Le Mans 24 hour race 1991

The Mazda 787B with starting number 55; the winning car of Johnny Herbert, Bertrand Gachot and Volker Weidler

The second-placed Jaguar XJR-12 from Davy Jones, Raul Boesel and Michel Ferté

The Peugeot 905 with starting number 6; Keke Rosberg, Yannick Dalmas and Pierre-Henri Raphanel retired after 68 laps with defective shift hydraulics

The 5-liter V8 turbo engine of the Mercedes-Benz C11

The 59th 24-hour race at Le Mans , the 59 ^s Grand Prix d'Endurance les 24 Heures du Mans , and 24 Heures du Mans Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans , was held at from 22 to 23 June 1991 the Circuit des 24 Heures .

The race

Before the event

In 1991 the 24-hour race at Le Mans was again a championship race of the sports car world championship . When the teams came to Le Mans for the race in June, three racing events had already been held. The first race of the season, the 430 km race in Suzuka, ended with a surprise. For Peugeot , the race was only the third race of the new prototypes - the Peugeot 905 . Nevertheless, after a driving time of 2: 25: 01.688 , Mauro Baldi and Philippe Alliot were able to prevail, clearly ahead of Jean-Louis Schlesser and Jochen Mass in the favored Mercedes-Benz C11 .

The 430-km race at Monza ended with a double victory for the factory - Jaguar XJR-14 . Derek Warwick and Martin Brundle won ahead of their team mate Teo Fabi (Brundle was also in the car with the starting number 4 and thus came first and second). The 430 km race at Silverstone also brought a Jaguar victory.

The Jaguar team, led by Tom Walkinshaw, brought three works cars to Le Mans . The new XJR-14 was only used in training; in the race, the proven XJR-12 was used. The XJR-14 anticipated the regulations of Group C and, unlike the 7.4-liter V12 engines in the XJR-12, had a 3.5-liter V8 engine from Cosworth as its drive. The works cars were driven by Davy Jones , Raul Boesel , Michel Ferté , Bob Wollek , Teo Fabi Kenny Acheson , Derek Warwick, John Nielsen and Andy Wallace . Another XJR-12 was reported by the British TWR Suntec Jaguar team. The car was driven by David Leslie , Mauro Martini and Jeff Krosnoff .

Also the team of Peter Sauber brought three prototypes to Le Mans. At Sauber, too, the future Group C racing car - the Mercedes-Benz C291 - was only used in training. The cockpits of the three C11s were awarded to Jean-Louis Schlesser, Jochen Mass, Alain Ferté , Jonathan Palmer , Stanley Dickens , Kurt Thiim as well as the young pilots Michael Schumacher , Fritz Kreutzpointner and Karl Wendlinger .

The two factory Peugeot were in the hands of Keke Rosberg , Yannick Dalmas , Pierre-Henri Raphanel , Mauro Baldi, Philippe Alliot and Jean-Pierre Jabouille . The three Mazda 787Bs were powered by a 2.6 liter rotary engine. The engines were considered to be very fuel-efficient, but the rotary engine was extremely loud, which was a burden, especially for the pilots in the cockpit. The three works cars were driven by Johnny Herbert , Bertrand Gachot , Volker Weidler , Dave Kennedy , Stefan Johansson , Maurizio Sandro Sala , Pierre Dieudonné , Takashi Yorino and Yōjirō Terada .

Porsche was represented by private teams, all of which brought the Porsche 962 to the start.

The course of the race

The two works Peugeot took the lead from the start, but were overtaken after just a few laps by the three Mercedes-Benz, who built a solid 1-2-3 lead in the first third of the race. At Jaguar it was found that the cars used far more fuel than calculated, which forced them to drive slowly and put overall victory a long way off. The first Peugeot retired after three hours of driving, the second after seven hours. At halftime, the three Mercedes-Benz cars with the Schlesser / Mass / Ferté cars were still in the lead.

However, the Mercedes ran into problems early on Sunday. First the Palmer / Dickens / Thiim-C11 failed with a defective underbody. Then the Schumacher / Wendlinger / Kreutzpointner prototype lost many laps due to transmission problems in the pits. The superior leading Mass / Schlesser / Ferté-C11 also retired three hours before the end of the race. First the car came to the pits at 1.30 p.m. with an overheated engine, which a few laps later led to failure due to engine damage. This cleared the way for the Mazda from Johnny Herbert, Volker Weidler and Bertrand Gachot. It was the first victory for a Japanese designer at Le Mans and the first success for a rotary engine. After a multiple stint at the end of the race, Johnny Herbert was so exhausted that he collapsed when he got out of the cockpit after crossing the finish line. He missed the award ceremony on the podium of the top three.

