1973 Le Mans 24 hour race

Ferrari 312PB

Porsche 911 Carrera RSR 3.0

Works BMW 3.0 CSL, here with Chris Amon at the wheel at the Nürburgring. The same car was used with Amon and Hans-Joachim Stuck at Le Mans, but it was canceled after 160 laps due to engine failure.

The 41st 24-hour race of Le Mans , the 41 ^e Grand Prix d'Endurance les 24 Heures du Mans , also 24 Heures du Mans, Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans , took place from 9 to 10 June 1973 on the Circuit des 24 Heures .

Before the race

In 1973 the Automobile Club de l'Ouest , the organizer of the 24-hour race, celebrated 50 years of Le Mans. 1923 had long-distance race held for the first time and the racing community celebrated this anniversary with a parade of historic racing cars.

The entry list for the “real” 24-hour race included racing vehicles from Matra , Ferrari , Porsche , Alfa Romeo , BMW and Ford . With Sigma Automotive, a manufacturer from Japan was at the start on the Sarthe for the first time .

In addition to last year's winning team Matra, Ferrari was the declared favorite for overall victory. The Scuderia had decided not to take part in the previous year because the Ferrari 312PB were not trusted to make it through the entire race distance. The three works cars were driven by the driver pairings Jacky Ickx / Brian Redman , Arturo Merzario / Carlos Pace and Tim Schenken / Carlos Reutemann . The Matra team brought four works cars to Le Mans. The Porsche works team also returned to Le Mans after a one-year break with two Porsche 911 Carrera RSR 3.0s .

After the Alfa works team withdrew, only one privately registered Tipo 33 was at the start. Ligier had developed a new prototype, the JS2 , three of which were entered at Le Mans. John Wyer and his technicians had also built a new sports car, the Mirage M6 . Two cars were used in Le Mans.

Nine Ferrari 365 GTB / 4 and three Chevrolet Corvette were entered in the GT class .

In the touring car class, as in the European Touring Car Championship, the works teams from BMW and Ford faced each other.

The race

Right from the start, the race turned into a dramatic duel between Matra and Ferrari. The first two hours of racing led the Merzario / Pace-312PB, whose original task was to act as a pacemaker. After the second series of pit stops, the Matras took the lead. But both the Beltoise / Cevert car and the Depailler / Wollek MS670B failed while in the lead with a technical defect.

After six hours, Tim Schenken and Carlos Reutemann were in the lead in the second factory Ferrari, but stopped in front of the Mulsanne at midnight with an engine failure. The race was only decided in the last hour of the race, when the engine of Jacky Ickx and Brian Redman's leading 312PB also went on strike and Scuderia lost its first overall Le Mans victory since 1965 half an hour before the end of the race.

Henri Pescarolo , with new team partner Gérard Larrousse , was able to repeat his previous year's victory and won safely ahead of the Merzario / Pace-312PB, which was already six laps behind. Third in the overall standings were Jean-Pierre Jaussaud and Jean-Pierre Jabouille , who drove the fourth factory Matra.

Results

Pilots by nationality

50 French	15 Swiss	13 British	11 Germans	7 Americans
4 Italians	4 Spaniards	3 Argentinians	3 Belgians	2 Australians
2 Ecuadorians	2 Japanese	2 New Zealanders	2 Dutch	2 Austrians
1 Brazilian	1 Moroccan	1 Swede

