1988 Le Mans 24 Hours

If any Silk Cut Jaguar XJR-9LM was going to win, it was going to have to beat the Porsche 962C of Derek Bell, Hans Stuck and Klaus Ludwig, the Stuttgart firm’s standard bearers, and both Stuck and John Watson, Jaguar’s philosopher, predicted a particularly hard contest which would go the whole distance. They were so right!

A superb victory was achieved by Jan Lammers, the Dutchman who took the brunt of duties, by Johnny Dumfries, who easily overcame early-season disappointments, and by Andy Wallace, Tom Walkinshaw’s young protege who had never driven around the circuit until the first qualifying session, and had to screw up the courage to take the infamous Mulsanne kink “flat”.

“They tell me you can overtake slower cars at the kink without lifting, but I’ll practice that when, the track’s clear,” said the likeable Oxford driver, who had been to Le Mans as a spectator some years ago, and most now be the envy of 50,000 or more Britons who made their pilgrimage to the Sarthe.

Race Results

Qualifying

Circuit - Le Mans

Country

France

Location

Le Mans, Pays de la Loire

Type

Temporary road course

Length

8.41 (Miles)

Record

Alain Ferte (Jaguar XJR-9LM), 3m21.27, 150.425 mph, Sports Cars, 1989

3,413

Championships

View

19,330

Results

View

25,216

Drivers

View

14,546

Teams

View

917

Circuits

View