Le Mans is a town in the north of France, well known for its great food, wine… Â and the biggest spectacle in motorsport! We are of course talking about the 24 hour race that is held annually at the Circuit De La Sarthe just outside the town of Le Mans.
The last 5 years of the race have been utterly dominated by Audi, with their R15 and R18 taking first place. This year though, this supremacy was ended by one of the most well known names in motorsport, Porsche!
Porsche 919
The car that finally defeated Audi was the 919 hybrid, a car that weighs only 870kg yet pushes more than 500 horsepower to all four wheels. With those sorts of specs, it isn’t hard to see how it was able to take victory, but Le Mans is a race that requires more than just an unbelievable car, the drivers must also be able to push it to the limit for hour after hour.
In Porsche’s case, their team consisted of Nico Hulkenberg, Nick Tandy and Earl Bamber who piloted the car for 395 laps of the circuit to claim overall victory. This victory is made even more incredible by the fact that Hulkenberg is still a Formula 1 driver for Force India.
Porsche’s History at Le Mans
Whilst Audi have dominated in the last few years, Porsche’s history at the circuit is even more successful with a total of 17 wins under their belt. This is the most Le Mans wins of any manufacturer and cars such as the 935, 956 and the 962 have cemented Porsche’s reputation as a motorsport icon.
Porsche and Chopard
As well as an incredible motorsport manufacturer, Porsche are also partnered with Chopard and the watch manufacturer is the official timing partner to Porsche. Chopard even created a special edition of their Superfast watch range to commemorate Porsche’s return to Le Mans and another to commemorate their success on this return.
The watch that Chopard released is the Superfast Chrono Porsche 919 Jacky Ickx Edition. Jacky Ickx is known as ‘Mr. Le Mans’ as he has won the race six times altogether and is an ambassador for both Chopard and Porsche.
Superfast Chrono Porsche 919 Jacky Ickx Edition
The watch is an evolution of the Superfast Chrono Porsche 919 and takes many of its design cues from the Le Mans winning car. Chopard has added to this though and personalised it in honour of Ickx, the silvered dial features galvanic blue chronograph counters and flange, inspired by his famous helmet.
As well as these design touches the Superfast Chrono Porsche 919 Jacky Ickx Edition is also a technical masterpiece. Chopard’s 03.05-M movement is contained within a 45mm stainless steel case giving a watch that is robust as well as precise; perfect for those that value every second.
Chopard Watches at Banks Lyon
Here at Banks Lyon we are proud to stock a wide range of Chopard watches including the incredible Superfast range for those that value a quality sports watch. If these incredible watches have piqued your interest and you think they would fit nicely into your collection, then simply pop in store to see our full range of Chopard watches today. If you would like any more details on the watches that we have available simply contact us on 01524 384 858 and our experienced and friendly team will be happy to help.
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