An insider's look at the Le Mans-winning 1969 Ford GT40

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Perhaps one of the most iconic liveries on a racing car is the blue and orange of Gulf on the Ford GT40. In January, 2024, the InterClassics Maastricht show will celebrate 120 years of Ford performance, and guess which car is on the poster? Yes, indeed, it's the wonderful Ford GT40, driven by Jacky Ickx in the 1969 Le Mans 24 Hours. A few years ago, he drove the car at Goodwood and shared his memories in front of the film cameras.

1969 Le Mans

On June 14th-15th, 1969, the 37th 24 Hours Grand Prix of Endurance took place at the famous Circuit de la Sarthe, known around the world simply as Le Mans, after the town where it's located. The race was to become one of the most exciting in the event's history. Porsche was the favourite to take its first outright Le Mans win, as it had already secured victory in the 1969 World Sportscar Championship. Besides, there were more Porsches entered than any other make of car. However, Porsche would have to be content with a second place at Le Mans, for it was Ford which took the lead. As Jacky Ickx reveals, he, along with Jackie Oliver, won the race by making a daring manoeuvre at the end. After 24 hours and 3,150 miles (5,069km), the Ford crossed the line a mere 394 ft. (120m) ahead of the second-placed Porsche 908 of Hans Herrmann and Gérard Larousse.

The Car

In order to broaden the appeal of the blue oval and enhance its prestige, Ford wanted to go racing. After extensive talks with Enzo Ferrari about taking over the Italian marque, it transpired that Dearborn and Modena held very different ideas of what exactly Ferrari's fate should be. Henry Ford II was so offended by the rebuttal given him by Ferrari that he gave his company carte blanche to set up its own racing team to beat Ferrari at Le Mans. Through a partnership with England's Lola Cars, the first GT40 was built in 1964. After participating in several races, the partnership was evidently not working well, so Ford turned instead to celebrated Texan racer and tuner Carroll Shelby.

This proved to be a more successful partnership, starting with a win at Daytona in February, 1965. The goal of winning Le Mans was unsuccessful at first, but Ford's fortunes changed the following year with a 1-2-3 finish in 1966, a great success which was followed by more victories further down the line.

After 105 Ford GT40s had been constructed, the final one was produced in 1969. The '40' represents the car's height of 40 inches (102cm), measured at the windscreen.

InterClassics Maastricht

The start of the classic car year is traditionally in Maastricht, where, on the border of the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany, many car enthusiasts come together to meet each other, buy and sell cars, bikes and parts, and enjoy the warm atmosphere. This year's theme is 120 Years of Ford Performance and there will be a display of many significant cars from within this time frame.

The event takes place on January 11th-14th, 2024. Tickets can be ordered here.

The PreWarCar.com and PostWarClassic.com stand will be located in the North Hall (N.746) with a replica of the iconic Ford GT40 in Gulf livery, plus a pair of very special pre-war Fords. See you there!
 

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