The ACO has published the names of the runners and riders who have been invited to contest the 78th Le Mans 24 Hours on June 12-13. LeMansLive takes you through the list…

As a matter of fact, the names of the majority of the drivers have been known for some time already. There were only a few names missing from the complete list of 165, notably in the Kolles camp, where the Audi R10 TDIs will finally be steered by Albers/Tucker/Rodrigues and Bakkerud/Jarvis/Bouchut. BMS Scuderia Italia had named Matteo Malucelli as number one driver, but it’s finally Holzer/Westbrook/Scheider who will share the team’s Porsche GT3 RSR.

The list includes 11 former winners (Gené, Wurz, Kristensen, McNish, Capello, Pirro, Smith, Bouchut, Wallace, Brabham, Werner) who will all be driving prototypes. The most experienced driver will be Andy Wallace (Lola RML) who is contesting the French classic for the 21st time! Not bad, but still some way off the records of Henri Pescarolo (33) and Bob Wollek (30)…

There will be 25 ex-Formula 1 drivers at Le Mans, too, including eight at the wheel of a Peugeot 908 HDI FAP, but just one in the factory Audi camp. Nigel Mansell will be the 20th Formula 1 World Champion to race at Le Mans, although only four – Mike Hawthorn, Graham Hill, Phil Hill and Jochen Rindt – have succeeded in claiming both the F1 world title and the Le Mans 24 Hours. Graham Hill is the only driver to have combined these two honours with victory in the Indy 500.

There will also be four sons of ex-F1 drivers on the grid, namely Greg and Leo Mansell, Nicolas Prost and David Brabham, not to mention Marco Andretti who is the grandson of an ex-F1 champ. Vanina Ickx is the only offspring of a former Le Mans winner.

On the subject of the fairer sex, there will be four ladies in the French race this time round: Natacha, Cyndie, Rahel and Vanina. Since 1923, 50 lady drivers have taken part in the Le Mans 24 Hours. The best result to date was achieved by Odette Siko who came fourth in an Alfa Romeo in 1932.

Audi is this year celebrating the 10th anniversary of its first win at Le Mans. The Ingolstadt-based carmaker has now notched up eight wins in endurance racing’s most famous fixture. That’s still a long way off the score of Porsche – who claimed the first of its 16 successes exactly 40 years ago – but Audi could well join Ferrari in second place (nine wins). As far as tyre manufacturers go, Dunlop is the firm to beat with a score of 34 victories. Michelin is second on 18, although no other brand has bettered its record of 12 consecutive wins.

24 Hours of Le Mans