1991 24 Hours of Le Mans

1991 24 Hours of Le Mans
Previous: 1990	Next: 1992
Index: Races \| Winners

The 1991 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 59th Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 22 and 23 June 1991. It was also the fourth round of the 1991 FIA Sportscar World Championship season.

Pre-race

Le Mans in 1991

An entirely new complex along the front stretch was built, housing modern pit stalls, garages, and the new observation suites built above the garages.

As for the race, the grid line-up was an unusual affair. 1991 was supposed to be the first year the World Sportscar Championship ran to the new '3.5L' rules, which meant a new breed of sports-prototypes. Although TWR-Jaguar, Mercedes-Benz and Peugeot all built cars to the new regulations for the 1991 championship series, the amount of privateer teams was low and there was simply not enough of these new cars to fill the grid. The FIA allowed the first 10 spaces on the grid to be reserved for the fastest qualifying 3.5L cars from the World Sportscar Championship, while the rest of the field was made up of older formula Group C cars. In another twist, some teams which had 3.5L cars, but entered previous year's championships with Group C cars, were allowed to enter their "obsolete" but more reliable (and for Le Mans in 1991, quicker) Group C racers. In the case of TWR Jaguar and Mercedes-Benz, their 3.5L cars (the XJR-14 and C291 respectively) failed to qualify and instead they raced using their XJR-12 and C11 models. Peugeot Sport on the other hand only had their 905 model to race, with 1991 being their first full season in sportscar racing. Being the only factory team running the 3.5L formula, the French marque had the honour of starting 1st and 2nd, even though they had only set the 3rd and 8th fastest qualifying times.

Race

Mazda's 787B, powered with a rotary model 26B Wankel engine, won in 1991, overcoming reliability issues in the older manufacturer cars. It was the first (and so far the only) Japanese manufacturer to win Le Mans, as well as the only non-piston engine car to ever win. It won against considerable opposition from factory-entered Mercedes, Jaguar and the new 3.5L Peugeot cars; and from privately entered Porsche 962's, still competitive after 6 years.

Official results

This Mazda 787B became the first (and to this day, the only) Japanese car to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Class winners in bold. Cars failing to complete 70% of the winner's distance marked as Not Classified (NC).