Final ranking

Item	class	No.	team	driver	chassis	engine	tires	Round
1	S 3.0	11	Equipe Matra-Simca Shell	Henri Pescarolo Gérard Larrousse	Matra-Simca MS670B	Matra 3.0L V12	G	355
2	S 3.0	16	Ferrari SEFAC Spa	Arturo Merzario Carlos Pace	Ferrari 312PB	Ferrari 3.0L Flat-12	G	349
3	S 3.0	12	Equipe Matra-Simca Shell	Jean-Pierre Jaussaud Jean-Pierre Jabouille	Matra-Simca MS670B	Matra 3.0L V12	G	331
4th	S 3.0	46	Martini Racing Team	Herbert Müller Gijs van Lennep	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 3.0L Flat-6	D.	328
5	S 3.0	3	Escuderia Montjuich - Tergal	Bernard Chenevière Juan Fernández Francisco Torredemer	Porsche 908/3	Porsche 3.0L Flat-8	G	319
6th	GT 5.0	39	Automobiles Charles Pozzi	Claude Ballot-Léna Vic Elford	Ferrari 365 GTB / 4	Ferrari 4.4L V12		316
7th	S 3.0	4th	Guillermo Ortega - Ecuador Marlboro	Guillermo Ortega Fausto Merello	Porsche 908/1	Porsche 3.0L Flat-8	G	316
8th	GT 3.0	45	Porsche Kremer Racing Team	Paul Keller Erwin Kremer Clemens Schickentanz	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 2.8L Flat-6	D.	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	D.	307
12	GT +5.0	30th	Greder Racing Team	Henri Greder Marie-Claude Charmasson	Chevrolet Corvette	Chevrolet 7.0L V8	M.	303
13	GT 5.0	38	North American Racing Team	François Migault Luigi Chinetti Jr.	Ferrari 365 GTB / 4	Ferrari 4.4L V12	G	299
14th	GT 3.0	48	Porsche Sonauto BP Racing	Peter Gregg Guy Chasseuil	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 2.8L Flat-6	G	298
15th	S 3.0	60	Scuderia Brescia Corse	Carlo Facetti Marsilio Pasotti Teodoro Zeccoli	Alfa Romeo Tipo 33TT3	Alfa Romeo 3.0L V8	G	298
16	GT 3.0	41	Schiller Racing Team	Jean Selz Florian Vetsch	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 2.7L Flat-6		297
17th	GT 3.0	42	René Mazzia	Pierre Mauroy Marcel Mignot	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 2.8L Flat-6	D.	290
18th	GT 5.0	69	Écurie Léopard	Jean-Claude Aubriet Jean-Claude Depince	Chevrolet Corvette	Chevrolet 7.0L V8		282
19th	S 3.0	18th	Claude Laurent	Claude Laurent Martial Delalande Jacques Marché	Ligier JS2	Maserati 2.9L V6		270
20th	GT 5.0	34	Ecurie Francorchamps	Jean-Claude Andruet Richard Bond	Ferrari 365 GTB / 4	Ferrari 4.4L V12	G	270
21st	S 3.0	52	André Wicky Racing Team	André Wicky Max Cohen-Olivar Philippe Carron	Porsche 908/2	Porsche 3.0L Flat-8		270
Failed
22nd	S 3.0	15th	Ferrari SEFAC Spa	Jacky Ickx Brian Redman	Ferrari 312PB	Ferrari 3.0L Flat-12	G	332
23	GT 5.0	6th	North American Racing Team	Sam Posey Milt Minter	Ferrari 365 GTB / 4	Ferrari 4.4L V12	G	254
24	T 3.0	55	Ford Motor Works	Dieter Glemser John Fitzpatrick Hans Heyer	Ford Capri RS	Ford 3.0L V6	D.	239
25th	S 2.0	25th	Michel Dupont	Michel Dupont Paul Blancpain	Chevron B23	Cosworth FVC 1.8L I4		229
26th	GT 5.0	37	North American Racing Team	Rubén Luis di Palma Nestor Garcia-Veiga	Ferrari 365 GTB / 4	Ferrari 4.4L V12	G	211
27	GT 5.0	36	North American Racing Team	Lucien Guitteny Bob Grossman	Ferrari 365 GTB / 4	Ferrari 4.4L V12	G	192
28	S 3.0	17th	Ferrari SEFAC Spa	Tim Schenken Carlos Reutemann	Ferrari 312PB	Ferrari 3.0L Flat-12	G	182
29	GT 5.0	56	Shark Racing Team	Jean-Claude Guérie Cyril Grandet	Ferrari 365 GTB / 4	Ferrari 4.4L V12		174
30th	S 3.0	19th	Automobiles Ligier	Jean-Pierre Paoli Alain Couderc	Ligier JS2	Maserati 3.0L V6	M.	174
31	S 3.0	7th	Équipe Gitanes Cigarettes France	Jean-Louis Lafosse Reine Wisell Hughes de Fierlant	Lola T282	Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8	G	164
