GT40 (United Kingdom, 1966)

The second generation GT40 was the first Ford to win at 24 hours Le Mans. Driven by Chris Amon and Bruce Mclaren, the 1966 victory was a lesson from Henry Ford II to Ferrari and European constructors.

By the early 60s Ford wanted to give a more youthful look to the company and decided it was time to put its cars in races. Not having the know-how, it tried to buy the Ferrari that dominated Le Mans at the time, to assure a quick win. But after much money spent by Ford, Ferrari terminated abruptly the negotiations. Henry Ford however didn’t give up and the GT40 was created in 1965.

The mark II was released in 1966 and relying on the experience of the previous generation, it was ready to rule the tracks Le Mans for the next years. In that same year, 8 Mark II GT40 were prepared to race at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, while Ferrari only had 3 prototypes. With seven hours to go, the last Ferrari standing quit the race, but the remaining three Ford GT40&rsq...