Pos	Class	No	Team	Drivers	Chassis	Tyre	Laps
Pos	Class	No	Team	Drivers	Engine	Tyre	Laps
1	C2	55	Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd.	Volker Weidler Johnny Herbert Bertrand Gachot	Mazda 787B	D	362
1	C2	55	Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd.	Volker Weidler Johnny Herbert Bertrand Gachot	Mazda R26B 2.6L 4-Rotor	D	362
2	C2	35	Silk Cut Jaguar Tom Walkinshaw Racing	Davy Jones Raul Boesel Michel Ferté	Jaguar XJR-12	G	360
2	C2	35	Silk Cut Jaguar Tom Walkinshaw Racing	Davy Jones Raul Boesel Michel Ferté	Jaguar 7.4L V12	G	360
3	C2	34	Silk Cut Jaguar Tom Walkinshaw Racing	Bob Wollek Teo Fabi Kenny Acheson	Jaguar XJR-12	G	358
3	C2	34	Silk Cut Jaguar Tom Walkinshaw Racing	Bob Wollek Teo Fabi Kenny Acheson	Jaguar 7.4L V12	G	358
4	C2	33	Silk Cut Jaguar Tom Walkinshaw Racing	Derek Warwick John Nielsen Andy Wallace	Jaguar XJR-12	G	356
4	C2	33	Silk Cut Jaguar Tom Walkinshaw Racing	Derek Warwick John Nielsen Andy Wallace	Jaguar 7.4L V12	G	356
5	C2	31	Team Sauber Mercedes	Karl Wendlinger Michael Schumacher Fritz Kreutzpointner	Mercedes-Benz C11	G	355
5	C2	31	Team Sauber Mercedes	Karl Wendlinger Michael Schumacher Fritz Kreutzpointner	Mercedes-Benz M119 5.0L Turbo V8	G	355
6	C2	18	Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd. Oreca	David Kennedy Stefan Johansson Maurizio Sandro Sala	Mazda 787B	D	355
6	C2	18	Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd. Oreca	David Kennedy Stefan Johansson Maurizio Sandro Sala	Mazda R26B 2.6L 4-Rotor	D	355
7	C2	58	Konrad Motorsport Joest Porsche Racing	Hans-Joachim Stuck Derek Bell Frank Jelinski	Porsche 962C	G	347
7	C2	58	Konrad Motorsport Joest Porsche Racing	Hans-Joachim Stuck Derek Bell Frank Jelinski	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	G	347
8	C2	56	Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd. Oreca	Pierre Dieudonné Takashi Yorino Yojiro Terada	Mazda 787	D	346
8	C2	56	Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd. Oreca	Pierre Dieudonné Takashi Yorino Yojiro Terada	Mazda R26B 2.6L 4-Rotor	D	346
9	C2	11	Porsche Kremer Racing	Manuel Reuter Harri Toivonen JJ Lehto	Porsche 962CK6	Y	343
9	C2	11	Porsche Kremer Racing	Manuel Reuter Harri Toivonen JJ Lehto	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	Y	343
10	C2	17	Repsol Brun Motorsport	Oscar Larrauri Jesús Pareja Walter Brun	Porsche 962C	Y	338
10	C2	17	Repsol Brun Motorsport	Oscar Larrauri Jesús Pareja Walter Brun	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	Y	338
11	C2	12	Courage Compétition	François Migault Lionel Robert Jean-Daniel Raulet	Cougar C26S	G	331
11	C2	12	Courage Compétition	François Migault Lionel Robert Jean-Daniel Raulet	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	G	331
12	C1	41	Euro Racing Team Fedco	Kiyoshi Misaki Hisashi Yokoshima Naoki Nagasaka	Spice SE90C	G	326
12	C1	41	Euro Racing Team Fedco	Kiyoshi Misaki Hisashi Yokoshima Naoki Nagasaka	Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8	G	326
13 NC	C2	53	Team Salamin Primagaz Team Schuppan	Hurley Haywood James Weaver Wayne Taylor	Porsche 962C	D	316
13 NC	C2	53	Team Salamin Primagaz Team Schuppan	Hurley Haywood James Weaver Wayne Taylor	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	D	316
14 NC	C1	43	Euro Racing PC Automotive	Richard Piper Olindo Iacobelli Jean-Louis Ricci	Spice SE89C	G	280
14 NC	C1	43	Euro Racing PC Automotive	Richard Piper Olindo Iacobelli Jean-Louis Ricci	Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8	G	280
15 NC	C2	15	Veneto Equipe	Luigi Giorgio Almo Copelli	Lancia LC2	D	111
15 NC	C2	15	Veneto Equipe	Luigi Giorgio Almo Copelli	Ferrari 308C 3.0L Turbo V8	D	111
