From 2-5 July, the Le Mans Classic Legend is offering spectators a journey through the history of endurance racing.  Among the iconic cars set to participate in this event is the Panoz LMP-1 Roadster S. With its massive bonnet, thunderous naturally aspirated V8 and unconventional design, the American racing star flawlessly represents the intrepidity forever fuelling the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

<p>Any time&nbsp;the Panoz LMP-1 Roadster S barrels down&nbsp;the pit straight or emerges at the end of&nbsp;Mulsanne, its presence on the scene is undeniable. More than 25&nbsp;years after taking the start in the 1999 24 Hours, this&nbsp;car still causes a sensation, and to see it on the track at the Le Mans Classic reminds us of&nbsp;an era when engineers still dared to do things strictly their way.</p>

<h2>a&nbsp;silhouette that defies&nbsp;convention</h2>

<p>In the late 1990s, most prototypes entered in the 24 Hours adopted a mid-rear engine architecture, but&nbsp;Panoz choice otherwise.</p>

<p>The&nbsp;car&#39;s carbon-fibre&nbsp;bodywork houses&nbsp;a carbon-fibre&nbsp;single shell&nbsp;chassis. But its&nbsp;truly distinctive feature is found at the&nbsp;front, namely&nbsp;a massive, naturally aspirated 6-litre&nbsp;Ford V8 prepared&nbsp;by Robert Yates, a renowned&nbsp;figure in American motorsport and NASCAR. Producing around 600 hp, this engine gives the Panoz a one-of-a-kind&nbsp;mechanical signature.</p>

<p>With its extended bonnet&nbsp;and pushed back cockpit, the LMP-1 Roadster S looks&nbsp;more like the&nbsp;Batmobile zipping around the circuit&nbsp;than it does a traditional prototype. It is no surprise the car&#39;s&nbsp;striking silhouette&nbsp;quickly made it a crowd favourite!</p>

<h2>1999 24 hours of Le Mans: all eyes on&nbsp;the underdog</h2>

<p>Unveiled mere&nbsp;weeks ahead of&nbsp;the pre-qualifying sessions in&nbsp;1999, the Panoz immediately dazzled the crowd thanks to its show-stopping&nbsp;appearance and the inimitable roar of its V8 engine.</p>

<p>The American team fielded two cars in the race&nbsp;manned&nbsp;by an impressive&nbsp;list&nbsp;of celebrated&nbsp;drivers&nbsp;including&nbsp;David Brabham, &Eacute;ric Bernard, Jan Magnussen, Johnny O&rsquo;Connell, Butch Leitzinger&nbsp;and Max Angelelli.</p>

<p>If any uncertainty existed relative to the Panoz&#39;s true potential, it&nbsp;centered more on reliability than performance. A few weeks before the race, an endurance test was conducted at the Paul Ricard circuit, cut short after 20 hours due to a head gasket failure. The team&nbsp;focused its&nbsp;final efforts on cooling and aerodynamics.</p>

<p>During the 1999 24 Hours, the&nbsp;#12 shared by&nbsp;Brabham, Bernard and&nbsp;Leitzinger managed to overcome&nbsp;a gearbox change and the replacement of an oil cooler to finish in seventh place overall. The impressive result solidified&nbsp;the project&#39;s credibility up&nbsp;against&nbsp;the giants of that era.</p>

<h2>experience it in person</h2>

<p>Seeing a photo of a Panoz is one thing, but seeing it in action is something else entirely.</p>

<p>The Le Mans Classic Legend is making this&nbsp;rare opportunity a reality. Don&#39;t miss the chance to watch&nbsp;up close a car designed in an era when regulations still left plenty to the&nbsp;imagination, and to&nbsp;hear the distinctive thunder&nbsp;of its V8 echoing&nbsp;again around the 24 Hours circuit!</p>

<p>Along with the Panoz LMP-1 Roadster S, Grid 8 will re-shine a well-deserved spotlight&nbsp;on&nbsp;some of the most legendary&nbsp;cars of the second half of the 1990s.</p>

