24h Le Mans
24 HOURS CENTENARY – MAKES, MARQUES and IMPRINTS ⎮ After a 22-year absence on the top step of the podium since Talbot's win in 1950, three French constructors clinched five victories at the race out of nine runnings between 1972 and 1980. The last to do so, Rondeau, holds a unique place in the history of 24 Hours.
French constructors proved very active at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the 1970s. In 1974, Matra (first participation in 1966) culminated its involvement in the race with a third consecutive win. After Renault-Alpine's victory in 1978, the French marque decided to put forth effort toward a different goal: introducing turbocharged engine technology into Formula 1. Around the same time, Rondeau had already been making a name for itself for two years with impressive results and several class victories.
A local born in Champagné just 20 km from Le Mans, Jean Rondeau did not possess the industrial might of Matra, an aeronautics and arms magnate turned car manufacturer, or of Renault, a nationalised marque at the time. When he became a constructor after taking the start in the 24 Hours as a driver between 1972 (the year of Matra's first win) and 1975, he decided to focus on technical simplicity and efficiency.
Rondeau envisioned a car that was easy to operate, with fluid and harmonious lines, powered by an engine derived from Formula 1, the Ford-Cosworth 3-litre V8 that had proved its merit by winning the 1975 24 Hours in the Gulf-Mirage of Jacky Ickx/Derek Bell.
To finance his activities, Rondeau opted for a solution not widespread in Europe at the time, but commonplace in the U.S. since the 1950s, especially at Indianapolis: the so-called "naming" strategy which replaced the name of the car with that of the sponsor. In 1976, on the eve of the duel between Renault-Alpine and Porsche, Inaltéra entered two cars for its first appearance in the 24 Hours.
That year, both cars passed under the chequered flag, with a GTP class (Grand Touring Prototype, now nonexistent) victory for Jean-Pierre Beltoise/Henri Pescarolo, eighth overall. In 1977, as undeniable proof of his capabilities, the driver-constructor once again won in GTP (with Jean Ragnotti), finishing fourth overall. The next year, Inaltéra did not participate, but Rondeau continued the naming strategy with new sponsors for cars that we will simply call Rondeau.
The local driver-constructor's cars finished the next two runnings of the race in the top 10 (ninth in 1978, fifth and 10th in 1979) and added two more class wins to their track record. It even came to a point that, in 1980, Rondeau found himself a contender for victory against the Porsche of Jacky Ickx/Reinhold Joest. The scenario recalled the duel between Ferrari's "David" (not yet supported by Fiat) against Ford's "Goliath" in 1966 and 1967.
Having started from pole position, the Rondeau M379 of Henri Pescarolo/Jean Ragnotti was forced to retire. Rain continued to affect the race intermittently throughout the night as the face-off for victory between Ickx/Joest and Rondeau/Jaussaud carried on. The race tipped in favour of the French drivers on Sunday morning shortly before 10:00 when gearbox troubles cost the Porsche half an hour. The Rondeau held the lead to the finish line despite a final scare for Jaussaud 45 minutes from the chequered flag: under yet another rain shower, he spun and stalled. It took him three tries to restart the engine and claim his second win at Le Mans.
To that victory was added a third place finish for the trio Jean-Michel Martin/Philippe Martin/Gordon Spice (and another win in the GTP class). Jean Rondeau remains today the only driver to win the 24 Hours at the wheel of his own car. The achievement earned him an audience with the President of France at the time, Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, a few days after the race.
The following year, the Rondeau scored a double podium (and yet another class victory) behind the winning Porsche of Jacky Ickx/Derek Bell thanks to Philippe Streiff/Jacky Haran/Jean-Louis Schlesser (second) and Gordon Spice/François Migault (third). In 1982 and 1983, the only Rondeaus to reach the chequered flag finished 10th and 19th respectively and the new M482s were forced to retire the latter year.
After Jean Rondeau's death in a road traffic accident in December 1985, his cars were thereafter entered by private teams. The esteemed Rondeau M379, the same model that won in 1980, was last seen on the starting grid at Le Mans in 1988, yet another indication of the brilliance of Rondeau's technical expertise. Only one other French constructor has won the 24 Hours since Rondeau: Peugeot in 1992, 1993 and 2009.
PHOTOS (Copyright - ACO Archives): LE MANS (SARTHE, FRANCE), CIRCUIT DES 24 HEURES, 24 HOURS OF LE MANS. From top to bottom: in 1980, the M379 shared by Jean Rondeau/Jean-Pierre Jaussaud won with a three-lap lead on the Porsche of Jacky Ickx/Reinhold Joest; in 1977, the three Inaltéras at the start made it to the chequered flag in fourth, 11th and 13th places; the third place finish of the Martin brothers and Gordon Spice completed Jean Rondeau's triumph in 1980 with two cars on the podium; the final appearance of the unstoppable Rondeau M379 with at the wheel Pierre-Alain Lombardi (who entered the car) and Bruno Sotty in 1988.
