Matchless-mounted David Hughes
took the 500cc cia.. win.
!he French Historic GP got underway at Le'Mans with the traditional push start.
Hughes, Barrett log
Historic GP wins at Le Mans
By Robert Fawcett
Photos by Paul Carruthers
LE MANS, FRANCE, JULY 18
Solitary support event to the four Grand
Prix classes forming the French G P at Le
Mans, the 1987 French Historic GP provided
~ dramatic a,nd action-packed spectacle in
Just seven laps of the two and
a half-mile circuit. Both overall race winner and 500cc class
.
VICtor I?~ve Hughes, on the ex-
26
Peter W~lhams Arter-Matchless, and
350cc wmner Paul Barrett, riding a
.Harley-Davidson Sprint (a U.S.specificatio.n Aermacchi he imported
from Amenca several years ago) had.
to start from the back row of the 40bike grid after blowing up their
eng~nes in th~ ?pening pra~tice
sesSIOn and missing out on urned
qualifying: But a huge thunderstorm! which struck the race soon
after It started, reduced their disadv~tage and enabled the two British
nders to pull. through and defeat a
~trong field of historic bike competItors from all over Europe.
The two new chicarIes added this
season to the Bugatti circuit at Le
Mans make it a very slow track
indeed, with th~ee first-~ar corners
~nd !ots of engIne braking making
I~ taIlor-made for the lusty British
smgles bu~ even more so! for the 350
Aerrna~chls ~nd Ducaus, who for
once did. not fu~d themselves outsped
by the bigger bikes.
Nevertheless, qualifying showed
the 50,05 well to the fore, but a big
surp.nse. with the u.sual British
dOmInauon of the gnd completely
overthro~~, on the front row at least.
Pole poslUon went to Frenchman
Alain Filhol's Seeley G50, almost a
clear second ahead of fellowcountryman Jean-Luc Cuvillier's
Manx Norton and Spaniard Joaquin
Folch, riding teammate Alan CadI~t's stan~d Matchless G50 after
hiS own bIke had blown an engine
the previous wee~end at S~a.
Best of the Bnts was M~ke ~ys
?n another Seeley G50, whIle roundlQ~ o~t the ~t row was, Du~
Historic TT wmner Cathcart s tWID-
cylinder Paton, rather out of its
element on such a slow circuit. Early·
'70's. GP stalw~rt Charlie DobS?n
~as well back In the gTOove WIth
stxth on the,grid, with Swiss rider
Claude Matthey's unique ex-factory
408cc Aerrnaccchi single next up
and Dutch vintage ace JooP Froom'~
N<,>rton twin just edging Frenchman
.Mlchel Lafargue's immaculate Seeley G50.
Best of the 3505 was former French
25~~ c!tampi
