Aston Martin channels the Spirit of ‘59 as it aims for victory at Le Mans
Sixty years after its famous win with Roy Salvadori, can Aston triumph at Le Mans again?
ASTON MARTIN is hoping to end the World Endurance Championship (WEC) “Super Season” with a bang by winning both GT categories in this weekend’s Le Mans 24 Hours race — 60 years after its famous overall victory with the stunning DBR1.
Even though Aston Martin is out of contention for the overall GT Manufacturers’ title, it’s hoping at least one of the four Vantage cars being entered into this weekend’s Le Mans race will see the chequered flag ahead of the entries from BMW, Chevrolet, Ferrari, Ford and Porsche.
A win in the GTE Pro and/or GTE Am classes would go over extremely well back at Aston Martin’s headquarters in Gaydon, as 2019 marks an important anniversary for the British car maker. In 1959, Aston Martin secured an overall victory at the demanding race, with the first-placed Aston Martin DBR1 being co-driven by the British racer Roy Salvadori and the later-of-modified-Ford-Mustang-fame Carroll Shelby.
While the firm hasn’t won a Le Mans race outright since, Aston Martin racing cars have between them accumulated several class wins there over the years. It’s most recent triumph came in 2017, when a factory-backed Aston Martin V8 Vantage secured a first place finish in the GTE Pro category.
