![]() ![]() ‘Our racing heritage is hugely important to us,’ explains Darren Cox, Nissan’s global head of brand, marketing and sales. The number 21 car will be driven by Super GT Champion Tsugio Matsuda, and two winners of the Gran Turismo Academy competition, Spanish ace Lucas Ordonez and Russian racer Mark Shulzhitskiy. Its GT-R LM Nismo is a very different vehicle, but it will wear the same livery as Blundell’s pole-sitting R90. Sadly, Blundell, Julian Bailey and Gianfranco Brancatelli’s car retired during the race, but the car – and its red, white and blue livery have remained in the racing consciousness.Ī quarter-century later, Nissan is once again aiming for top honours at Le Mans. With Mark Blundell at the wheel, Nissan’s R90CK set a qualifying time of 3:27.020, putting the Japanese car on pole position. ![]() The latter record could have been taken a year earlier however. Its 787B crossed the line in first place, marking milestones as both the first rotary-powered vehicle ever to win the race, as well as the first Japanese manufacturer. ![]() In 1991, Mazda took an historic victory at the Le Mans 24 Hours. Nissan is set to race once again with its own historic livery at this year’s Le Mans 24 hours, inspired by one of its most famous racing vehicles. Who doesn’t hold fond thoughts of Marlborough-swathed McLarens, Alitalia-striped Lancias or Gulf-hued Porsches? For random automotive thoughts and images, be sure to follow him on Twitter From Jeffrey N.Racing liveries are one of the most emotive subjects in motorsport. Some of his memorable personal vehicles have been a rust-bucket of a 1977 Pontiac Trans Am, an Everest-sized 1969 Jeepster Commando project and his personal favorite, a 1992 Jeep Comanche, which he still kicks himself for selling. Since this is TopSpeed after all, the fastest Jeff has ever driven was 173 mph in a Porsche Panamera on the autobahn. His journeys have taken him all over the world to drive some of the best cars and roads the world has to offer, but the highlights are getting to drive at legendary tracks such as Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca and the Daytona International Speedway. He became a regular contributor to TopSpeed in 2015 (after a brief stint in 2009), and he brings almost a decade of automotive writing experience to the team. After receiving his journalism degree from the University of Florida in 2006, he started at a small, start-up automotive website, and he’s been having a blast ever since. ![]() His automotive career officially started as an ASE-certified Chrysler technician, but his passion was always in writing. As a teen, he would help his neighbors work on their off-road trucks, and during high school, he spent his weekends blasting through the trails of central Michigan on a Yamaha YZ125. Having grown up in the Detroit area, Jeff has always been fascinated with cars. ![]()
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