The singular key to winning a 24 Hour Endurance race like the 2015 24 Hours Of Le Mans is surviving until the end. That is also the most difficult thing to do and as history has shown, Le Mans is about as difficult to win as any of the world’s great automotive contests and maybe even more so. The competition, the wear and strain on the equipment, the mental acuity of the drivers, and the skill of the crews that have to keep it all working are stretched to the limits. More than a few famous drivers have admitted that they cannot wait to get to Le Mans and then after beginning the race, they cannot wait to leave.
Le Mans was the site of the worst racing crash in history when in 1955 Pierre Levegh lost control and went tumbling through the crowd in his Mercedes. The crash killed scores of people and nearly ended auto racing in Europe (it did in Switzerland). We say that because in comparison this video is fluff. A lot of fender benders, a few good smack ups, and a genuine mess or two but no one is hurt, no one is maimed, and most of the cars here were likely knocked back together to continue racing. The magic circuit has been the same for many, many years but the stuff charging around it has evolved to help keep both the drivers and the spectators safer.
Here’s a look a some of the best drivers and coolest cars in the world getting after it and getting into it on the famed Circuit de la Sarthe in France. We’re not sure that the roar racer guys follow the “rubbin’ is racin'” mantra of American stock car drivers but in this video there’s lots of it!
