Roles played in front of Robert Zemeckis' camera by Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd respectively, Marty McFly and Doc Brown jumped ahead in time in a revamped De Lorean...so how can we resist commandeering such a car for a little 30-year trip through the history of Le Mans?...

The 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1985 - It was a historic edition for several reasons. First for Porsche who, with a 10th win, became the winningest manufacturer at Le Mans, unseating nine-time winner Ferrari. A performance achieved by the Reinhold Joest team whose 956 beat the factory 962 C in fuel conservation, with at the wheel Klaus Ludwig, Paolo Barilla and John Winter. This 10th victory was accompanied by a new pole record established by Hans-Joachim Stück at an average of 251.815 km/h. That 53rd edition also marked the final participation of Jacky Ickx, six-time winner, who finished 10th along with Jochen Mass.

"Back to the Future" and the movies of 1985 - With more than 210 million dollars at the box office, "Back to the Future" was the highest grossing movie of the year in the U.S. Clint Eastwood was a contender for the first time at the Cannes Film Festival with the fantastic western "Pale Rider." In 1985, James Bond got a new face: after 12 years of good and loyal service, Roger Moore passed the baton to Timothy Dalton after the release of "A View to a Kill." In France, the enormous success of "Trois hommes et un couffin" (with Michel Boujenah, André Dussollier and Roland Giraud) sparked an American remake called "Three Men and a Baby" (with Tom Selleck, Steve Guttenberg and Ted Danson).

24 Hours of Le Mans 1985-2015, elements of a very real future - Among the major changes to the 24 Hours of Le Mans circuit during this period figures the appearance of two chicanes at the Mulsanne Straight (1990) and the construction of the current Module Sportif which includes the infrastructure of the pits, boxes, press room and grandstands. On the competition side, Reinhold Joest - who in 1985 won his second victory - is now the winningest outfit owner in the history of the 24 Hours, with 15 victories. In 1985, Jacky Ickx had six wins to his credit after his final 24 Hours. In 2013, this record was brought to nine by Tom Kristensen, winner for the first time in 1997. Future technologies play more and more of a role in competition at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, with the first win for a hybrid prototype in 2012. There is however common ground between 1985 and 2015 in the history of the 24 Hours: Porsche a winner again 30 years later! The (time) loop is closed...

Tickets to the 2016 24 Hours of Le Mans will be available for purchase on Tuesday, November 3, 2015 (for ACO members) and Friday, November 6, 2015 (for the general public).

Jean-Philippe Doret / ACO - Translation by Nikki Ehrhardt / ACO

Photo: LE MANS (SARTHE, FRANCE), CIRCUIT DES 24 HEURES, 24 HOURS OF LE MANS, SATURDAY & SUNDAY JUNE 15-16 1985. A double record for Porsche in 1985, with pole position for the 962 C of Hans Joachim Stück-Derek Bell (pictured here) and the win for the 956 of Klaus Ludwig-Paolo Barilla-John Winter.