32	GT 5.0	33	JC Bamford Excavators Ltd.	Neil Corner Willie Green	Ferrari 365 GTB / 4	Ferrari 4.4L V12		163
33	S 3.0	8th	Gulf Research Racing	Derek Bell Howden Ganley	Mirage M6	Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8	F.	163
34	T 5.0	50	BMW Motorsport	Chris Amon Hans-Joachim Stuck	BMW 3.0CSL	BMW 3.3L I6	D.	160
35	S 3.0	10	Equipe Matra-Simca Shell	François Cevert Jean-Pierre Beltoise	Matra-Simca MS670B	Matra 3.0L V12	G	157
36	T 3.0	53	Ford Motor Works	Jean Vinatier Helmut Koinigg Gerry Birrell	Ford Capri RS	Ford 3.0L V6	D.	152
37	S 2.0	22nd	Raymond Touroul	Raymond Touroul Jean-Pierre Rouget	Porsche 910	Porsche 2.0L Flat-6	D.	142
38	GT 3.0	49	Jean Égreteaud	Jean Égreteaud Jean-Claude Lagniez	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 2.8L Flat-6		139
39	S 3.0	9	Gulf Research Racing	Mike Hailwood John Watson Vern Schuppan	Mirage M6	Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8	F.	112
40	GT 3.0	44	Porsche Club Romand	Jean-François Piot Peter Zbinden	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 2.8L Flat-6	D.	110
41	GT 3.0	43	Max Moritz Racing Team	Gerd Quist Manfred Laub Jürgen Zink	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 2.8L Flat-6	G	103
42	GT 3.0	78	Jean Sage	Hervé Bayard René Ligonnet	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 2.8L Flat-6		95
43	S 2.0	21st	Pierre Maublanc	Pierre Maublanc Robert Mieusset	Chevron B23	BMW 2.0L I4		90
44	S 3.0	14th	Equipe Matra-Simca Shell	Patrick Depailler Bob Wollek	Matra-Simca MS670B	Matra 3.0L V12	G	84
45	S 2.0	28	Jacques Henry	Jacques Henry Fred Stalder Gernard Grobot	Lola T292	Cosworth FVC 1.9L I4	G	84
46	S 3.0	5	Duckhams Oil	Alain de Cadenet Chris Craft	Duckhams LM	Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8	D.	81
47	S 2.5	26th	Sigma Automotive	Tetsu Ikuzawa Hiroshi Fushida Patrick Dal Bo	Sigma MC73	Mazda 12A 2.3L 2- rotor	B.	79
48	S 3.0	47	Martini Racing Team	Reinhold Joest Claude Haldi	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 3.0L Flat-6	D.	54
49	S 2.0	27	Escuderia Montjuich	José Juncadella Jorge de Bagration	Chevron B23	Cosworth FVC 1.9L I4		52
50	S 3.0	61	Daniel Rouveyran	Daniel Rouveyran Christian Mons Christian Ethuin	Lola T280 / 82	Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8		38
51	GT +5.0	29	John Greenwood	John Greenwood Bob Johnson	Chevrolet Corvette	Chevrolet 7.0L V8	B F	37
52	S 3.0	62	Automobiles Ligier	Guy Ligier Jacques Laffite	Ligier JS2	Maserati 3.0L V6	M.	24
53	S 2.0	2	Blancpain Total Dinitrol	Roger Dubos Christine Becker's Pierre Pagani	Chevron B21 / 23	Cosword FVC 1.8L I4		9
54	T 3.0	54	Ford Motor Works	Gerry Birrell Hans Heyer	Ford Capri	Ford 3.0L V6	D.	4th
55	T 5.0	58	André Wicky Racing Team	Walter Brun Cox cooker Jean-Pierre Aeschlimann	BMW 3.0CSL	BMW 3.3L I6	F.	1
Not qualified
56	S 2.0	66	Promoto Racing Services	Brian Robinson José Uriarte Hervé Le Guellec	Chevron B21	Corworth FVC 3.0L V8		1
57	GTS	75	Porsche Club Romand	Pierre Greub Philippe Farjon Paul Keller	Porsche 911 Carrera RSS	Porsche 2.8L Flat-6		2
58	GTS	68	John Greenwood	Ron Grable John Greendyke Don Yenko Robert Johnson John Greenwood	Chevrolet Corvette	Chevrolet 7.0L V8		3
59	S 3.0	57	Christian Poirot	Christian Poirot Jean Rondeau Jürgen Barth Joel Bonnemaison	Porsche 908/02	Porsche 3.0L Flat-8		4th
60	GTS	84	Louis Meznarie	Jean-Claude Boucher Jacques Guérin Didier Jaunet	Porsche 911 Carrera RSS	Porsche 2.8L Flat-6		5
61	S 2.0	65	Michel Elkoubi	Massimo Martini Yves Martin Ugo Locatelli	ACE PB2	Ford 2.0L V8		6th

