Le Mans: Lovely liveries

Did the pink pig set a trend? Last year, the 911 RSR driven by Kévin Estre, Michael Christensen and Laurens Vanthoor sported a pink pig livery that lauded the 1971 Porsche 917/20. Not content to be a pretty face, the car won LMGTE Pro, adding success to its immense popularity. Several teams have followed suit and there are no less than fifteen special liveries this year.

To mark the first entry of a Ford GT in LMGTE Am, American team Keating Motorsports is marking its sponsor’s 80th anniversary with a tribute livery. Team leader and driver Ben Keating is delighted: “the orange, mauve and rose go so well together.”

The history of this great race is an incredible source of inspiration. The four factory Ford LM GTE Pros all hark back to bygone times. The #66 and #67 have taken on the red and black liveries of 1966 and 1967. The #69 is a celebration of the famous Gulf colours sported by the Ford GT40 that triumphed in 1968 and 1969.

DragonSpeed’s #10 BR Engineering BR1-Gibson marks the teams last LMP1 race with a nod to Gulf.

In the Porsche garages, the #93 and #94 salute Brumos, one of the make’s most successful US representatives, with a red and blue stripe and Brumos’ lucky number 59.

In LMP2, Racing Team Nederland has added a touch of black to its iconic yellow in reference to the Minardi Formula One team, now known as Scuderia Toro Rosso.

The Rebellion Racing #1 and #3 R13-Gibsons make a splash in their garb – halfway between street art and the drip painting technique popularised by Jackson Pollock.

Two Ferraris also stand out from the crowd. Risi Competizione asked the Paris art school to come up with a distinctive design to draw attention to its return to LMGTE Pro. It’s the first time the US team has dropped the traditional Ferrari Rosso Corsa red.

The final livery design for the #89 488 GTE was put together by Andy Blackmore, also responsible for the #84 JMW Motorsport Ferrari. The British team has added a red overprint of the circuit to its yellow base, with the other ELMS circuits in orange.

Last one to watch out for, the LMGTE Am Team Project 1 Porsche 911 RSR with its very feminine design by Richard Phillips.

2019 Le Mans Spotter's Guide to see who's who!