The Debora LMP295 and Debora LMP201 were

Le Mans Prototypes A Le Mans Prototype (LMP) is a type of sports prototype race car used in various races and championships, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, FIA World Endurance Championship, IMSA SportsCar Championship, European Le Mans Series, and Asian ...

built by

Debora Debora Racing cars is a small French car builder, popular with private racing teams, based in Besançon, France. Teams generally use their chassis to take part in Le Mans style endurance racing such as Magny Cours, Jarama and le Mans. Drivers a ...

in 1995 for the

24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans () is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the city of Le Mans, France. It is widely considered to be one of the world's most prestigious races, and is one of the races—along with ...

. One of each type was built, and both cars featured the same 2-litre

Cosworth Cosworth is a British automotive engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in high-performance internal combustion engines, powertrain, and electronics for auto racing, automobile racing (motorsport) and mainstream Automotiv ...

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

turbocharged In an internal combustion engine, a turbocharger (also known as a turbo or a turbosupercharger) is a forced induction device that is powered by the flow of exhaust gases. It uses this energy to compress the intake air, forcing more air into the ...

straight-four engine A straight-four engine (also referred to as an inline-four engine) is a four-cylinder Reciprocating engine, piston engine where cylinders are arranged in a line along a common crankshaft. The majority of automotive four-cylinder engines use a ...

. Both cars were only entered in the

1995 24 Hours of Le Mans The 1995 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 63rd Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 17 and 18 June 1995 in one of the wettest races in the event's history with about 17 hours of steady rain. The race was won by the #59 McLaren F1 GTR driven by ...

, whilst the LMP295 took Didier Bonnet Racing's best ever result in the race.

Racing history

built two separate cars for the

; the LMP295, and the LMP201. Both cars used the same 2-litre

, and both were run by Didier Bonnet Racing. The LMP295 chassis was designated #LMP295-01, whilst the LMP201 chassis was designated as the #LMP295-02. Both cars made their public debut in the Pre-qualifying session for the 24 Hours of Le Mans; the LMP201 was driven by

Didier Bonnet __NOTOC__ Didier is a French masculine given name and surname common throughout the Romance languages. It comes from the Ancient Roman name Didius. During the 5th century AD, with the Christianisation of ancient pagan names, it became associated w ...

and

Bernard Santal Bernard Santal (born 17 February 1960) is a Swiss former racing driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term ...

, and was prequalified in 26th place, whilst the LMP295 was tested, but not used to pre-qualify with. However, the LMP201 was not listed as having pre-qualified, so Didier Bonnet Racing used the LMP295 instead, and entered Santal, Patrice Roussel and Edouard Sezionale in the car; they finished twentieth, and last, having completed 223 laps, but were the only LMP2 car to finish the race, and won the LMP2 class as a result. This would be Didier Bonnet Racing's best ever finish at the event. Neither the LMP201, nor the LMP295 were used again, as Debora built the new LMP296 for 1996.

References

{{Reflist, 2 Le Mans Prototypes 24 Hours of Le Mans race cars Debora vehicles Sports prototypes