¹ not qualified ² not qualified ³ not qualified ⁴ not qualified ⁵ not qualified ⁶ not qualified

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
62	S 3.0	1	Scuderia Jolly Club	Giorgio Schön Jean Bernard de Canonico	Lola T282	Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8
63	S 3.0	2	Paul Blancpain Racing	Reinhold Joest Mario Casoni Paul Blancpain Roger Dubois Christine Beckers Pierre Pagani	Porsche 908/03	Porsche 3.0L Flat-8
64	S 3.0	10	North American Racing Team		Ferrari 312P	Ferrari 3.0L Flat-12
65	S 2.0	20th	Galia author Filipinetti		Lola T292	Chevrolet 2.0L V8
66	S 3.0	23	Bonnier GDP	Mário de Araújo Cabral Carlos Santos	Lola T292	Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8
67	S 3.0	24	Bonnier GDP	Carlos Caspar José Dolhem Jorge Pinhol	Lola T292	Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8
68	GTS 3.0	32	André Wicky Racing Team	André Wicky Pierre-François Rousselot Gérard Foucault	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 3.0L Flat-6
69	GTS 5.0	35	Motul Defense Mondial	Max Jean Christian Ethuin Patrice Compain	Ferrari 365 GTB / 4 Daytona	Ferrari 4.4L V12
70	GTS + 5.0	44	Franco Britanic Auto Ltd.	Jean Vinatier Guy Chasseuil	De Tomaso Pantera	Ford 5.0L V8
71	GTS + 5.0	45	André Wicky Racing Team	André Wicky Pierre-Francois Rousselot	De Tomaso Pantera	Ford 5.0L V8
72	S 3.0	59	Duckhams Oil		Duckhams LM	Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8
73	S 3.0	63	Gelo Racing Team	Georg Loos Jürgen Barth	Porsche 908	Porsche 3.0L Flat-8
74	GTS 3.0	64	Escuderia Montjuich	Roger Clark José Juncadella Peter Hanson	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 3.0L Flat-6
75	S 2.0	67	Usine GRAC	Christian Mons Francois Guerre-Berthelot	Grac MT16	Ford 2.0L I4
76	GTS + 5.0	70	North American Racing Team	Dave Heinz Bob Johnson	Chevrolet Corvette	Chevrolet 7.0L V8
77	GRS + 5.0	71	Scuderia Jolly Club	Cristiano Del Balzo Marcello Gallo	De Tomaso Pantera	Ford 5.0L V8
78	GTS + 5.0	72	Momo Racing Team	Corrado Manfredini Giancarlo Gagliardi	De Tomaso Pantera	Ford 5.0L V8
79	GTS 5.0	74	Jean Mésange	Jean Mésange	Ferrari 365 GTB / 4 Daytona	Ferrari 4.4L V12
80	GTS 3.0	76	Claude Haldi	Claude Haldi Arthur Blank	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 3.0L Flat-6
81	GTS 3.0	80	Claude Buchet	Claude Buchet Dominique Tiry Jean-Paul Agére	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 3.0L Flat-6
82	GTS 3.0	81	Ennio Bonomelli	Ennio Bonomelli Pino Pica Giorgio Pianta	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 3.0L Flat-6
83	GTS 3.0	82	Kauhsen Racing Team	Willi Kauhsen Clemens Schickentanz	Porsche 911 Carrera RS	Porsche 3.0L Flat-6
84	TS 5.0	86	BMW Motorsport	Harald Menzel Vittorio Brambilla	BMW 3.0CSL	BMW 3.3L I6
85	GTS 5.0		Ets. Thepenier		Maserati Bora
86	GTS 5.0		Ets. Thepenier		Maserati Bora
87	S 3.0		Autodelta SpA		Alfa Romeo T33	Alfa Romeo 3.0L V8
