1972 24 Hours of Le Mans

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The 1972 24 Hours of Le Mans was a motor race staged at the Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans, France on 10 and 11 June 1972. It was the 40th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the ninth race of the 1972 World Championship for Makes.

1972 marked the start of a new era with revised FIA regulations dictating the demise of the 5 Litre Group 5 Sports Car and the 3 Litre Group 6 Sports Prototype categories and their replacement by a new 3 Litre Group 5 Sports Car class. There was also a significant change to the track with the construction of the new technical section subsequently named the Porsche Curves bypassing the dangerous Maison Blanche corner, which had been the site of many serious accidents in the past.

Having already won the World Championship for Makes, Ferrari chose not to contest the race. Matra-Simca were strong favourites for the outright win after not running the other races to focus on its Le Mans preparation. Once the challenge from Alfa Romeo and Lola had dissipated overnight, Matra were able to ease off to secure a popular 1–2 victory for the home country – France's first since 1950. Henri Pescarolo and Graham Hill were the winners, with a comfortable 11-lap margin over teammates François Cevert and Howden Ganley.

However the race was marred by the death of veteran Formula One racer Jo Bonnier who died when his Lola prototype collided with a Ferrari GT and flew over the barriers into the trees on the Sunday morning.