Legendary Le Mans Bentley to Return to La Sarthe after a Century

The Bentley 3 Litre Sport which won Le Mans 100 years ago is heading back to the French circuit.

John Duff and his teammate Frank Clement left Brooklands in June 1924 to take on the most famous endurance race in the world. With the support of W.O. Bentley behind them the Bentley Boys were fully-prepared for the arduous event, and the 400-mile drive to the track served as an extra shakedown for the car.

Among the features that would give the Bentley and advantage were novel four-wheel brakes and wire mesh over its headlamps to protect them from flying stones as the track was marked out on public roads that were a mix of dirt, gravel and tar.

The Bentley made a promising start and by the three-hour mark it was running in third place, and by morning it was leading the pack. With less than two hours to go the British team pitted for a precautionary tyre change, but problems kept them in the pits much longer than planned and the win looked in jeopardy. Fortunately the earlier pace of the Bentley Boys just kept them ahead of the field when the flag was waved.

Now the winning car is set to reenact its original journey to France thanks to the team at Vintage Bentley. Setting off from Brooklands circuit on 6 June, the Bentley 3 Litre Sport will cross over to France and navigate south travelling through, Boulogne, Berck, Dieppe, Rouen, Evreux, Mortagne, and Mamers before reaching Le Mans.

On reaching the town the car will lead a procession through the streets along with nine Hypercars, one LMP2 and seven LMGT3s before remaining in Le Mans as an exhibit at the 24 Hours of Le Mans Museum from 9 June.

You can follow its progress on Instagram.

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