The 1970 Porsche-Ferrari Combat for Le Mans is back!!!

See the most beautiful collection of model cars in action in Aalst (Aug 28-29)

In the history of autosport the Porsche-Ferrari battle for the 1970 Le Mand 24 hours was one of the highlights: seven 5-litre Porsches 917 were involved with eleven 5-litre Ferraris 512S in a gruelling combat for victory lane. All Porsches, except one, were work's entries, spread over three teams: JW Gulf (3), KG Salzburg (2) and Martini Sport (1). Of the eleven Ferraris only four were work's entries. The others were entered by semi-factory teams (N.A.R.T., Filipinetti and Écurie Belge), or by not very competitive privateers. All those cars were so-called sports cars having been manufactured at at least 25 copies.
Outsiders were Matra Sports with its MS650 and Alfa Romeo with its TT33/3. There was also a Ferrari 312P Berlinetta entered by N.A.R.T., the American Ferrari importer. Those 3-litre cars were prototypes, being lighter and using less fuel. What they lost in pure speed at the end of Mulsanne could perhaps be won back by a lower number of pit stops for refuelling. Among the fieldfillers we found a lot of Porsches 908-2, Porsches 911S, Corvettes 427 Sting Ray and even a Porsche 914-6: all GT cars derived from street cars.
Now 34 years later the legendary Porsche-Ferrari combat for Le Mans will be done over ...at scale 1/24th. It offers a unique opportunity to see the most beautiful consistent collection of slot-cars at work in the Belgian Model Car Centre in Aalst, Belgium (address: Moorselbaan 391). Those cars have been manufactured by the best and most experienced model car builders in the world. They'll be driven by the best slot-racers of the world on a 25.6-metre Carrera track. Among the racers we find Vladimir Horky (CZ) and 'Piki' van Rossem (B), both 4 times world champion in slot-racing. But also 3 racers from New Zealand, 2 racers from Brazil, 2 racers from the USA, 4 racers from England, the 4 best racers of Denmark, the 4 best racers of Holland, 7 top racers from Germany, 4 top racers from Spain, 2 top racers from Finland, 2 top-racers from Italy, 1 racer from Sweden and the 10 best racers of Belgium - the nation having won the two last editions of the famous Nations Cup for Slot-Racers.

The cars reach at the end of the straight a top speed of 25 kph and an average per lap of some 17.5 kph.  Power comes from a little electrical motor (Fox) raced at 12.4 Volt. The racers use all the same speed controller. The cars are equipped with black rubber tires (type Wiesel/Ortmann) ensuring a perfect roald holding. Acceleration and braking is regulated by the speed controller of the driver. Price of such cars vary from € 396 to € 792 per car. The most expensive cars are real jewels, perfect copies of existing race cars, in no ways to compare with the toy cars released at scale 1/32rd by mass manufacturers. The cars involved in the model car version of Le Mans 1970 are all handmade in a unique copy.
Who are the favourites? Among the Porsche racers Vladimir Horky (CZ)-Matthias Parke (D), Geert Mertens (B)-Dieter Jens (D), Einari Fyhr-Kai Kivekäs (SF), Gilles Dohogne-Yves Welter jr are the top favourites. Among the Ferrari racers the absolute top teams are 'Piki' van Rossem (B)/Nick de Wachter (NL), Josef Korec/Antónin Vojtik (CZ), Michael Landrud (S)/Andreas Fehn (D) and Salvatore Noviello/Daniele Malan-gone (I). Serious outsiders are George Kimber (GB)/Frantisek Poledna (CZ) on Ferrari, Chris Radisich/Paul Heath (NZ) and Martin Borch (DK)/Pit Schwaar (D) or Francesc Reyes/Daniel Gonzalez (E) on Porsche and Dennis Vogel (NL)/Youri van Rossem (B) on Matra.
Prior to the Le Mans 24-hour Memorial - the European Model Car Championship - there are three other races, all reconstructions of 1970 endurance races, res. of the Sebring 12 hours, the Monza 1,000-kms and the Brands Hatch 1,000-kms.
Main promotor of consistent model car races is IMCA, the International Model Car Association, created in 1985. Since that days IMCA organises "homogeneous" races, i.e. races with cars being all &/24th scale copies of race cars having contested at the same moment in autosport history the same race. Such races can be historical, e.g. the Memorial of the 1964 Le Mans race contested in Rouen (F) at 1994. Others are very actual. Good example was the Jaguar-Mercedes combat for Le Mans of 1988, remade with model cars at the 1988 ans 1989 World Championship in Chicago. At the end of this year, at the Yukos 24-ours in Uden (NL) 24 model car versions of 2004 Le Mans cars will be raced.
By organising "homogeneous" model car races, IMCA tries to keep up the link between autosport and slot-racing - a link which made slot-racing booming in the mid 1960s, when the turnover of American model car manufacturers (such as Monogram, Revell, Cox, etc.) was even bigger than the turnover of the complete American coal industry. Such boom belongs of course to the past, but the revival of slot-racing in the late 1990s and early 2000s was directly linked to the maintenance of the link between slot-racing and autosport as actually applied by the new manufacturers. [For more news on 1970 endurace races click here]

FRANCO GIANOTTI TROPHY FOR CLASSIC CARS

August 28-29

BELGIAN MODEL CAR CENTRE
Moorselbaan 391
B-9300 AALST (Belgium)

Phone: +/32/498-11.57.82 jppro@pandora.be
web site: http://www.imca-slotracing.com

50 entrants from 15 different countries,
among them 10 actual or former world champions

free income

KG Salzburg Porsche 917K (Dieter Jens)

KG Salzburg Porsche 917LH (Dieter Jens)

JW Gulf Porsche 917K (Matthias Parke)

JW Gulf Porsche 917K (Matthias Parke)

JW Gulf Porsche 917K (Matthias Parke)

Martini Racing Porsche 917LH (Stephan Wiesel)

AAW Shell Porsche (Pitter Schwaar)

SEFAC Ferrari 512S Berlinetta Coda Lunga (Pitter Schwaar)

SEFAC Ferrari 512S Berlinetta Coda Lunga (Thomas Spicker)

SEFAC Ferrari 512S Berlinetta Coda Lunga (Thomas Spicker)

SEFAC Ferrari 512S Berlinetta Coda Lunga (Gerd van de Wiel)

N.A.R.T. Ferrari 512S Berlinetta Coda Lunga (Gerd van de Wiel)

Écurie Belge Ferrari 512S Berlinetta Coda Lunga (Philip de Vries)

Filipinetti Ferrari 512S Berlinetta Coda Lunga (Pitter Schwaar)

Filipinetti Ferrari 512S Berlinetta Coda Lunga (Philip de Vries)

SpA Autodelta Alfa Romeo T33/3 (Harold Uhl)

SpA Autodelta Alfa Romeo T33/3 (Harold Uhl)

Matra Sport MS650 LH (Philip de Vries)