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TEAM
QUAIL AT LE MANS
The Great Drivers |
Henri PESCAROLO
33 times entrant, 4 times winner (1972, 1973, 1974, 1984)
Born on the 25th
September 1942 in Paris, Henri Pescarolo has had a long and distinguished
career.
His first race was in 1964. He was French F3 champion in 1967 and runner up in the European F2 in 1968.
In Formula 1 he contested 63 races, starting in Canada in 1968, scoring a career total of 12 points, his best championship placing being 12th in 1970; his best race result was 3rd in the 1970 Monaco GP.
He also participated in 9 Paris-Dakar rallies including as winner in 1997 of the T3 Diesel category and in 1999 of the " private teams " category.
In endurance racing he won the Daytona 24 Hours in 1991. However It is with Le Mans, however that he will always he associated, with 33 drives from 1966 to 1999 and as a four times winner of the 24 heures du Mans, in 1972,1973,1974, and 1984. He then moved to Le Mans and set up a factory in the Techno Park inside the Le Mans circuit, where he constructs cars to race at Le Mans.
His first entries were for the Matra team. The first race was in 1966 in a Matra - BRM, retiring after eight hours with a failed oil pump. In 1967 he again lasted eight hours; in 1968 it was 22 hours before a puncture caused an accident. His 1968 Matra-Simca lasted 12 hours before a short circuit caused retirement. In 1969 crashed and was hospitalised and nearly died, whilst in 1970 transmission failure after 7 hours put paid to his race.
In 1971 we drove the Scuderia Filipinetti team's Ferrari 512 , retiring after 13 hours with rear suspension failure.
The first win in 1972 with was Graham Hill back in a Matra Simca. In 1973 and 1974 he partnered Gerard Larrouse for the same manufacturer.
In 1975 he drove a Ligier and went out with a puncture after 14 hours. In 1976 he drove an Inaltera to eighth place. In 1977 he was in a Porsche 936 with Jackie Ickx that retired with engine problems after 4 hours. The following year he also drove a Porsche which retired after an accident after 20 hours.
Four the next four years he drove for the Rondeau Team. In 1979 he drove a Rondeau M 379 into 10th place, but the following year he retired after 10 hours whilst his teammates in the other Rondeau won. In 1981 he lasted 4 hours, in 1982 in was 11 hours; in 1983 he lasted 13 hours.
In 1984 he moved to the Porsche team and won in a 956 with Klaus Ludwig. In 1985 he drove a Lancia into seventh position, and 1986 he was in a Sauber - Mercedes Benz that lasted 7 hours, In 87 it was after 15 hours he retired in the same car.
In 1988 he drove for Jaguar, lasting 9 hours before gearbox and transmission failure forced retirement.
In 1989 he was back with Porsche, finishing 6th in a 962, and 14th a year later. In 1991 his Porsche lasted 13 hours.
In 1992 he moved to the French Courage Team and finished sixth, but in 1993 he was back with Porsche for a ninth place finish.
1994 he drove a Courage C32LM – Porsche for 11 hours before retirement. In 1995 he was in a Courage C41 – Chevrolet that lasted only 26 laps.
In 1996 and 1997 it was a Courage – Porsche that he drove to seventh. Place on each occassion, and sixteenth in 1998, and ninth in 1999.
In 2000 he became president of the "Pescarolo Sport" team and was entered under his own name in a Pescarolo Sport, Courage C52 – Peugeot. However he did not start in the fourth placed car as entered. In 2001 a Pescarolo Sport, Courage C60 – Peugeot finished thirteenth, the other crashing out. In 2002 one car finished tenth and the other only lasted 2 hours.
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