Tiga at the 24 Hours of Le Mans : from Group C2 to LM P2
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Tiga at the 24 Hours of Le Mans : from Group C2 to LM P2

Forty years after its creation, Tiga Race Cars looks to make a return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the LM P2 class, after being a brilliant part of the C2 prototypes class in the second half of the 1980s.

The name Tiga combines the first two letters of its founders' last names, Australian Tim Schenken and New Zealander Howden Ganley. Both raced in Formula 1 in the early 1970s and each competed at the 24 Hours of Le Mans fourt times. At La Sarthe, Schenken was a factory Ferrari prototype driver in 1973, while Ganley finished second in 1972 driving the Matra MS 670 with François Cevert. It's also worth noting that the pair competed in the 24 Hours of Le Mans together once: in 1975, but their Porsche 911 RSR was forced to retire from the race.
 
It was in 1984, exactly 30 years ago, that Tiga made their first appearance at Le Mans in the C2 class (equivalent to today's LM P2). The following year, Gordon Spice, Ray Bellm and Mark Galvin (Tiga GC85) claimed the class victory at the 24 Hours, finishing 14th overall. In 1987, Tiga cars finished very strong, and provided the team's best overall results, ninth place for Los-Wood-Hessert and tenth place for Sheldon-Harrower-Thyrring (third and fourth in the C2 class). That same year, Swedish driver Slim Borgudd, of ABBA fame, was entered to race a Tiga, but the car would unfortunately not qualify for the race.

Now owned by gentleman driver Mike Newton, 2005 and 2006 LM P2 class winner at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Tiga Race Cars is preparing for a return to La Sarthe, and actively working on a new prototype called the LM214 (a combination of LM P2 and 2014), with the first drawings being released last November. This year could see Tiga's return to La Sarthe, 19 years after its last participation in the 24 Hours.

Jean-Philippe Doret / ACO - Translated by Rainier Ehrhardt / ACO

The 82nd edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans will be held on June 14-15, 2014.

Photo : LE MANS (SARTHE, FRANCE), CIRCUIT DES 24 HEURES, 24 HOURS OF LE MANS, SATURDAY, JUNE 15, AND SUNDAY, JUNE 16, 1985, RACE. In only its second participation in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Tiga claimed victory in the C2 class with British team Spice Engineering.

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