<h2>living history</h2>

<p>The Le Mans Classic Legend is not an open-air museum. It is a living celebration of the history of the 24 Hours of Le Mans!&nbsp;Every car that hits the track tells a chapter of this century-long adventure. The Panoz LMP-1 Roadster S is all about&nbsp;boldness, the story of an American manufacturer who&nbsp;chose to follow its own path.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Le Mans Classic Legend will be held from&nbsp;2-5 July.&nbsp;Purchase your&nbsp;tickets now on the&nbsp;<strong><a href="https://www.lemansclassic.com/en/ticketing/" target="_blank">official ticketing website</a></strong>.</p>

Le Mans Classic Legend: the Panoz LMP-1 Roadster S from the 1999 24 Hours is back!

In 2027, the 24 Hours of Le Mans will be welcoming McLaren Racing to the Hypercar class. In addition, McLaren Trophy Europe will one of the curtain raisers, making Le Mans race week a celebration of the British marque.

<p>A spectacular field of McLaren racing cars is set to gather next year at the 2027 24 Hours of Le Mans, with rounds three and four of <strong>McLaren Trophy Europe</strong> on the billing as support races for the 95th running of France&rsquo;s endurance classic. These fixtures are scheduled before the main event, which sees two <a href="https://www.24h-lemans.com/en/news/in-2027-mclaren-return-to-le-mans-to-pick-up-where-they-left-off-60760">McLaren MCL-HY Hypercars</a> compete in the top class, in addition to the McLaren GT3 EVOs fielded in LMGT3.</p>

<h2>Le Mans, the ultimate playground for a McLaren get-together</h2>

<p>McLaren Trophy Europe at Le Mans weaves a thread, making the special occasion a celebration of history and future. The 2027 support races will allow drivers from McLaren Trophy America to compete as guest entries, alongside teams running current McLaren GT3 EVO and GT4-spec customer racing cars. The multi-class format will make the event the largest gathering of McLaren GT racing cars ever assembled in competition.</p>

<p>Nick Collins, CEO, McLaren Automotive:<strong> <em>&ldquo;To have McLaren Trophy Europe racing at Le Mans in 2027, the year we make <a href="https://www.24h-lemans.com/en/news/mclaren-mcl-hy-a-name-with-a-hint-of-promise-for-the-24-hours-of-le-mans-60533">our debut in the Hypercar class</a>, will make the event incredibly special. The fact that it will also be an invitational race for our GT3 and GT4 clients, as well as open to our McLaren Trophy America competitors, will mark this out as a true celebration of McLaren. What better place than Le Mans &ndash; part of our Triple Crown legacy &ndash; to recognise this.&rdquo;</em></strong></p>

<p>Pierre Fillon, President of the Automobile Club de l&rsquo;Ouest: <em><strong>&ldquo;Welcoming McLaren Trophy Europe to Le Mans in 2027 will add another strong dimension to what is already shaping up to be a very special edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. McLaren is part of the history of our race, and its return to the top class with the MCL-HY is a powerful symbol of the momentum currently driving endurance racing. Bringing together Hypercar, GT3, GT4 and McLaren Trophy competitors during the same week will create a unique celebration for the brand, its customers and the fans. Le Mans has always been a place where heritage and the future meet, and this announcement perfectly reflects that spirit.&rdquo;</strong></em></p>

<p>The 95th 24 Hours Of Le Mans will be more than a race. It is already set to be a culmination of racing joy, with McLaren treating its fans to its full spectrum of race cars, from GT to highly-developed prototype.</p>

McLaren Trophy Europe to be a support fixture at next year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans

Following the cancellation of Purple Disco Machine’s upcoming dates due to health reasons, Le Mans Classic Legend is adjusting its musical lineup for Friday, July 3.

