24h Le Mans
Photo : - Peugeot Sport
The tumultuous history of the Interlagos circuit begins with a tragedy: July 12, 1936, during the Grand Prix in Sao Paulo in the streets of downtown, the Alfa Romeo of the French Hellé Nice hit a bale of straw over 160 km/h, was launched into the air and crashed into the grandstands. Four spectators were killed, thirty wounded. Severely affected, the President of the Automobile Club of Brazil started looking for a less dangerous location for the city to organize future races.
Salvation came from Louis Romero Sanson, a real estate entrepreneur. Shaken by the 1929 crisis, the Briton could not put his ambitious plans for a residential area, and the land he acquired a decade earlier remained unoccupied. It is located between two huge reservoirs supplying the city with drinking water ... Interlagos, literally "between the lakes" - QED!
After thorough study of the Indianapolis circuit, Brooklands and Montlhéry, Sanson began construction of the speedway in 1938. The circut of 8 km with a paved surface was opened in 1940 and hosted the Grand Prix in 1947. This was the beginning of a long history ... Next weekend, the circuit wll host a Formula 1 race for the thirtieth time!
During all these years, the Endurance has been no exception. Since 1956, a race of 1,000 miles (Mil Milhas Brasil) has been regularly held at Interlagos. On 10th November 2007, it hosted the final round of the Le Mans Series season. That day, the duel between Pescarolo and Peugeot concluded with a double finish of the firm Sochaux, who are very much present in Brazil. Note that the current adversary Audi had previously won the same race with a TT from the DTM championship.
Julien Hergault - Photos : Interlagos Circuit, Peugeot Sport, Le Mans Series
Photo : INTERLAGOS (SAO PAULO), Autodromo Carlos Pace ,MIL MILHAS BRASIL, 10 NOV 2007. Interlagos is situated to the South of São Paulo.
