50 years to the day following the '66 Le Mans 1-2-3, the No. 68 #FordGT has won the GTE Pro Class at #LeMans24 pic.twitter.com/jkMLuWlEYm
— Ford Performance (@FordPerformance) June 19, 2016
In 1966, the Ford GT40 mk. II smashed all expectations by becoming the first American car to ever win 24 Hours of Le Mans -- and after only three years in development. In June 2016, on the 50th anniversary of that achievement, the brand new Ford GT took first place in the Le Mans GTE Pro Class.
"It's a big deal to come back here 50 years after the Ford win in 1966," said Joey Hand, one of three drivers of the winning No. 68 Ford GT. "We said we wanted to win but to actually do it is huge. This team has come so far in a short space of time. They all worked hard, right through Christmas and New Year and gave us a race car that we can race hard. We drove like it was a sprint race for 24 hours. I've won a lot of races and this is a big one. I'm honored to be part of this program. I'm a red, white and blue guy so to be part of the Ford family, where they treat you like their own, is a great place to be."
The victory was an even bigger deal for the No. 68 GT's other driver, Sébastien Bourdais, who was born in Le Mans and had competed on 10 previous occasions, just barely missing first in 2007, 2009, and 2011.
Team owner Chip Ganassi also earned his place in history as the first owner to win the Indianapolis 500, Daytona 500, Brickyard 400, Rolex 24 At Daytona, 12 Hours of Sebring, and Le Mans 24 Hours.
Browse new Ford vehicles for sale in Fenton with dynamic driving capability and legendary spirit at Lasco Ford.
Categories:
News
