07.11.2024Le Mans icon of the GT1-era: The winning Porsche from 1998

Endurance racing is currently experiencing a heyday thanks to the Hypercar class. When the first basics for the new top category for the 24 Hours of Le Mans were circulating, quite a few fans were reminded of the popular GT1-era at the end of the 1990s. Back then, the racing cars also had striking visual similarities to their series counterparts.

The Porsche 911 GT1, which won Le Mans in 1998, is a good example of this. Basically, the aerodynamically trimmed shape of the racer has little in common with the unmistakable silhouette of a 911 for the road. But above all the "fried egg" headlights, which gave the series car a polarizing feature at the time, are undoubtedly reminiscent of the road version. The same applies to the taillights and door handles.

Apart from the endurance classic in France, Porsche has also entered the 911 GT1 in series such as the FIA ??GT Championship at various stages of development. In the process, a number of striking designs were created. The white color scheme with blue, red and yellow accents that was successful at Le Mans was always very popular. So much so that 20 years later, the design made a comeback on the two factory 911s in the GTLM class at the 2018 IMSA finale at Road Atlanta - and by the way won there as well.

The Le Mans success with the GT1 in 1998 was a long overdue step for Porsche. The Zuffenhausen-based company had also provided the winning vehicle in the two previous years. But that was an older prototype that had been used by Reinhold Joest's team. With an extensive update, Porsche positioned itself against strong competition, which included Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Nissan and Toyota.

Porsche's German rivals were eliminated from the decision for victory in the early stages. In terms of pace, Toyota dictated the race, but repeated gearbox problems ultimately paved the way for a double victory for Porsche.

First place went to Allan McNish, Laurent Aiello and Stéphane Ortelli in the car with starting number 26, which is particularly easy to recognize by its red color accents. The sister vehicle with the German factory drivers Jörg Müller and Uwe Alzen and their French colleague Bob Wollek made the double success perfect. Their 911 GT1 is easy to recognize by the yellow markings on the front section and the mirrors.

The ck-modelcars label WERK83 released both cars in scale 1:18. Thanks to the usual high quality, the many detailed differences between the two Porsche 911 GT1s can also be seen in their miniature versions.

Porsche 911 GT1 #26 Winner 24h LeMans 1998 McNish, Aiello, Ortelli 1:18 WERK83, RRP €79.95, item-no.: W18029001 Porsche 911 GT1 #25 2nd 24h LeMans 1998 Müller, Alzen, Wollek 1:18 WERK83, RRP €79.95, item-no.: W18029002

produits

	Porsche 911 GT1 #26 gagnant 24h LeMans 1998 McNish, Aiello, Ortelli 1:18 WERK83	71,96 €
	Porsche 911 GT1 #25 2ème 24h LeMans 1998 Müller, Alzen, Wollek 1:18 WERK83	71,96 €