1978 Le Mans

1978 — What Stirling Moss was doing racing a Maserati 250F in the half-hour historic race for Le Mans cars on Saturday morning is unclear. A thoroughbred F1 car, even a glorious front-engined beast like the iconic 250F, even with Moss aboard, is hardly a traditional Le Mans mount. No matter, arch historic racer Willie Green was second to Moss in a D-Type Jaguar, and that’s all the Le Mans pedigree required. It was, however, Moss’ first victory at Le Mans, which is only just and fair considering he had been the author and facilitator of so many wins that went to others.

The Le Mans grudge match of 1977 had left Renault bruised and humiliated on home ground. Its Formula 1 debut in England a few weeks after being trounced by Porsche generally – and by Jacky Ickx specifically – was a bit rocky and ended early.

For '78, Renault would leave nothing to chance. F1 program or not, the 24 Hours of Le Mans was the most important race in the world and the one Renault had to win at any and all costs. There was revenge to be had as well. Beaten a year earlier by a car that had fallen at one time to 41st position, a car that had never seen a wind tunnel, a car created from parts left on the shelves: it was too much.

When Ickx pitted the best of the Porsche 936s on the second lap, it must have seemed like an omen to Renault. When Hurley Haywood came in right behind him, it must have seems like a sign. Porsche’s 936s were in trouble: Haywood’s had a sticking throttle, and Ickx’s car had so much fuel pressure that one of the pumps had to be disconnected. Very un-Porsche-like.

Up front, Renault's aero-massaged Turbos were a photo-perfect 1-2-3: Jean-Pierre Jabouille (with the new 2.1-liter V6), Didier Pironi, Jean-Pierre Jarier, both in familiar 2.0-liters. But Ickx’s 936 was soon made well, and the Belgian began to carve. By 5:00 o’clock, he was 23rd and 20th a lap later. He cleaved through the GT cars, picking up three and four positions a lap, until he got into the meat of the prototypes and settled down just outside the top 10.

As the third hour began, the only German car in the top five was the Bob Wollek/Jurgen Barth 936. The best of the 935s was sixth. After an entirely-too-early stop for tires, the new Lola-based de Cadenet was seventh ahead of the Haywood/Peter Gregg/Reinhold Joest 936. But the Renaults were in charge and on pace. Ickx’s sprint had lost momentum if not spirit. Jabouille pitted with a vibration that was cured by new tires, and the race was still under French control. Pironi and Jean-Pierre Jaussaud had assumed point for the Regie and led into the dusk. If Ickx was to make magic, the time had come.

Two hours later, Ickx’s 936 lost fifth gear. It put him in the box for 45 golden minutes. In the middle of it, Haywood pitted the Kremer 936, spitting flame and smoke. The remedy took just 10min, and Ickx watched him leave with a new turbo shaft. Now the only 936 near the fleeing Renaults was the Wollek/Barth works car. Manfred Jantke made a decision: Jochen Maas into the Ickx/Henri Pescarolo car, and Ickx in with Wollek and Barth. Perhaps now.

Despite persistent clutch troubles and too much pit time fussing with the gear linkage, DFV-borne Alain de Cadenet and Chris Craft were still 11th, after a 25min stop. The pits were the stage for most of the action during the early dark hours, as the Wollek/Barth 936 with Ickx installed began to creep toward the front. When the 2.1-liter Jabouille/Depailler A443 went into the lead, the best Porsche was fourth, just one lap back. By midnight, they were still one lap behind the leaders, but now second overall ahead of and on the same lap as the Jarier/Derek Bell 2.0-liter A442A.

An unscheduled stop to attend to a wobbly front end cost Wollek time but no positions. It was a race without soul or the spirit of '77’s great chase. This was simply the grinding and relentless work of endurance racing. The glamour and romance had gone out of it.

Renault’s new 2.1-liter rocketed through the dark, gently padding its lead. By the halfway point, Jabouille and Depailler had the same one-lap lead. They added another lap to their advantage between 4:00 and 5:00 o’clock. By 7:00 a.m., they had a four-lap cushion on Ickx, Wollek and Barth.

Troubles for Craft and de Cadenet continued. A wheel weight worked loose and pierced the bodywork like a bullet before breakfast. Then it happened again. At 9:00 a.m., the Ickx/Wollek/Barth 936 lost fifth gear. It was a replay of the problems suffered by the Pescarolo/Mass 936 sister ship, and it all but ended Porsche chances for a repeat 936 victory.

With an almost mathematical balance, the first jolt of adrenaline hit the Renault team an hour later at 10:00 a.m. The leading A443 rolled to a stop at Mulsanne with a broken piston. Jabouille and Depailler had led for 11 hours. No matter. The A442A "bubble top coupe" of Pironi and F2 ace Jaussaud eased into the lead. They still had a stout eight-lap margin on the Martini 936.

By 4:00 o’clock, the margin was reduced to five laps, but time was up. Jaussaud had achieved his life’s ambition with the all-French victory. Even the Michelin radial tires on the winning car were French. Jaussaud broke down and cried when the anthem was played.

Porsches were second, third (Haywood/Gregg/Joest 936) and fifth: Brian Redman won the IMSA class in Dick Barbour’s 935. It was the first time in his career that Redman had finished the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and it seemed a fine ending for a week that began with Stirling Moss winning at Le Mans in an ancient and glamorous F1 Maserati.