The 2014 Le Mans Classic was held 4-6 July at the famed Circuit de la Sarthe in Le Mans, France. Staged by Peter Auto in association with Automobile Club de l’Ouest, the seventh running of the biennial event battled on the same 13.629 kilometer Le Mans circuit run in the modern 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The Plateau Five race for competition cars that competed at Le Mans from 1966 to 1971 included a mouth-watering selection of cars that have raced in the Sarthe Classic and, sometimes, have scored outright wins.It was the case for the fabulous Porsche 917 that triumphed in the 1970 race driven by Hans Herrmann and Richard Attwood. Then there’s the Porsche 907 that came 5th in 1967 with Jo Siffert and Hans Herrmann, the Ford GT40 Mk II that rounded the Blue Oval’s famous triple in 1966 with Ronnie Bucknum and Richard Hutcherson, the Alfa Romeo T33/3, 4th in 1972 with Nino Vaccarella and Andrea de Adamich, one of the ex-NART and Filipinetti Ferrari 312 Ps, which shone in the USA at Daytona and Sebring, an ex-Jean-Pierre Jabouille and Patrick Depailler Alpine A220 and the Matra MS 660-01, which did not win the Le Mans 24 Hours, but came first in the Paris 1000 km with Jack Brabham and François Cevert.
Among other interesting rarities at Le Mans Classic 2014 included the 1968 Costin Nathan 1000 GT (wooden monocoque) and the Nomad BRM Mk2 from 1968, plus Le Mans regulars Chevrolet Corvette C3s, Chevron B8 and B16s, Lola T70s, Porsche 906, 907, 908, 910 and 911s.
Among the drivers were two former Le Mans 24-Hours winners, Eric Hélary (1993 Peugeot 905) and Jürgen Barth (1977 Porsche 936) who drove a Chevrolet Corvette C3 and a Porsche 907, respectively. Jacques Laffite (6 F1 GP victories) drove a Porsche 910, Nani Galli (ex-F1 driver between 1971 and 1973, 4th in the 1968 Le Mans 24 Hours in an Alfa Romeo T33/2) was behind the wheel of an Alfa Romeo T33/3, without forgetting Paul Belmondo in a Ford GT40, Emmanuel Collard in a Porsche 910 and Xavier Pompidou in a Mk2 Nomad.
The Group Five race at the 2014 Le Mans Classic saw David Hart’s Lola T70 Mark IIIB dominate the first heat, which was plagued by occasional showers. There was a thrilling scrap going on behind the Dutchman between legendary cars like the Porsche 917, the Ferrari 312 P, Chevron B16s, Matra MS 660s and Alpine A 220s. Unfortunately, the Ligier JS3 driven by Jacques Nicolet among others ground to a halt after only five laps with a broken suspension wishbone. Races two and three followed the same pattern as Hart dominated them both. It was sweet revenge for English constructor Lola which, in six decades of racing at Le Mans, had never won the 24 Hours outright.
Similar to 2010 and 2012, Senior Photographer Tim Scott also documented Le Mans Classic 2014 with the following images that expertly capture the Grid / Plateau Five race for 1966 to 1971 Le Mans entrants. We split up Tim’s 186 pictures into two galleries. The first gallery starting below features our favorite images, all displayed in the full-width view of Sports Car Digest, while the second gallery and race results can be found on the last page of the article and gives a comprehensive view of all the photographs. To see more from Tim, visit fluidimages.co.uk.
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race Featured Photo Gallery
1965 Ford GT40 Mk II and 1971 Lola T212 FVC1969 Alpine A 220 and 1970 Chevron B16 FVC1971 Matra 660-01Lola T70 Mk IIIB1966 Porsche 906Chevrolet CorvetteFord GT40 Mk II1967 Porsche 907 and 1967 Porsche 9101969 Alpine A 220Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV1966 Porsche 9061969 Porsche 9171967 Porsche 9101967 Porsche 9101966 Porsche 906Ford GT40 Mk IIFord GT40 Mk II1969 Ferrari 312 PFord GT40 Mk II1969 Porsche 917Chevrolet Corvette1971 Alfa Romeo 33/TT/31971 Porsche 908/31971 Porsche 908/31966 Porsche 9061972 Porsche 911 ST 2.51969 Porsche 9171972 Porsche 911 ST 2.5Ford GT40 Mk II1969 Alpine A 2201971 De Tomaso Pantera Group IVFord GT40 Mk IIFord GT40 Mk IIChevrolet Corvette1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV1970 Chevron B16 Mazda1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV1970 Chevron B16 Mazda1971 Alfa Romeo 33/TT/3 and 1966 Porsche 9061969 Ferrari 312 P1969 Porsche 9171969 Porsche 9171967 Porsche 9071970 Chevron B16 Mazda1970 Chevron B16 FVC1971 Matra 660-011966 Porsche 9061970 Porsche 914/6 GT and 1968 Porsche 911 T1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV1971 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV1971 Alfa Romeo 33/TT/3 and 1971 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IVChevrolet CorvetteLola T70 Mk IIIB1970 Porsche 914/6 GT1968 Chevron B8 BMW and 1971 Chevrolet Corvette1971 Porsche 908/3 and 1970 Lola T210 FVC#56 1972 Porsche 911 ST 2.5 and #72 1970 Porsche 911 ST 2.3Lola T70 Mk IIIB1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IVRace winning 1969 Lola T70 Mk IIIB of David Hart1968 Chevron B8 BMWFord GT40 Mk IILola T70 Mk IIIB1969 Porsche 9171966 Porsche 9111969 Ferrari 312 PFord GT40 Mk II1969 Ferrari 312 P1966 Porsche 906Lola T70 Mk IIIB1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Main Photo Gallery (click image for larger picture and description)
