88th, René Dreyfus's Victory at 1938 Pau Grand Prix: Delahaye's Upset over Mercedes

It’s an elegant sculpture, the Delahaye 145, and unmistakably a sports car. This wasn’t quite like tackling a Lotus 49 with an MGB, but you wouldn’t have given it much hope against the might of mid-Thirties Germany. Except, perhaps, in Pau…

Alfa Romeo was supposed to provide the stiffest opposition to Mercedes, but didn’t eventually take part. Tazio Nuvolari’s car caught fire during practice, because chassis flex caused the fuel tank to split, and Luigi Villoresi’s sister car was withdrawn as a precaution.

The Mercedes W154, meanwhile, proved a touch unwieldy around the narrow streets, slipping its clutch and oiling its plugs. Hermann Lang eventually slid off the road during practice, although team-mate Rudolf Caracciola took pole and Merc eventually decided to focus on a single-car effort.