For his six wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Jacky Ickx claimed the top step on the podium with five different teammates: the Brits Jackie Oliver and Derek Bell, Dutch driver Gijs van Lennep, the German Jürgen Barth and American driver Hurley Haywood.

With him, two among them won their only victory at the 24 Hours (Jackie Oliver and Jürgen Barth). In 1976, Gijs van Lennep won at Le Mans the last race of his career, with Jacky Ickx, five years after his first victory with a Porsche 917. A teammate of the Belgian driver and Barth in 1977, Hurley Haywood clinched two other wins at the 24 Hours, in 1983 and 1994.

Derek Bell is Jacky Ickx's most loyal teammate. In four shared starts (1975, '81, '82 and '83), together they won three times (1975, '81 and '82). Two additional victories (in 1986 and '87) made Derek Bell the winningest Brit in the history of the 24 Hours. On par with Emanuele Pirro and Frank Biela, he is only topped by Tom Kristensen (nine wins) and...Jacky Ickx (six).

Derek Bell pays tribute to his former teammate:

"Jacky is probably the best driver I've ever raced with. He never tried to act like he was better than I am. We clocked the same times. When I would take back the wheel of our car, it was the same as how I left it. I remember Jacky told me on two separate occasions: 'Derek, thank you for having been such a wonderful teammate, I would not have won without you.' I think he meant my contribution was equal to his."

But, for Jacky Ickx as important as drivers are, they are only the tip of the iceberg:

"You have to break things down. The heroes are perceived on the track, but that's an enormous injustice because so much is done behind the scenes, by people you never see. Those are the ones who make a driver what he is. They are passionate and work in the shadows. They are the craftsmen of a project, whichever race it is in the world. They give you a tool, and if it's the right time, it becomes the winning tool. The only thing left for the driver to do - so to speak! - is to stay on the track and go as fast as possible. So, my teammates and I were all in the same boat. Of course, you can't win at Le Mans without good teammates, but it's nothing compared to the work done beforehand. If the car is no good, you can do whatever you want, push it to the limit constantly, and you won't win."

For Jacky Ickx, this acknowledgement of those who work behind the scenes is nothing more than a life lesson, in a much more comprehensive sense, "...because in the end, it's true for everyone. In everyone's journey, they are people who interest you, who can give you advice - even though you may not always heed it - who have talked with you about a book, an author, a member of his or her family, his or her significant other...those are the people who make up our lives. I don't believe in anyone who claims to be self-made. For me, there's no such thing. We are all the fruit of a succession of circumstances. The guy who assembles the gearboxes, for example, you never see him, but he puts all his savoir-faire and passion into what he does."

In motorsports, Jacky Ickx is the first "Monsieur Le Mans"...but another driver made his mark on the history of the 24 Hours of Le Mans by beating his win record...a story to be continued in the next installment of series.

Derek Bell will serve as the parade marshal at the 2017 24 Hours of Le Mans (see article).

Click below for the previous installments in this interview series:

Jacky Ickx interview series (1) - The road to the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans

Jacky Ickx interview series (2) - 1969 and the walk to victory

Jacky Ickx interview series (3) - The Ferrari years

Jacky Ickx interview series (4) - 1977 and the (nearly) impossible win

PHOTO (Copyright - Archives/ACO): After 1975 and 1981, Jacky Ickx and Derek Bell won a third time as a duo in 1982 with the Porsche 956 for the car's first participation in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.