<p>The event is pleased to welcome <strong>Polo &amp; Pan</strong>, a leading figure in the French electronic music scene, who will perform at this year&rsquo;s event.</p>

<p>Polo &amp; Pan are timeless. The Parisian duo of <strong>Paul Armand-Delille (Polo)</strong> and <strong>Alexandre Grynszpan (Pan)</strong> make music that flicks like frames through Golden Era Hollywood films, delivered with a deft <strong>French touch</strong> that playfully imbues house, disco, and electro in service one of the most compelling acts in dance music right now.</p>

<p>While tracks like <em>&lsquo;Canop&eacute;e&rsquo;</em> and <em>&lsquo;Dorothy&rsquo;</em> are now essential playing for any rooftop or beachside party no matter your latitude, <strong>Polo &amp; Pan&rsquo;s live performances bring their music to life with a sparkling vibrancy</strong>. One look around the dancefloor&mdash;whether it&rsquo;s sold-out US tours or major festival performances&mdash;and you&rsquo;ll see smiles, pretenses dropped, and earnest joy on the faces around you. That, more than their cultured heritage, global appeal, or history of underground hits, might be the Polo &amp; Pan&rsquo;s most remarkable quality. As is the case for many iconoclasts, It may have taken some time for the world-at-large to catch Polo &amp; Pan&rsquo;s creative drift, but now we are all very much along for the voyage.</p>

<p>This announcement further strengthens <strong>a lineup designed to make Le Mans Classic Legend one of the summer&rsquo;s must-attend events</strong> at the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans Circuit!</p>

<p>Informations &amp; ticketing: <a href="https://www.lemansclassic.com/en/ticketing/" target="_blank"><u><strong>www.lemansclassic.com</strong></u></a></p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

Polo and Pan joins the Le Mans Classic Lineup

We’ve crunched the numbers for you! Here are the statistics of the 94th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, won by the Toyota Gazoo Racing #7 Toyota TR010 Hybrid.

<h2>1963 marshals &ndash; put safety first</h2>

<p>They were ready and waiting before the engines even started. The 1,963 track marshals posted around the 13.626-kilometre 24 Hours of Le Mans circuit ensured the security of the 186 drivers who took part in the race.</p>

<p>Throughout the day, and night, in the sunshine and in the darkness, these women and men are the trackside eyes and arms of Race Control. Their presence is vital.</p>

<h2>29,446 overtakes &ndash; keep attacking</h2>

<p>This year&rsquo;s race included 29,446 overtakes. And 101 of those passes enabled a competitor to take the overall lead. The remainder illustrates the exceptionally dense traffic generated by the cohabitation of 62 LMGT3s and prototypes on the track.</p>

<p>At Le Mans, every lap involves juggling speed with track conditions and traffic.</p>

<h2>1,849 pit stops &ndash; employ the best tactics</h2>

<p>Replace four tyres. Fill the fuel tank. Adjust a setting. Change drivers. In total, the 62 teams made 1,849 <a href="https://www.24h-lemans.com/en/news/pit-stop-tactics-a-major-factor-at-the-24-hours-of-le-mans-60740">pit stops</a> in 24 hours.</p>

<p>Behind the number are thousands of millimetre-perfect actions. Seconds gained or lost can be the difference between winning and losing.</p>

<h2>2 safety car interventions &ndash; proceed with caution</h2>

<p>The safety cars were deployed twice during the 94th 24 Hours of Le Mans. In all, the race was run under safety car conditions for 2 hours, 16 minutes and 24 seconds.</p>

<p>Race neutralisation is an integral part of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. It sometimes reshuffles the cards by closing gaps between cars, sparking new battles when the course is declared green. The pecking order is never set in stone, even after several hours.</p>

<h2>4 Slow Zones &ndash; decrease the pace</h2>

<p>Slow zones keep everyone safe while a specific portion of the circuit is being cleared, usually of debris.</p>

<p>There were four this year, totalling 20 minutes and 50 seconds. A trifle. However, team engineers and strategists see these periods as windows of opportunity, or potential traps. Either way, slow zones can be game changers.</p>

<h2>8 Full Course Yellows &ndash; remain in control</h2>

<p>Eight full course yellow procedures were called during the race, affecting racing for 32 minutes.</p>