88	S 3.0		Autodelta SpA		Alfa Romeo T33	Alfa Romeo 3.0L V8
89	S 3.0		Autodelta SpA
90	S 3.0		Archambaud Racing	Gérard Larrousse Hervé Bayard	Lola T292	Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8
91	GTS		André Wicky Racing Team	Philippe Carron	Porsche 911S	Porsche 2.8L Flat-6
92	GTS 3.0		Jean Sage	Peter Zbinden Jean Sage	Porsche 911S	Porsche 2.8L Flat-6
93	S 3.0		Heinz Schulthess	Heinz Schulthess	Lola T292	Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8
94	TS 3.0		Jean-François Piot	Jean-François Piot Jacques Charles	Ford Capri 2600RS	Ford 3.0L V6
95			Michel Lateste	Michel Lateste	Ford Capri 2600RS	GRAC MT14S
96	S 3.0	4th	Pierre Crapel		Ylcara
97	S 2.0	25th	Bernd Becker	Bernd Becker Elmar Clevar Harald Link	Porsche 910	Porsche 2.0L Flat-6
98	S 2.0	27	André Wicky Racing Team		Porsche 907	Porsche 2.0L Flat-6
99	S 2.0	28	Jacques Durant	Jean-Louis Gama Jacques Morel Robini	Jidé
100	S 2.0	31	Media courses	Yves Courage	Lola T292	Cosworth FVC 1.8L I4
101	S 2.0	33	Promoto Racing Services	Emile Elias Jean Bellec	Rawlson CR11
102	S 2.0	35	Hine International Enterprises	Roger Clark José Juncadella	Chevron B23	Cosworth FVC 1.8L I4
103	S 2.0	36	Galia author Filipinetti		Lola T290	Cosworth FVC 1.8L I4
104	S 2.0	37	Francesco Torredemer		Lola T290	Cosworth FVC 1.8L I4
105	GTS + 5.0	47	Momo Racing Team	Giampiero Moretti	De Tomaso Pantera	Ford 5.0L V8
106	S 3.0	48	Porsche System Engineering	Claude Haldi Helmuth Koinegg	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Porsche 3.0L Flat-6
107	GTS 5.0	56	Maranello Concessionaires		Ferrari 365 GTB / 4 Daytona	Ferrari 4.4L V12
108	GTS 3.0	60	Gérard Darton-Merlin	Gérard Darton-Merlin	Porsche 911 Carrera RS	Porsche 3.0L Flat-6
109	GTS 3.0	62	Boeri Racing	Ernst Kraus	Porsche 911 Carrera RS	Porsche 3.0L Flat-6
110	GTS 3.0	72	Scuderia Brescia Corse	Enrico Pasolini Vincenzo Cazzago	Porsche 911 Carrera RS	Porsche 3.0L Flat-6
111	GTS 5.0	73	Galia author Filipinetti		Ferrari 365 GTB / 4 Daytona	Ferrari 4.4L V12
112	GTS 3.0	73	Nicolas Koob	Nicolas Koob	Porsche 911 Carrera RS	Porsche 3.0L Flat-6
113	GTS 3.0	77	Crowne Racing	Chris Craft Martin Birrane	Porsche 911 Carrera RS	Porsche 3.0L Flat-6
114	GTS 2.5	78	Clive Baker	Clive Baker Hatton	Ferrari Dino 246GT	Ferrari 2.5L V6
115	GTS 2.5	79	Motor Race Consultants	Gordon Spice Guy Edwards Robert Grant	Datsun 240Z
116	TS 3.0	80	Shark Racing Team	Cyril Grandet Jean-Claude Guérie Joel Bonnemaison	Ford Capri 2600RS	Ford 3.0L V6
117	TS 5.0	87	Marabant Racing Team	Willy Braillard Jean Xhenceval	BMW 3.0CSL	BMW 3.3L I6
118	S 3.0	88	Daniel Rouveyran		Lola T292	Cosworth DFV 3.0L V8
119	S 2.0	89	Tony Goodwin	Tony Goodwin Gilles Doncieux	Dulon LD10	Cosworth FVC 1.8L I4
120	S 2.0	91	Scuderia Jolly Club		AMS 273	Cosworth FVC 1.8L I4
121	GTS + 5.0	93	Tony DeLorenzo		Chevrolet Corvette	Chevrolet 7.0L V8

