Robert Brunet (8 Mar 1903–1986) was a French

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 is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non ...

between 1931 and 1951. Most of his 44 entries were Grands Prix, but he also entered 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 ...

. He achieved a class victory and was fifth overall in the 1949 edition.

Personal life and work

In 1926, Brunet married the Countess of Choiseul, a rich noblewoman, with whom he invested in his racing career by buying a

Bugatti Automobiles Ettore Bugatti was a German then French automotive industry, manufacturer of high performance vehicle, high-performance automobiles. The company was founded in 1909 in the then-German Empire, German city of Molsheim, Alsace, by the ...

. However, he did not become successful until

1933 Events January * January 11 – Australian aviator Sir Charles Kingsford Smith makes the first commercial flight between Australia and New Zealand. * January 17 – The United States Congress votes in favour of Philippines independen ...

, when he purchased the Bugatti T51 previously owned by

Jean-Pierre Wimille Jean-Pierre Wimille (; 26 February 1908 – 28 January 1949) was a French racing driver and a member of the French Resistance during World War II. He was a two-time victor of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, winning in 1937 and 1939. He is generally re ...

. In

1934 Events January–February * January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established. * January 15 – The 8.0 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, Nepal–Bihar earthquake strik ...

, Brunet replaced Louis Braillard as head of Ecurie Braillard and raced with Benoît Falchetto for the following two years without achieving major results. Besides racing, Brunet lead a factory which produced

capacitor In electrical engineering, a capacitor is a device that stores electrical energy by accumulating electric charges on two closely spaced surfaces that are insulated from each other. The capacitor was originally known as the condenser, a term st ...

s for

car A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people rather than cargo. There are around one billio ...

s. With the help of contracts with the

French army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (, , ), is the principal Army, land warfare force of France, and the largest component of the French Armed Forces; it is responsible to the Government of France, alongside the French Navy, Fren ...

, it had 400 employees by 1947. After the war, the firm folded rapidly and declared bankruptcy in 1950. This meant Brunet could not afford his ordered

Talbot-Lago T26C The Talbot-Lago T26C was a single-seater racing car designed and developed by French manufacturer Talbot-Lago. It featured a box section chassis, an unsupercharged capacity straight-six engine and a four speed Wilson preselector gearbox. The c ...

and he stopped racing soon after the Porsche 356SL he was supposed to co-drive at the 1951 Le Mans race was crashed in practice.

Racing results

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brunet, Robert Year of birth unknown French racing drivers 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers Mille Miglia drivers 1903 births 1986 deaths Porsche Motorsports drivers