Results

Pilots by nationality

38 French	31 British	13 Germans	8 Italians	6 Sweden
6 Swiss	5 Japanese	4 Americans	3 fins	3 Austrians
3 South Africans	2 Belgians	2 Brazilians	2 danes	2 Canadians
2 Dutch	1 Argentine	1 Irish	1 Moroccan	1 Mexican
1 Norwegian	1 Spaniard

Final ranking

Item	class	No.	team	driver	chassis	engine	tires	Round
1	C2	55	Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd.	Volker Weidler Johnny Herbert Bertrand Gachot	Mazda 787B	Mazda R26B 2.6L 4- Wankel	D.	362
2	C2	35	Silk Cut Jaguar	Davy Jones Raul Boesel Michel Ferté	Jaguar XJR-12	Jaguar 7.4L V12	G	360
3	C2	34	Silk Cut Jaguar	Bob Wollek Teo Fabi Kenny Acheson	Jaguar XJR-12	Jaguar 7.4L V12	G	358
4th	C2	33	Silk Cut Jaguar	Derek Warwick John Nielsen Andy Wallace	Jaguar XJR-12	Jaguar 7.4L V12	G	356
5	C2	31	Team Sauber Mercedes	Karl Wendlinger Michael Schumacher Fritz Kreutzpointner	Mercedes-Benz C11	Mercedes-Benz M119 5.0L Turbo V8	G	355
6th	C2	18th	Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd.	Dave Kennedy Stefan Johansson Maurizio Sandro Sala	Mazda 787B	Mazda R26B 2.6L 4-Wankel	D.	355
7th	C2	58	Joest Porsche Racing	Hans Joachim Stuck Derek Bell Frank Jelinski	Porsche 962C	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	G	347
8th	C2	56	Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd.	Pierre Dieudonné Takashi Yorino Yōjirō Terada	Mazda 787	Mazda R26B 2.6L 4-Wankel	D.	346
9	C2	11	Porsche Kremer Racing	Manuel Reuter Harri Toivonen JJ Lehto	Porsche 962CK6	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	Y	343
10	C2	17th	Repsol Brun Motorsport	Oscar Larrauri Jesús Pareja Walter Brun	Porsche 962C	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	Y	338
11	C2	12	Courage Compétition	François Migault Lionel Robert Jean-Daniel Raulet	Cougar C26S	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	G	331
12	C1	41	Euro Racing	Kiyoshi Misaki Hisashi Yokoshima Naoki Nagasaka	Spice SE90C	Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8	G	326
Not classified
13	C2	53	Salamin Primagaz Team Schuppan	Hurley Haywood James Weaver Wayne Taylor	Porsche 962C	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	D.	316
14th	C1	43	Euro Racing	Richard Piper Olindo Iacobelli Jean-Louis Ricci	Spice SE89C	Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8	G	280
15th	C2	15th	Veneto team	Luigi Giorgio Almo Coppelli	Lancia LC2	Ferrari 308C 3.0L Turbo V8	D.	111
Failed
16	C2	1	Team Sauber Mercedes	Jean-Louis Schlesser Jochen Mass Alain Ferté	Mercedes-Benz C11	Mercedes-Benz M119 5.0L Turbo V8	G	319
17th	C2	49	Courage Compétition	Steven Andskär George Fouché	Porsche 962C	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	D.	316
18th	C2	47	Courage Compétition	Michel Trollé Claude Bourbonnais Marco Brand	Cougar C26S	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	G	293
19th	C2	51	Obermaier Racing	Jürgen Lässig Pierre Yver Otto Altenbach	Porsche 962C	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	G	232
20th	C2	32	Team Sauber Mercedes	Jonathan Palmer Stanley Dickens Kurt Thiim	Mercedes-Benz C11	Mercedes-Benz M119 5.0L Turbo V8	G	223
21st	C2	52	Salamin Primagaz Team Schuppan	Eje Elgh Roland Ratzenberger Will Hoy	Porsche 962C	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	D.	202
22nd	C2	57	Joest Porsche Racing	Louis Krages Bernd Schneider Henri Pescarolo	Porsche 962C	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	G	197
23	C2	36	TWR Suntec Jaguar	David Leslie Mauro Martini Jeff Krosnoff	Jaguar XJR-12	Jaguar 7.4L V12	G	183
24	C1	39	Graff Racing	Jean-Philippe Grand Michel Maisonneuve Xavier Lapeyre	Spice SE89C	Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8	G	163
25th	C2	16	Repsol Brun Motorsport	Harald Huysman Robbie Stirling Bernard Santal	Porsche 962C	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	Y	138
26th	C2	45	Euro Racing Chamberlain	Nick Adams Robin Donovan Richard Jones	Spice SE89C	Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8	G	128
27	C2	14th	Team Salamin Primagaz	Antoine Salamin Max Cohen-Olivar Marcel Tarrès	Porsche 962C	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	G	101
28	C2	21st	Konrad Motorsport	Franz Konrad Anthony Reid Pierre-Alain Lombardi	Porsche 962	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	Y	98
29	C2	50	Alméras Freres	Jacques Alméras Jean-Marie Alméras Pierre de Thoisy	Porsche 962C	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	G	86
30th	C1	44	Euro Racing Chamberlain	John Sheldon Ferdinand de Lesseps Charles Rickett	Spice SE89C	Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8	G	85
31	C1	8th	Euro Racing	Cor Euser Charles Zwolsman Sr. Tim Harvey	Spice SE90C	Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8	G	72
32	C1	6th	Peugeot Talbot Sport	Keke Rosberg Yannick Dalmas Pierre-Henri Raphanel	Peugeot 905	Peugeot SA35 3.5L V10	M.	68
33	C1	40	Euro Racing	Lyn St. James Desiré Wilson Cathy Muller	Spice SE90C	Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8	D.	47
34	C2	13	Courage Compétition	Johnny Dumfries Anders Olofsson Thomas Danielsson	Cougar C26S	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	G	45
35	C1	37	Automobiles Louis Descartes	Bernard Thuner Pascal Fabre	ROC 002	Cosworth DFR 3.5L V8	G	38
36	C1	5	Peugeot Talbot Sport	Mauro Baldi Philippe Alliot Jean-Pierre Jabouille	Peugeot 905	Peugeot SA35 3.5L V10	M.	22nd
37	C2	46	Porsche Kremer Racing	Tomas Lopez Gregor Foitek Tiff Needell	Porsche 962CK6	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	Y	18th
38	C1	7th	Automobiles Louis Descartes	Philippe de Henning Luigi Taverna Patrick Gonin	ALD C91	Cosworth DFR 3.5L V8	G	16
Not started
39	C2	59	Konrad Motorsport	Franz Konrad Jürgen Barth	Porsche 962C	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	G	1
40	C1	4th	Silk Cut Jaguar	Teo Fabi Kenny Acheson Andy Wallace	Jaguar XJR-14	Cosworth HB 3.5L V8	G	2
41	C1	4th	Silk Cut Jaguar	Derek Warwick Andy Wallace	Jaguar XJR-14	Cosworth HB 3.5L V8	G	3
Not qualified
42	C2	48	Courage Compétition	Chris Hodgetts Andrew Hepworth Thierry Lacerf	Cougar C24S	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	G	4th
43	C1	2	TeamClean Mercedes	Karl Wendlinger Michael Schumacher Fritz Kreutzpointner	Mercedes-Benz C291	Mercedes-Benz M291 3.5L Flat-12	G	5
44	C2	42	Euro Racing	Justin Bell Shunji Kasuya	Spice SE88P	Ferrari 308C 3.5L Turbo V8	G	6th
45	C2	54	Team Salamin Primagaz	Katsunori Iketani Mercedes Stermitz Val Musetti	Porsche 962C	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6		7th

