Bradenton Motorsports Park

24 hours of Lemans is one of the largest and most famous sports car endurance race in the world. It is also one of the oldest that still works. Ideas about an hour drive was designed as a test of reliability and endurance of man and machine to maintain a continuous high speed for twenty-four hours during a challenging course. This is an annual event held at Lemans in France. While accidents are common in motor racing, no one was horrific incident that happened in 1955 event. Two factors are of primary importance in the race car - driver skills and the quality of the car

1955 race will soon become a battle between the British Jaguar D Type, and Mercedes 300SLR. Germany has spent much time and effort in preparing the car registration, however, had a weakness. It was fitted with drum brakes, a British machine has disk brakes, which is fast braking advantage. After about two hours into the competition, the British driver Mike Hawthorn decided to make a pit stop, slow down and brake his car. Lance Macklin, riding in the back of the hawthorn, slammed his brakes and pulled to the left. Pierre Levegh, who after Macklin, raised his hand to signal to slow Juan Fangio. Levegh car, unable to brake quickly, and then hit Macklin and careened by landing on an embankment. Then somersaulted along the dikes and magnesium body is burned and the flames spread everywhere.

as the car fell apart, parts flew into the crowd. One row spectator was decapitated was flying hood. Some were killed by flying parts, and others were burned to death. Images may not agree on the number of killed and injured, but seventy-seven to eighty-three were reported killed and at least seventy-six injured. Macklin car spun around the track and crashed into the pit of the murder of a mechanic. Macklin was able to walk away from the accident. Fangio was later expressed his gratitude for Levegh signal, crediting signal saves his life. This is something prophetic that Levegh said just before the race, "We need to get some sort of signal system works, our cars are too fast ."

organizers decided to continue the race, because they were afraid that if they stopped him, a lot of people go out of the stands will create a turnover that would interfere with the ambulance and fire trucks. When word of the accident reached Germany, the authorities withdrew his second team out of respect for Levegh. Hawthorn eventually won the competition. However, there were many who blamed his braking for starting the chain of events that caused the carnage. But an official investigation that occurred after the accident he was cleared of blame and called him "race incident .'

However, the incident has a profound impact on races. Some European countries have implemented bans on the sport. France has spent more than $ 600,000 to improve the course. The new regulations define limits on the size of the engine, limiting the time a driver may be behind the wheel, citing a number of drivers in the team are all conducted before the 1956 race.