Louveau	Juan Jover	Delage Type D 6-3 liters	Rank 2
1501-2000 cc	Luigi Chinetti	Lord Selsdon	Ferrari 166MM	Overall victory
1101-1500 cc	Jack Fairman	Eric Thompson	HRG 1500 Lightweight Le Mans	Rank 8
751-1000 cc	Jean de Montrémy	Eugene Dussous	Monopoly sport	Rank 12
-750 cc	František Sutnar	Otto Krattner	Aero Minor Sport 750	Rank 15

Racing data

• Registered: 72
• Started: 49
• Valued: 19
• Race classes: 8
• Spectators: 183,000
• Honorary starter of the race: Christian Pineau , French Minister of Transport
• Race weekend weather: sunny
• Route length: 13.492 km
• Driving time of the winning team: 24: 00: 00,000 hours
• Total laps of the winning team: 236
• Total distance of the winning team: 3178.299 km
• Winner's average: 132.420 km / h
• Pole position: unknown
• Fastest race lap: André Simon - Delahaye 175S (# 4) - 5: 12.500 = 155.427 km / h
• Racing series: did not belong to any racing series

literature

• RM Clarke: Le Mans. The Jaguar Years 1949-1957. Brooklands Books, Cobham 1997, ISBN 1-85520-357-X .
• Christian Moity, Jean-Marc Teissèdre, Alain Bienvenu: 24 heures du Mans, 1923–1992. Éditions d'Art, Besançon 1992, ISBN 2-909-413-06-3 .

Web links

Commons : Le Mans 24 Hours 1949  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Results with 24-hour en-piste