But the main focus is very much on that day in 1966; a day that cemented Ford’s place in sportscar history, a day that helped define the 1960s at Le Mans, and a day that created a legacy that will be continued by this year’s fleet of Ford GTs. *** RACER: Leading up to the 1966 race at Le Mans, what sort of expectations did you have based on
1966 Ford Mk II Bruce McLaren, Chris Amon 1967 Ford Mk IV A.J. Foyt, Dan Gurney 1968 Ford G.T. 40 Pedro Rodriguez, Lucien Bianchi 1969 Ford G.T. 40 Jacky Ickx, Jackie Oliver 1970 Porsche Richard Attwood, Hans Herrmann 1971 Porsche
The 1963 Le Mans Cobra did not win Le Mans, it did not even race Le Mans, but it set important records. From 1966 to 1969, Ford ruled the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the historic endurance race
Same country, a few days later. Foyt and Dan Gurney have just won the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the first Americans ever to do so. They shared the driving, wrestling a burly Ford sports car around the After the death of Walt Hansgen in a J-car while testing at Le Mans in April, Ford decided to shelve the J-car and focus on the proven Mk IIs. Little development was done for the rest of the 1966 World Sports Car Championship season. In August 1966, Shelby American resumed testing and development work with Miles as primary test driver. Further, David Hodges, in the 1998 edition of “Ford GT40,” comments that in the 1990s there was a campaign in America to get the 1966 Le Mans results changed, for that very reason. Ken Miles shown here leading the 1966 24-Hours of Le Mans in late race wet conditions. He did so definitively in varied conditions, overcoming repeated setbacks. n5vS.