Although it did not compete in the historic 100th anniversary edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race, Bugatti’s history is closely tied to the event. So, it is resonant that the first public outing for its new over-the-top hypercar was held at the track this weekend.
While the racing world was celebrating 100 years of Le Mans, Bugatti’s most recent, most extreme car, the Bolide, was shown for the people in real life for the first time. The track-only hypercar was paraded around a lap of the legendary Circuit de la Sarthe, where the historic race is run, ahead of the green flag dropping for the official race.
The Bolide was driven by “pilote officiel,” Andy Wallace, who is no stranger to the event. A retired racecar driver, he won the race in 1988, and is one of a small number of drivers who has won the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the 24 Hours of Daytona, and the 12 Hours of Sebring.
Read: Production-Spec Bugatti Bolide Is Looking Absolutely Wild
“The Bolide looks and feels—in every respect—like a real racing car with genuine outstanding high-performance capabilities,” said Wallace. “The fact that it generates around twice its own weight in downforce at maximum speed, giving the car a very high level of grip and stability in high-speed corners is in its own right incredibly impressive.”
To match the impressive downforce, the Bolide is powered by Bugatti’s 8.0-liter, quad-turbo, W16 engine, which makes 1,578 hp (1,177 kW/1,600 PS). Braking is provided by Brembo, which borrowed inspiration from its own Formula One program to help reign in that impressive power.
Like Wallace, Bugatti is no stranger to the 24 Hours of Le Mans. As its president, Christophe Piochon points out, the brand was there, in 1923, for the first ever running of the race. It was also there in 1994, 50 years after its first-ever Le Mans victory.
For that edition of the event, the brand brought with it a EB110S “Le Mans.” Although technical issues kept it from finishing the race, it was able to complete a lap of the race this year, as part of the Grande Exposition du Centenaire.
A member of the parade of historic cars, the EB110S Le Mans drove around the track, and was also joined by a Type 50S that competed in the event in the 1930s, with legendary drivers like Louis Chiron and Albert Divo at the wheel.
“There can be no better way than to celebrate 100 years of Le Mans by debuting a Bugatti tour de force that is simply unlike anything we have ever done before,” said Piochon. “I speak on behalf of Bugatti when I say we are therefore incredibly proud to have delivered another historic and unique moment at Le Mans, a moment that will forever be cherished.”