Class winner

class	driver	driver	driver	vehicle	Placement in the overall ranking
Index of Thermal Efficiency	Paul Keller	Erwin Kremer	Clemens Schickentanz	Porsche 911 Carrera RSR	Rank 8
Sports car	Henri Pescarolo	Gérard Larrousse		Matra MS670B	Overall victory
GTS over 5000 cm³	Henri Greder	Marie-Claude Charmasson		Chevrolet Corvette	Rank 12
GTS up to 5000 cm³	Vic Elford	Claude Ballot-Léna		Ferrari 365 GTB / 4	Rank 6
Touring special	Toine Hezemans	Dieter Quester		BMW 3.0CSL	Rank 11

Racing data

• Reported: 121
• Started: 55
• Rated: 21
• Race classes: 5
• Spectator: unknown
• Honorary starter of the race: Sylvain Floriat, CEO of Matra
• Race weekend weather: warm and sunny
• Route length: 13.640 km
• Driving time of the winning team: 24: 00: 00,000 hours
• Total laps of the winning team: 356
• Distance of the winning team: 4853.945 km
• Winner's average: 202.247 km / h
• Pole position: Arturo Merzario - Ferrari 312PB (# 16) - 3: 37.500 = 225.766 km / h
• Fastest race lap: Francois Cevert - Matra-Simca MS670B (# 10) - 3: 39.600 = 223.607 km / h
• Racing series: 8th round of the Sports Car World Championship in 1973

literature

• Christian Moity, Jean-Marc Teissèdre, Alain Bienvenu: 24 heures du Mans, 1923–1992. Éditions d'Art, Besançon 1992, ISBN 2-909413-06-3 .

Web links

Commons : Le Mans 24 Hours 1973  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Previous race 1000 km race on the Nürburgring in 1973

Sports car world championship

Successor 1000 km race from Zeltweg 1973