The 2000 Teams of Le mans

The 2000 Le Mans race saw 55 teams come together to battle it out on the turns and straights of one of motor racing’s most challenging pursuits.

Skea Racing International

The first Australian managed and owned venture in Le Mans, Skea Racing International, was headed up by Rohan Skea and managed by John Pollard. They relied on a multicultural team of drivers to get them through the 24 hours of racing. Le Mans first-timer Johnny Mowlem from Great Britain was joined by David Murray from the US and Porsche contractee Sascha Maassen from Germany, both of whom had experience on the Le Mans track.

Michael Colucci from the USA

The team of Shane Lewis, Bob Mazzuoccola and Cort Wagner, all hailing from the USA, was headed up by one of the true veterans of racing, Michael Colucci. His experience was set to make up for the inexperience of the other drivers and the team when it came to tackling Le Mans.

Repsol Racing Engineering

The Spanish team, comprising of fellow Iberian drivers Tomas Saldaña and Jesus Diez Villaroel and Italian driver Giovanni Lavaggi, had a good idea what real speed is like; Lavaggi is a former Grand Prix racer whose last start in Le Mans was back in 1993. The team held high hopes that Saldaña would maintain the pressure for Repsol while Lavaggi took his rest.

Team Taisan Advan

The Japanese team with drivers Hideo Fukuyama and Atsushi Yogo had experience with the race, which gave the team a good solid base from the start. The third driver, Bruno Lambert from Belgium, rounded out the team, which had been touted as a top three finish possibility.

Manthey Racing

The then one time participants in Le Mans, Manthey Racing from Germany, had an all American crew of Michael Lauer, Michael Brockman and Gunnar Jeannette. The latter had to rely on the experience of 44-year old Lauer and 54-year old Brockman; Jeannette, who hails from Florida, had only just turned 18.

Seikel Motor Sport

The German team already had three starts with Le Mans, and in 2000 decided to put Moroccan Max Cohen Oliviar, Canadian Tony Burgess and Belgian Michel Neugarten behind the wheel. High hopes were held for Neugarten, touted as one of the speediest on the track.

Larbre Competition

French team Labre had won two GT2 honours back in 1993 and 1994 and was looking to make it a third in 2000. The all-French driving team consisted of 911 specialist Patrice Goueslard, 1993 winner for Peugot Christophe Bouchut (who was also considered the fastest driver to sit behind the wheel of a GT3-R) and Jean Luc Chereau.

Maury-Laribiere Jean-Luc

The French team relied on experience when it came to the 2000 Le Mans race, with all three drivers, Angelo Zadra from Italy, Frenchmen Bernard Chauvin and Jean Luc Maury-Laribiere (who was also the team’s director) all carrying Le Mans experience.

Haberthur Racing

The Swiss operation won Le Mans in 1997, and had a reputation for taking a slow-and-steady approach to racing. Their success of their campaign was rested on two Le Mans novices, Italians Gabrio Rosa and Fabio Babini and experienced Frenchman Michel Ligonnet.

Dick Barbour Racing

Three time team winner Dick Barbour Racing from the USA had a trifecta win in 1978, 1979, and 1980 but since then had not made a start at Le Mans. Using Michelin tyres, they were looking strong for a fourth victory with two up and coming stars of the track, Germans Dirk Muller and Lucas Luhr, teaming up with French veteran Bob Wollek.

Perspective Racing

French owner, operated and driven, Perspective had both youthful agility and experienced understanding on their team. Le Mans novice 22-year old Romano Ricci was well looked after by father Jean-Louis Ricci and Thierry Perrier, who had 11 and 10 starts respectively at Le Mans.

Renstal Excelsior

The all-Belgium team rested its campaign on the experience of 38-year old Philip Verellen to lead the team of Kurt Dujardyn and Rudi Penders across the line.