Le Mans 24 Hours June 17, 1984 |
I drove this Jaguar XJR5 in the 1984 Le Mans 24 Hours for Bob Tullius, who gave me my professional start back in 1966 |
This was Jaguar's return to Le Mans after twenty years. Group 44 was doing well in the US with its IMSA GTP XJR5s so was chosen to field a three car factory team. Their 6 liter V12 normally aspirated engines hit 222 mph on the Mulsanne straight. It was a sweet car in every respect, however was not in the same class as the lighter Group C cars. Nevertheless, the beautiful Jags proved enormously popular with the crowd and persuaded a new generation of Jaguar execs of the value of racing at Le Mans. |
My co-drivers were John Watson, F1 driver for McLaren cars; and Claude Bella Lena, a successful French driver. |
We qualified 19th of 53 cars, and had worked up to eighth place by about 6 am. By that time, all three team cars were reporting gearbox shifting problems. After a pit stop & fresh tires, I took my turn in the car. I had fresh tires, so proceeded to warm them up and break them in. As I entered the fast right-hand turn before the Mulsanne straight, the car suddenly started to understeer badly and crashed into the barrier. |
Jaguar's beautiful 6 liter V12 |
French crowds applauded the return of the Jaguar |
Tony's Jag speeds down pit lane |
Tony Adamowicz, Gary Wheeler, Tony a2z, Tony Adamowics, a2zRacer, Gary Wheeler, Tony Adamowicz |
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