The Le Mans 24 Hours was first staged in 1923 and has run since then, with the exception of 1936 and then the war years and immediate post war period, 1940 to 1948. Ferrari has won the French endurance event nine times and has taken 23 class wins. The first one came on the company’s debut in 1949, when Luigi Chinetti, an Italian who had settled in the States, along with Peter Mitchell-Thomson (Lord Selsdon) financed the purchase of two Ferrari 166 MM s.
Chinetti drove for almost the entire race, only handing over to Thomson when he had a huge lead over his rivals.
In 1954 came the first official factory win, when Scuderia Ferrari entered three 375 Plus. The winning duo also raced successfully for Ferrari in Formula 1, Argentina’s Jose Froilan Gonzalez and the Frenchman Maurice Trintignant. There was a class win three years later, with Ferrari winning outright again in 1958, when the American Phil Hill and the Belgian Olivier Gendebien beat stiff opposition from Aston Martin at the wheel of a Ferrari 250 TR58.
After another class win in 1959, Ferrari’s golden years at Le Mans began with six successive victories and a level of dominance never seen before at the Sarthe circuit. In 1960, Gendebien, with his fellow countryman and journalist Paul Frere were victorious in a 250 TR59/60. The following year the Belgian made it three in a row, again with Hill in a 250 TRI/61, when adding to the impressive performance the entire podium featured Ferrari drivers. In second place were the other factory drivers, Willy Mairesse from Belgium and the Englishman Mike Parkes. Third was a privare 250 GT SWB entered by Belgian Pierre Noblet and the Frenchman Jean Guichet who also won their category.
The following year there was another all-Ferrari podium with the race won once again by Hill and Gendebien in the 330 TRI/LM Spyder. In 1963 Ferrari was the undisputed force in the event, taking the outright win, two class wins and a clean sweep of the top six places in the classification. It was an all-Italian victory as the drivers of the 250 P were Ludovico Scarfiotti and Lorenzo Bandini. The following year, Vaccarella and Guichet won in the 275 P, while 1965 saw Ferrari’s final outright win with a car run by North American Racing Team and driven by American Masten Gregory with Austria’s Jochen Rindt.
LE MANS 1954: GONZALEZ AND TRINTIGNANT
In 1954, Jose Froilan Gonzalez and Maurice Trintignant scored the second victory for Ferrari at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. In the 50s, these two ‘southern men’ were great pioneers in the renaissance of racing after World War Two.
The Argentinian and the Frenchman from the southern region of Vaucluse, have a very special place in the history of motorsport in relation to the 24 Hours of Le Mans and Formula 1. Three years before his victory at Le Mans, José Froilan Gonzalez (born in 1922) scored the first of Ferrari’s 219 F1 victories. That year, he participated for the second time in 24 hours, driving a Talbot-Lago shared with compatriot Onofre Marimon.
It was in 1954 that José Froilan Gonzalez and Maurice Trintignant drove together in Le Mans, in one of the three cars entered by Scuderia Ferrari. Although they both started in La Sarthe in 1950, the former never saw the chequered flag, while the latter finished for the first time in 1953 (sixth in a Gordini). Together they won the race. In his last appearance at the 24 Hours, this victory gave Gonzalez (who his size has earned the nickname of “Bull of the Pampas”) a new status: the first driver to win in a Ferrari in Formula 1 and Le Mans.
In 1955, it was the turn of Maurice Trintignant (1917-2005) to enter the story: a year after becoming the first French driver to win in La Sarthe driving a Ferrari, he scored his first victory in Formula 1 at Monaco, followed by a second success in the Principality in 1958, he still remains the only French driver to have won both the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Monaco Grand Prix since the birth of Formula 1 World Championship in 1950.
The Ferrari 250 TRI/61 is a significant model in Ferrari’s racing history. It’s part of the famed Ferrari 250 series, but the “TRI/61” designation specifically refers to the 1961 version of the Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa, which was a continuation and evolution of the earlier Testa Rossa models.
Key Features of the Ferrari 250 TRI/61:
- Engine: The 250 TRI/61 was equipped with a 3.0-liter V12 engine, producing around 300 horsepower. This engine, designed by Gioachino Colombo, was a defining feature of many Ferrari racing cars of the era.
- Design: The “TRI” in its name stands for “Testa Rossa Independente,” highlighting its independent rear suspension—a notable advancement from earlier models. The bodywork was designed by Fantuzzi and featured a more aerodynamic design compared to its predecessors.
- Chassis: The car used a space frame chassis, which was lighter and stiffer than previous versions, improving handling and performance.
- Racing History: The Ferrari 250 TRI/61 was incredibly successful in motorsport. It won the 1961 24 Hours of Le Mans with drivers Phil Hill and Olivier Gendebien, marking one of Ferrari’s many triumphs at the famous endurance race. This model was known for its reliability and speed, which were crucial for endurance racing.
- Legacy: The 250 TRI/61 is one of the most iconic and valuable Ferrari race cars. Its combination of technical innovation, racing success, and beautiful design makes it a highly sought-after classic car.