¹ replacement car ² replacement car ³ replacement car ⁴ not qualified ⁵ not qualified ⁶ not qualified ⁷ 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
46	C1	38	Louis Descartes	Ranieri Randaccio Stefano Sebastini Mirko Savoldi	Spice SE89C	Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8

Class winner

class	driver	driver	driver	vehicle	Placement in the overall ranking
Group C1	Kiyoshi Misaki	Hisashi Yokoshima	Naoki Nagasaki	Spice SE90C	Rank 12
Group C2	Johnny Herbert	Bertrand Gachot	Volker Weidler	Mazda 787B	Overall victory

Racing data

• Reported: 46
• Started: 38
• Valued: 12
• Race classes: 2
• Spectators: 250,000
• Honorary starter of the race: Hélène Blanc, political scientist and criminologist
• Weather on the race weekend: warm and dry
• Route length: 13,600 km
• Driving time of the winning team: 24: 00: 00,000 hours
• Total laps of the winning team: 363
• Distance of the winning team: 4922.810 km
• Winner's average: 205.333 km / h
• Pole position: Jean-Louis Schlesser - Mercedes-Benz C11 (# 1) - 3.31.270 = 231.741 km / h
• Fastest race lap: Michael Schumacher - Mercedes-Benz C11 (# 31) - 3.35.564 = 227.125 km / h
• Racing series: 4th round of the 1991 World Sports Car Championship

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 : 24 Hours of Le Mans 1991  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Previous race 430km Silverstone 1991

Sports car world championship

Succession race 430-km race at the Nurburgring in 1991