These two victories were claimed by two of the most famous marques in the history of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

In 1953 Jaguar won with number 18, recording the British manufacturer’s second triumph at the Circuit de la Sarthe during a purple patch which saw a total of five victories between 1951 and 1957.

In 2015, number 19 increased Porsche’s own record number of 24 Hours of Le Mans wins to seventeen... seventeen years after their last success. What a way to celebrate the 45th anniversary of the German marque’s maiden Le Mans victory!

1953: Tony Rolt/Duncan Hamilton (#18 Jaguar XK 120) – The British pair teamed up at the 24 Hours of Le Mans a total of six times. They finished fourth in their first joint venture in 1950, and then sixth the following year, before joining Jaguar in 1952. In 1953, the rather atypical duo clinched their one and only win at the legendary French endurance race. Rolt had been awarded the Military Cross, the third highest British military distinction, at the end of World War II. During the war, he had secretly built a glider to attempt an escape from the German fortress where he was imprisoned. Hamilton was a colourful character who liked to indulge in the odd tipple. During the 1953 race, a bird struck him full in the face at 130 mph, fracturing his nose!

2015: Nico Hülkenberg/Nick Tandy/Earl Bamber (#19 Porsche 919 Hybrid) – When Porsche announced that they would be returning to the LM P1 class in 2014, it was only going to be a matter of time before the Stuttgart-based manufacturer reclaimed their Le Mans crown. What was less expected, however, was the manner in which the 2015 triumph occurred. While the wise money was on front-line factory crews Romain Dumas/Neel Jani/Marc Lieb (who started the race in pole position) or Timo Bernhard/Brendon Hartley/Mark Webber (who went on to take the 2015 FIA WEC World Endurance Drivers’ Championship), it was the crew in the third 919 Hybrid fielded at the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps and Le Mans that climbed onto the highest step of the podium. All the more surprising is the fact that German Hülkenberg, New Zealander Bamber and Englishman Tandy were all racing a prototype for the very first time, and that Hülkenberg and Bamber were both 24 Hours of Le Mans rookies! Hülkenberg also became the first driver since Bertrand Gachot and Johnny Herbert in 1991 to win Le Mans while contracted to a Formula One team (Force India).

Jean-Philippe Doret / ACO
Translated from French by David Goward

Photo: LE MANS (SARTHE, FRANCE), CIRCUIT DES 24 HEURES, 24 HOURS OF LE MANS, SUNDAY 14 JUNE 1953, FINISH. Duncan Hamilton (whose nose was fractured during the race) and Tony Rolt paired up at Le Mans six times, winning at the fourth attempt.