16 DNF	C2	1	Team Sauber Mercedes	Jean-Louis Schlesser Jochen Mass Alain Ferté	Mercedes-Benz C11	G	319
16 DNF	C2	1	Team Sauber Mercedes	Jean-Louis Schlesser Jochen Mass Alain Ferté	Mercedes-Benz M119 5.0L Turbo V8	G	319
17 DNF	C2	49	Courage Compétition Trust Racing	Steven Andskär George Fouché	Porsche 962C	D	316
17 DNF	C2	49	Courage Compétition Trust Racing	Steven Andskär George Fouché	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	D	316
18 NC	C2	47	Courage Compétition	Michel Trollé Claude Bourbonnais Marco Brand	Cougar C26S	G	293
18 NC	C2	47	Courage Compétition	Michel Trollé Claude Bourbonnais Marco Brand	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	G	293
19 DNF	C2	51	Team Salamin Primagaz Obermaier Racing	Jürgen Lässig Pierre Yver Otto Altenbach	Porsche 962C	G	232
19 DNF	C2	51	Team Salamin Primagaz Obermaier Racing	Jürgen Lässig Pierre Yver Otto Altenbach	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	G	232
20 DNF	C2	32	Team Sauber Mercedes	Jonathan Palmer Stanley Dickens Kurt Thiim	Mercedes-Benz C11	G	223
20 DNF	C2	32	Team Sauber Mercedes	Jonathan Palmer Stanley Dickens Kurt Thiim	Mercedes-Benz M119 5.0L Turbo V8	G	223
21 DNF	C2	52	Team Salamin Primagaz Team Schuppan	Eje Elgh Roland Ratzenberger Will Hoy	Porsche 962C	D	202
21 DNF	C2	52	Team Salamin Primagaz Team Schuppan	Eje Elgh Roland Ratzenberger Will Hoy	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	D	202
22 DNF	C2	57	Konrad Motorsport Joest Porsche Racing	Louis Krages Bernd Schneider Henri Pescarolo	Porsche 962C	G	197
22 DNF	C2	57	Konrad Motorsport Joest Porsche Racing	Louis Krages Bernd Schneider Henri Pescarolo	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	G	197
23 DNF	C2	36	TWR Suntec Jaguar	David Leslie Mauro Martini Jeff Krosnoff	Jaguar XJR-12	G	183
23 DNF	C2	36	TWR Suntec Jaguar	David Leslie Mauro Martini Jeff Krosnoff	Jaguar 7.4L V12	G	183
24 DNF	C1	39	Graff Racing Automobiles Louis Descartes	Jean-Philippe Grand Michel Maisonneuve Xavier Lapeyre	Spice SE89C	G	163
24 DNF	C1	39	Graff Racing Automobiles Louis Descartes	Jean-Philippe Grand Michel Maisonneuve Xavier Lapeyre	Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8	G	163
25 DNF	C2	16	Repsol Brun Motorsport	Harald Huysman Robbie Stirling Bernard Santal	Porsche 962C	Y	138
25 DNF	C2	16	Repsol Brun Motorsport	Harald Huysman Robbie Stirling Bernard Santal	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	Y	138
26 DNF	C2	45	Euro Racing Chamberlain Engineering	Nick Adams Robin Donovan Richard Jones	Spice SE89C	G	128
26 DNF	C2	45	Euro Racing Chamberlain Engineering	Nick Adams Robin Donovan Richard Jones	Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8	G	128
27 DNF	C2	14	Team Salamin Primagaz	Antoine Salamin Max Cohen-Olivar Marcel Tarrès	Porsche 962C	G	101
27 DNF	C2	14	Team Salamin Primagaz	Antoine Salamin Max Cohen-Olivar Marcel Tarrès	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	G	101
28 DNF	C2	21	Konrad Motorsport	Franz Konrad Anthony Reid Pierre-Alain Lombardi	Porsche 962C	Y	98
28 DNF	C2	21	Konrad Motorsport	Franz Konrad Anthony Reid Pierre-Alain Lombardi	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	Y	98
29 DNF	C2	50	Courage Compétition Alméras Freres	Jacques Alméras Jean-Marie Alméras Pierre de Thoisy	Porsche 962C	G	86
29 DNF	C2	50	Courage Compétition Alméras Freres	Jacques Alméras Jean-Marie Alméras Pierre de Thoisy	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	G	86
30 DNF	C1	44	Euro Racing Chamberlain Engineering	John Sheldon Ferdinand de Lesseps Charles Rickett	Spice SE89C	G	85
30 DNF	C1	44	Euro Racing Chamberlain Engineering	John Sheldon Ferdinand de Lesseps Charles Rickett	Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8	G	85
