Circuit de la Sarthe
Track Name: Circuit de la Sarthe
Country: France
Location: Le Mans
Lenght: 13.629 m
Overall Record: 3’17’’475 – 2015 Audi LMP1 (Andé Lotterer)
Road legal car record: –
Info: also known as Le Mans, as the city in which it is located, the circuit de la Sarthe is one of the most famous in the world for several reasons: first because it is the stage of the famous endurance race of 24 hours, which still runs today attracting up to 100,000 spectators. Then, for its length (over 13km) and the fact of having many long straights and fast stretches, making you drive the 85% of the whole circuit at full throttle. The race is going on here since the ’20s and on the iconic Mulsanne straight drivers have reached frightening speed, so as to bring the FIA to limit performance of cars, in order to prevent fatalities.
Focus: It would be a shame to dismiss a circuit like this in a few lines and we promise to come back here shortly in the magazine. This time, then, we do not focus on a particular corner or on another portion over the other, but on the unforgotten tradition of the starting grid, in force until 1969. What was so special? Well, cars were lined up “fish bone” to one side of the grid, while drivers standing on the other side, ready to run, jump in their car, turn on the engine and leave. Thanks to this, Porsche decided to place the ignition on the left (also on road cars), to speed up the engagement of first gear when starting the engine.