<p>During a full course yellow, competitors must keep to a speed limit on the whole circuit. This safety measure requires concentration and discipline, even when adrenaline is in full flow.</p>

<h2>177 laps &ndash; Push boundaries</h2>

<p>Even when tiredness sets in, drivers continue, lap after lap, with the same degree of precision.<br />
This year, Will Stevens, driver of the #12 Cadillac V-Series.R entered by Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA spent most time at the wheel. The British driver completed 177 laps in the Hypercar. That&rsquo;s 2,400 kilometres driving at very high speed.</p>

<p>His performance is the perfect illustration of the physical and mental demands of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.</p>

<p>Maxime Martin on the other hand, was only able to complete ten laps of the Iron Lynx #61 Mercedes-AMG before a suspension failure ended its race. That&rsquo;s also a familiar scenario at Le Mans. Sometimes, the 24 hours are cut short by a mechanical failure, despite months of preparation.</p>

<h2>Every number tells a story</h2>

<p>The classification table shows winners and points attributed. Statistics tell the real story.</p>

<p>The 29,446 overtakes, 1,849 pit stops and the 1,963 marshals convey the true scale of this one-of-a-kind event. Drivers, mechanics, engineers, officials, marshals and spectators all contribute to the legend of Le Mans. This race is a tale of speed, stamina, superb teamwork and strong feelings.</p>

<h2>8,000 participants &ndash; Act together for the future</h2>

<p>The 24 Hours of Le Mans is above all about people working together. The 2026 24 Hours of Le Mans Impact Challenge was entered by 8,000 participants, all working towards a concrete goal.</p>

<p>This year&rsquo;s spectators opted to include a challenge in their experience of Le Mans 24 Hours. There are thousands of ways to enjoy race week!</p>

<h2>245,000 missions accomplished &ndash; Step right up!</h2>

<p>Together, participants accomplished 245,000 Impact Challenge missions during the 24 Hours of Le Mans.</p>

<p>This impressive figure is the result of individual actions that together make a difference on a large scale. Just like in an endurance racing crew, where every stint contributes to the overall result.</p>

<h2>67 partners &ndash; Work as a team</h2>

<p>The Impact Challenge continues to expand thanks to the level of engagement from all involved. No less than 67 partners supported the scheme this year. Their involvement illustrates the 24 Hours of Le Mans spirit, gathering people from a variety of backgrounds to work towards a common goal.</p>

<h2>3,800 prizes &ndash; Reward commitment</h2>

<p>The Impact Challenge isn&rsquo;t all about giving; many participants win some enviable prizes to reward their efforts. This year, 3,800 prizes were distributed, including 281 exclusive experiences with &ldquo;backstage&rdquo; access to the 24 Hours of Le Mans: pit lane garage tours, VIP hospitality and Grid Walk passes offering the 414 lucky Impact Challenge participants a chance to see another side of the race.</p>

<p>Le Mans week can involve so much more than watching a race. It can mean getting close to the beating heart of the event.</p>

<p>Because endurance racing isn&rsquo;t just about competition, it&rsquo;s also a community pulling together to build unforgettable memories.</p>

<p>See below for an overview of this year&rsquo;s 24 Hours of Le Mans CSR performance:</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

24 Heures du Mans 2026 - OFFICIAL AFTERMOVIE

L'aftermovie officiel des 24 Heures du Mans 2026

2026 24 Hours of Le Mans more post-race number crunching

<p>The 2022 24 Hours of Le Mans welcomed crowds back to the circuit after two years affected by restrictions. No fewer than 244,200 fans were trackside to see Toyota claim a fifth win, with many millions more following the race on digital platforms. Check out the key media statistics for the 90th 24 Hours of Le Mans right here.</p>

24 Hours of Le Mans – Media audience numbers revealed!

Related News

Le Mans Classic Legend: the Panoz LMP-1 Roadster S from the 1999 24 Hours is back!

McLaren Trophy Europe to be a support fixture at next year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans

Polo and Pan joins the Le Mans Classic Lineup

2026 24 Hours of Le Mans more post-race number crunching

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