Race winning 1969 Lola T70 Mk IIIB of David Hart
1969 Ferrari 312 P
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
1969 Ferrari 312 P
1966 Porsche 911
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1969 Ferrari 312 P
Ford GT40 Mk II
1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
1969 Ferrari 312 P
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1966 Porsche 906
Ford GT40 Mk II
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Lola T70 Mk IIIB
Chevrolet Corvette
1969 Alpine A 220
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Race winning 1969 Lola T70 Mk IIIB of David Hart
1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1965 Ford GT40 Mk II and 1971 Lola T212 FVC
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1969 Alpine A 220 and 1970 Chevron B16 FVC
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1969 Ferrari 312 P
1971 Matra 660-01
Lola T70 Mk IIIB
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Chevrolet Corvette
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1966 Porsche 906
Chevrolet Corvette
1972 Porsche 911 ST 2.5
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Ford GT40 Mk II
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1967 Porsche 907 and 1967 Porsche 910
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1970 Chevron B16 FVC
1969 Alpine A 220
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
Ford GT40 Mk II
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1966 Porsche 906
1969 Porsche 917
1967 Porsche 910
1967 Porsche 910
1966 Porsche 906
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1964 Huffaker-Ford Genie Mk8 and 1965 Ford GT40
Chevrolet Corvette
1965 Lola-Chevrolet T70 Spyder
1965 Ford GT40 and 1964 Huffaker-Ford Genie Mk8
1965 McLaren-Chevrolet M1B
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1966 Porsche 911
1967 Porsche 907
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1970 Chevron B16 Mazda
1963 Cooper-Maserati T61P Monaco
1965 Ford GT40
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1965 Ford GT40
Chevrolet Corvette
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1965 Ford GT40
1965 Ford GT40
1965 McLaren-Chevrolet M1B
1965 McLaren-Chevrolet M1B
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1970 Chevron B16 FVC
1971 Matra 660-01
Chevrolet Corvette
1966 Porsche 906
1971 De Tomaso Pantera Group IV
Ford GT40 Mk II
Ford GT40 Mk II
1969 Ferrari 312 P
Ford GT40 Mk II
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1969 Porsche 917
Chevrolet Corvette
Pre-war Bugatti race at the 2014 Goodwood Members Meeting
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1971 Alfa Romeo 33/TT/3
1971 Porsche 908/3
Chevrolet Corvette
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Ford GT40 Mk II
Ford GT40 Mk II
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Chevrolet Corvette
1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
1970 Chevron B16 Mazda
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1969 Alpine A 220
Chevrolet Corvette
1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
1970 Chevron B16 Mazda
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1971 Alfa Romeo 33/TT/3 and 1966 Porsche 906
1971 Porsche 908/3
1966 Porsche 906
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Chevrolet Corvette
1972 Porsche 911 ST 2.5
1969 Porsche 917
1972 Porsche 911 ST 2.5
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Ford GT40 Mk II
1969 Alpine A 220
1971 De Tomaso Pantera Group IV
1970 Porsche 914/6 GT and 1968 Porsche 911 T
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
1971 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
1971 Alfa Romeo 33/TT/3 and 1971 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Chevrolet Corvette
Ford GT40 Mk II
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Lola T70 Mk IIIB
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1969 Porsche 917
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1970 Porsche 914/6 GT
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1968 Chevron B8 BMW and 1971 Chevrolet Corvette
1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Group IV
1969 Porsche 917
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1969 Ferrari 312 P
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1971 Porsche 908/3 and 1970 Lola T210 FVC
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Chevrolet Corvette
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
#56 1972 Porsche 911 ST 2.5 and #72 1970 Porsche 911 ST 2.3
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Lola T70 Mk IIIB
Race winning 1969 Lola T70 Mk IIIB of David Hart
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1968 Chevron B8 BMW
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Ford GT40 Mk II
Lola T70 Mk IIIB
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
1969 Porsche 917
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race
Le Mans Classic 2014 – 1966 to 1971 Race Results
1. 1969 Lola T70 Mk III B, Hart
2. 1967 Lola T70 Mk III, Thuner
3. 1969 Lola T70 Mk III B, France / France
4. 1969 Lola T70 Mk III B, de Doncker
5. 1971 Matra 660-01, Mahe / Guenat
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[Source: Peter Auto; photos: Tim Scott / Fluid Images]
