The Greatest Event in All of Motorsports?

[Mac K]

Wardez and Earth just took the words right out of my mouth(fingers?). Nicely put!

 

[F1 fan]

Indianapolis is old, the course itself is 103 years old. Thats 13 years older then Monza, 14 years older then Le Mans, 18 years older then the Nurburgring. But what separates it further from those tracks is the fact its remained largely unchanged since it's opening.

Hate to break it to you, but the first ever Grand Prix was run at Le Mans in 1906. I do believe that racing was running at Le Mans before that. Possibly even before 1900. Granted, the circuit has changed, but that's largely down to the fact that it is a road circuit. Road racing has always been popular in Europe. The first Belgian Grand Prix had a lap of some 75 odd miles.

That is the reason for the track changing. There is no way to constantly keep the same track year in, year out when the roads are used by the public every day of the year. You can be sure that if Indianapolis wasn't so conveniently small, it would have been changed before. I only mention this as you're so keen to constantly point out that it has never changed.

 

[MatskiMonk]

The only thing Le Mans has for me, is the P1 and P2 cars, in every other way I prefer the Nürburgring 24, I'm also a big fan of the Rolex 24 - but thats largely because I've had JPM to cheer for in recent years.

 

[gorsad]

Have to agree with everything you said Earth, was never a big fan of Indycar racing but after watching a replay of the Indy 500, it definitely deserves a spot up there with the best.

While it's true that the Monaco GP doesn't have that one off feeling that Le Mans, Indy or Daytona have, I guess it's because the championship overall is much more important than that single race.

 

[Mt. Lynx]

Indy racing has never actually interested me, although I have a lot of respect for the drivers. So I can´t rank the Indy 500 at all. Not my cup of tea.

To me there is only one race able to compete for the "greatest" title - 24hrs of Le Mans. It celebrates its 80th birthday this year, and the spectacle in itself is outstanding in terms of both attendance and racing. IMO nothing else comes even close. But I do feel that the 12hrs of Sebring deserves a mention here.

 

[Wardez]

And oh yeah, here's even more backing to Le Man's place in the world of major motorsport events.

National Geographic recently put together a bunch of authoritative top ten lists and they decided to rank the Le Mans 24 Hours not only the best motorsport event, but best sporting event on Earth, rating it above The Olympic Games:

http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/top-10/sporting-events/

From the snippet:

1
The 24 Hours of Le Mans, France
www.lemans.org

Skill, speed, and stamina are the three s’s that mark the world’s best automobile race, the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The race, organized by Automobile Club de L’Ouest, bridges past and present on the automotive circuit.

The competition is set on a non-permanent track at Circuit de la Sarthe near the city of Le Mans on the Sarthe River. Roughly 46 cars start the race, in a series of classes that include prototype high-performance vehicles, dedicated race cars, and street cars. The diversity of autos gives the race a mix of old-fashioned and modern competitors. The winner is the car, driven by a team of three drivers, that covers the greatest distance in 24 hours.

The first Le Mans contest took place in May 1923; today it is held every June. The race begins at 4 p.m., and for 24 hours the sound of roaring engines fills 8 miles (13 kilometers) of French countryside.