31 DNF	C1	8	Euro Racing	Cor Euser Charles Zwolsman Tim Harvey	Spice SE90C	G	72
31 DNF	C1	8	Euro Racing	Cor Euser Charles Zwolsman Tim Harvey	Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8	G	72
32 DNF	C1	6	Peugeot Talbot Sport	Keke Rosberg Yannick Dalmas Pierre-Henri Raphanel	Peugeot 905	M	68
32 DNF	C1	6	Peugeot Talbot Sport	Keke Rosberg Yannick Dalmas Pierre-Henri Raphanel	Peugeot SA35 3.5L V10	M	68
33 DNF	C1	40	Euro Racing A.O. Racing	Lyn St. James Desiré Wilson Cathy Muller	Spice SE90C	D	47
33 DNF	C1	40	Euro Racing A.O. Racing	Lyn St. James Desiré Wilson Cathy Muller	Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5L V8	D	47
34 DNF	C2	13	Courage Compétition	Johnny Dumfries Anders Olofsson Thomas Danielsson	Cougar C26S	G	45
34 DNF	C2	13	Courage Compétition	Johnny Dumfries Anders Olofsson Thomas Danielsson	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	G	45
35 DNF	C1	37	Automobiles Louis Descartes Racing Organization Course (ROC)	Bernard Thuner Pascal Fabre	ROC 002	G	38
35 DNF	C1	37		Bernard Thuner Pascal Fabre	Ford Cosworth DFR 3.5L V8	G	38
36 DNF	C1	5	Peugeot Talbot Sport	Mauro Baldi Philippe Alliot Jean-Pierre Jabouille	Peugeot 905	M	22
36 DNF	C1	5	Peugeot Talbot Sport	Mauro Baldi Philippe Alliot Jean-Pierre Jabouille	Peugeot SA35 3.5L V10	M	22
37 DNF	C2	46	Porsche Kremer Racing	Tomás López Gregor Foitek Tiff Needell	Porsche 962CK6	Y	18
37 DNF	C2	46	Porsche Kremer Racing	Tomás López Gregor Foitek Tiff Needell	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	Y	18
38 DNF	C1	7	Automobiles Louis Descartes	Philippe de Henning Luigi Taverna Patrick Gonin	ALD C91	G	16
38 DNF	C1	7	Automobiles Louis Descartes	Philippe de Henning Luigi Taverna Patrick Gonin	Ford Cosworth DFR 3.5L V8	G	16
DNS	C2	59	Konrad Motorsport Joest Porsche Racing	Franz Konrad Jürgen Barth	Porsche 962C	G	-
DNS	C2	59	Konrad Motorsport Joest Porsche Racing	Franz Konrad Jürgen Barth	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	G	-
DNS	C1	4	Silk Cut Jaguar Tom Walkinshaw Racing	Teo Fabi Kenny Acheson Andy Wallace	Jaguar XJR-14	G	-
DNS	C1	4	Silk Cut Jaguar Tom Walkinshaw Racing	Teo Fabi Kenny Acheson Andy Wallace	Jaguar Cosworth HB 3.5L V8	G	-
DNQ	C2	48	Courage Compétition	Chris Hodgetts Andrew Hepworth Thierry Lacerf	Cougar C24S	G	-
DNQ	C2	48	Courage Compétition	Chris Hodgetts Andrew Hepworth Thierry Lacerf	Porsche Type-935 3.0L Turbo Flat-6	G	-
DNQ	C1	2	Team Sauber Mercedes	Karl Wendlinger Michael Schumacher Fritz Kreutzpointner	Mercedes-Benz C291	G	-
DNQ	C1	2	Team Sauber Mercedes	Karl Wendlinger Michael Schumacher Fritz Kreutzpointner	Mercedes-Benz M291 3.5L Flat-12	G	-
DNQ	C2	42	Euro Racing	Justin Bell Shunji Kasuya	Spice SE88P	G	-
DNQ	C2	42	Euro Racing	Justin Bell Shunji Kasuya	Ferrari 308C 3.5L Turbo V8	G	-
DNQ	C2	54	Team Salamin Primagaz Team Davey	Katsunori Iketani Mercedes Stermitz Val Musetti	Porsche 962C	G	-
DNQ	C2	54	Team Salamin Primagaz Team Davey	Katsunori Iketani Mercedes Stermitz Val Musetti	Porsche Type-935 3.2L Turbo Flat-6	G	-

Statistics

Pole Position - #1 Team Sauber Mercedes - 3:31.270
- #3 Silk Cut Jaguar was originally on pole but was withdrawn prior to the race.
Fastest Lap - #31 Team Sauber Mercedes - 3:35.564 (Michael Schumacher)
Distance - 4922.810 km
Average Speed - 205.333 km/h
Highest Trap Speed — Sauber Mercedes C11 - 342 km/h (race), Sauber Mercedes C11 - 363 km/h (qualifying)

World Sportscar Championship
Previous race: 1991 430km of Silverstone	1991 season	Next race: 1991 430km of Nürburgring

24 Hours of Le Mans

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