Philippe Gache

François Migault , Denis Morin and Philippe Gache's Dodge Viper R / T10 at the 1994 Le Mans 24-hour race

Philippe Gache (born May 31, 1962 in Avignon ) is a French automobile racing driver and racing team owner.

Driving career in motorsport

Philippe Gache began motorsport in the mid-1980s. He got into Formula 3 in 1986 through the French Formula Ford Championship , where he won the overall standings in the 1.6-liter class in 1985 . Twice, in 1987 (Master Jean Alesi ) and 1988 (Master Érik Comas ), he finished the French Formula 3 Championship in fifth overall.

Gache made it into the International Formula 3000 Championship , the last monoposto racing series before the Formula 1 World Championship . In the three years of his appearance - he drove in the series between 1989 and 1991 - he only achieved one place in the points. In 1991 he finished fifth in the race at the Bugatti Circuit , securing two championship points.

In 1992 he tried to gain a foothold in the USA as a racing driver and qualified for Dick Simon Racing for the Indianapolis 500 mile race . In the race, he lost control of his Lola on lap 61 and crashed into the outer boundary wall. The spinning vehicle collided with Stan Fox's car. Both drivers were uninjured, but Gache's start in the Indianapolis 500 remained his only race in the Champ Car series .

After the end of the monoposto period, the Frenchman intensified his involvement in touring car and sports car racing . In 1987 he made his debut for Welter Racing at the Le Mans 24-hour race . In the mid-1990s he got a contract with ORECA and drove their Dodge Viper for two years . The best place was sixth overall at the 4-hour race in Nogaro in 1996 together with Eric Hélary . Overall, Gache celebrated five class wins in the two ORECA years. He competed ten times in Le Mans from 1987 to 2010 . The best place in the final ranking was 21st in 1996 . In 2001 he also secured the overall ranking in the Porsche Carrera Cup France -

After the end of the 2002 season, he retired as a driver from the circuit and competed in the Dakar Rally several times by the end of the decade , where he achieved his best result in 2006 with 12th place. Gache has been driving circuit races again since 2011, including the International GT Open .

Racing team owner and team manager

In 1997 Gache founded his own racing team - Team SMG . In addition to the Dakar Rally, the team is involved in rallies and GT races .

statistics

Le Mans results

year	team	vehicle	Teammate	Teammate	placement	Failure reason
1987	WM Secateva	WM P87	Roger Dorchy	Dominique Delestre	failure	Cylinder overheated
1989	WM Secateva	WM P489	Jean-Daniel Raulet	Pascal Pessiot	failure	Wagon fire
1994	Rent a Car Racing Team	Dodge Viper R / T10	François Migault	Denis Morin	not classified
1996	Societé Viper Team ORECA	Chrysler Viper GTS-R	Olivier Beretta	Eric Helary	Rank 21
1997	Societé Viper Team ORECA	Chrysler Viper GTS-R	Olivier Beretta	Dominique Dupuy	failure	accident
1998	Solution F	Riley & Scott Mk III	Wayne Gardner	Didier de Radiguès	failure	Engine failure
1999	Riley & Scott Europe	Riley & Scott Mk III / 2	Gary Formato	Olivier Thévenin	failure	Engine failure
2000	SMG Compétition	Courage C60	Gary Formato	Didier Cottaz	failure	suspension
2001	SMG Compétition	Courage C60	Jérôme Policand	Anthony Beltoise	failure	Engine failure
2002	DAMS	Lola B98 / 10	Emmanuel Clérico	Michel Neugarten	not classified

Web links

Commons : Philippe Gache  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Philippe Gache at the Driver Database
• Philippe Gache at Racing Sports Cars
• Website by the SMG team (French)

Individual evidence

1. ^ French Formula Ford 1600 Championship 1985
2. ↑ French Formula 3 Championship 1987
3. ↑ French Formula 3 Championship 1988
4. ↑ 6-hour race of Nogaro 1996
5. ^ Porsche Carrera Cup France 2001