Matra and Mirage
1972-1979. 1972-1979. Matra-Simca's three-peat. Group C arrives. Renault breaks through in 1978.
Part of Le Mans 24 Hours
12 moments in this segment.
- — 1972 · Matra-Simca MS670. First French win in 22 years. Graham Hill becomes the only driver to win the Triple Crown (Monaco, Indy 500, Le Mans).
- — 1972 · Matra-Simca MS670. 📹 Matra at Le Mans 1972 Year: 1972 · Winner: Matra-Simca MS670 · Drivers: Henri Pescarolo · Graham Hill First French win in 22 years. Graham Hill becomes the only driver to win the Triple Crown (Monaco, Indy 500, Le Mans).
- — 1973 · Matra-Simca MS670B. Matra's second straight win. Pescarolo becomes Le Mans royalty.
- — 1973 · Matra-Simca MS670B. 📹 Circuit of Le Mans 1973 - Matra Onboard Year: 1973 · Winner: Matra-Simca MS670B · Drivers: Henri Pescarolo · Gérard Larrousse Matra's second straight win. Pescarolo becomes Le Mans royalty.
- — 1974 · Matra-Simca MS670C. Matra three-peat. The marque retires from racing at the end of the year.
- — 1976 · Porsche 936. Porsche back on top with the turbocharged 936. Ickx's third Le Mans win.
- — 1976 · Porsche 936. 📹 Qualifying Le Mans 1977 - on-board Porsche 936/77 Spyder Year: 1976 · Winner: Porsche 936 · Drivers: Jacky Ickx · Gijs van Lennep Porsche back on top with the turbocharged 936. Ickx's third Le Mans win.
- — 1978 · Renault Alpine A442B. Renault's only Le Mans victory. The factory turbocharged campaign that would soon be exported to Formula 1.
- — 1979 · Porsche 935 K3. Only Group 5 (production-based) car ever to win Le Mans outright. The Whittington brothers — later jailed for drug trafficking — drove a Kremer Racing privateer.
- — 1975 · Mirage GR8 (Ford-powered). 📹 1975 Gulf-Mirage GR8 - Pebble Beach 2018 Year: 1975 · Winner: Mirage GR8 (Ford-powered) · Drivers: Jacky Ickx · Derek Bell Ickx's second Le Mans win, Derek Bell's first. Both will keep winning into the late 80s.
- — 1979 · Porsche 935 K3. 📹 Porsche 935, Drugs and Le Mans - The Story of The Whittington Brothers Year: 1979 · Winner: Porsche 935 K3 · Drivers: Klaus Ludwig · Bill Whittington · Don Whittington Only Group 5 (production-based) car ever to win Le Mans outright. The Whittington brothers — later jailed for drug trafficking — drove a Kremer Racing privateer.
- — 1978 · Renault Alpine A442B. 📹 Le Mans winning 1978 Alpine-Renault A442B V6 Turbo sounds! Year: 1978 · Winner: Renault Alpine A442B · Drivers: Didier Pironi · Jean-Pierre Jaussaud Renault's only Le Mans victory. The factory turbocharged campaign that would soon be exported to Formula 1.
