Car to remember

Creator Gordon Murray never intended to adapt his McLaren F1 for racing, but the spirit of the age made such a conversion inevitable. It was the mid 1990s: Blur and Oasis squabbled for radio airtime and endurance racing was in the throes of resurrection. The BPR Global GT Series paved the way ahead – and while drivers were initially happy with Porsche 911s, Venturi 400s, Ferrari F40s and suchlike, McLaren’s new BMW V12-powered F1 looked irresistible. When the 1995 Le Mans 24 Hours began, there were seven on the grid.

There wasn’t a seismic shift from road to track. The GTR was 90kg lighter than its progenitor, had fractionally narrower/wider front/rear track and bigger wheels and brakes.