Farewell to an international behemoth
A long way from the spotlight, an iconic constructor quietly bowed out of world motorsport last weekend in Petit Le Mans, ending an era that has spanned six decades and thousands of cars
Everyone at Petit Le Mans last weekend was talking about the end of an era. The 1000-mile enduro was the final race for the Daytona Prototype class, but there was a much more significant curtain-call that was largely overlooked.
The Road Atlanta event was surely the last appearance for Lola in an international motor race of any importance.
Share Or Save This Story
Gary Watkins has, for reasons best known to himself, devoted all his working life to covering sportscar racing. This season is his 33rd as a motorsport journalist, during which time he has reported on major long-distance events on four continents and approaching 80 24-hour races. He reckons a degree in political philosophy makes him well qualified for covering the sometimes Machiavellian world of international sportscars.
Gary, who also writes for Motor Sport, Autocourse, RACER and others, lives in Surbiton close to the former workshops of the Cooper Formula 1 team but spends more time on the road than at home for most of the year.
More from Gary Watkins
Peugeot won't replace Vergne, Vandoorne for Spa WEC amid Formula E clash
Alpine confident for 'good news' in Habsburg injury recovery
How rain and strategy spelled disaster for Ferrari in WEC Imola 6 Hours
Toyota not “getting over excited” over WEC Imola triumph
Ferrari admits to two strategic errors after losing Imola WEC race
Porsche and Toyota believe Ferrari "out of reach" for WEC Imola race
Peugeot 'scratching their heads' after poor Imola WEC qualifying in new look 9X8
WEC Imola: Ferrari 1-2-3 in dominant qualifying feat
Latest news
Brake issues hindered Rosenqvist’s chances of IndyCar victory in Long Beach
Ayrton Senna's famous Honda NSX up for sale
Yamaha to test completely new MotoGP bike at Jerez
Krack: Aston Martin frustrated by inconsistent F1 penalty decisions
Autosport Plus
How canny Porsche strategy snatched Daytona spoils from Cadillac
How a battle of two US titans will grip IMSA in 2024
How IMSA's GTP revival proved worthy of its name
How Porsche's Daytona hiccups evoked the premiere of its Group C king
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.