The forgotten winners
11/06/2014
If you ask people about brands with multiple Le Mans victories, you will typically hear Ferrari, Porsche or Ford in response. But hardly anyone will mention Matra , even though this French sports car brand won the 24 Hours of Le Mans three times in 1972, 1973 and 1974.
And despite these laurels, the brand's road sports cars have also fallen into oblivion, whether they were called the Matra Djet/Jet, Matra M530, Matra-Simca Bagheera or Talbot Matra Murena. With the Djet, Matra had one of the very first mid-engined vehicles in its range, thanks to the takeover of René Bonnet's small sports car factory. And with the Bagheera and the Murena, Matra was the only supplier to offer three-seater sports cars in large numbers.
Matra actually had everything it needed to become legendary, even winning a Formula 1 title (with Jackie Stewart as world driver and design champion in 1969). But that wasn't enough to secure the brand's long-term future. What a shame!
