In 1964, Bruce McLaren took the start at his fifth 24 Hours of Le Mans, along with Phil Hill, the first American driver to win at Le Mans (1958, '61 and '62). Right at the start of the race, the #10 Ford GT40 began experiencing an avalanche of problems that plunged it to 44th position and condemned it to a huge climb back. In fourth position shortly before mid-race, it was finally forced to retire in the 14th hour, but not before Phil Hill established a new lap record (at an average of 211 km/h). The following year, gearbox troubles forced Bruce McLaren to retire. After the New Zealander led the race early on until the first refueling, his teammate Ken Miles was forced to retire after only four hours on the track...

In 1966, Bruce McLaren made it to the checkered flag for the first time at 24 Hours of Le Mans...in first place, along with his fellow countryman Chris Amon. Their race was far from flawless though: fluxuating weather conditions pushed them, after four hours, to eighth position a lap behind, to the point of deciding to change tire manufacturers in-race, switching from Firestone to Goodyear, according to what was best suited. After that, they never stopped climbing, taking the lead in the 16th hour prior to winning against the other Ford Mk II driven by Dennis Hulme-Ken Miles. Ronnie Bucknum and Dick Hutcherson rounded out a stunning one-two-three, with as the cherry on top, Henry Ford II in attendance to give the start of the race. This magnificent victory marked the beginning of a golden age of New Zealander motorsports: in addition to the win for McLaren-Amon in 1966, Dennis Hulme became the first (and only to-date) New Zealander Formula 1 World Champion in 1967.

That year, along with another highly reputable driver-engineer, the American Mark Donohue, Bruce McLaren finished fourth, and Ford scored its second consecutive win thanks to Dan Gurney and A.J. Foyt. That was the last 24 Hours of Le Mans for Bruce McLaren: having become a driver-constructor under his own name in 1966, he dedicated himself to the endeavor in Formula 1 (he won the 1968 Grand Prix of Belgium) and CanAm which runs prototypes equipped with huge Chevy V8 engines.

It was while testing one of those cars that he died at the Goodwood circuit in the U.K. on June 2, 1970. But his marque would go on, with 20 titles in Formula 1, three wins at the Indianapolis 500 and a surprise victory at the 24 Hours in 1995, for the first appearance in Le Mans of the F1 GTR.

Recently, a documentary was directed by Hollywood veteran Roger Donaldson retracing the short but passionate life of Bruce McLaren. Current heads of McLaren - Zak Brown and Mansour Ojjeh - talk about a return to Le Mans, on the heels of the announcement of McLaren's participation in the 2017 Indianapolis 500 with Fernando Alonso. Meanwhile, two New Zealander drivers will be contenders for victory at the 85th edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans: Earl Bamber (winner in 2015) and Brendon Hartley will compete along with Timo Bernhard at the wheel of the #2 Porsche 919 Hybrid. Will they repeat the performance of Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon in 1966? The answer on Sunday, June 18th at 3:00 p.m.

 

Click below for the first installment in this series:

Bruce McLaren, the one-man band (1) - Awaiting Ford...

 

Click below to learn more about the McLaren F1 GTR's history at the 24 Hours of Le Mans:

The McLaren F1 GTR at Le Mans (1) - Key dates 1995-1998

The McLaren F1 GTR at Le Mans (2) - Driver stories 1995-1998

The McLaren F1 GTR at Le Mans (3) - 1995-99: BMW, one engine, two cars, two wins

 

Photo: For his final 24 Hours of Le Mans, Bruce McLaren finished fourth along with Mark Donohue at the wheel of a damaged Ford Mk IV whose rear hood had been patched up...with belts from the mechanics' coveralls!