Martin Brundle and John Nielsen were paired in the #1 Jaguar XJ-R9 LM to contest the 1988 Le Mans 24 Hours. Built from an XJ-R9, the special "LM" cars were carefully prepared at the headquarters of Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR) in Kidlington, England. Built alongside the #2 and #3 factory entries, #1 might have been the odds on favorite to win, being the same chassis that won three of the four rounds of the 1988 World Sportscar Championship season!
Brundle was the frontrunning Jaguar driver, putting the #1 factory entry fourth on the grid. Porsche had won the previous seven Le Mans races and was looking strong having put all three factory 962Cs ahead of the field for the start. Jaguar, however, had beaten Porsche in sprint races and was feeling confident.
The eventual race winner, the #2 Jaguar, showed early on that the Jaguars could match the Porsches for outright pace, breaking up the German threesome. Soon the rival teams, five Porsches and five Jaguars, owned the top 10 positions! A classic battle was shaping up.
Just after the 1 hour mark, Nielsen spun harmlessly into the Indianapolis Corner sandtrap. Two laps were lost while the big Jag was extracted. That indiscretion out of the way, Nielsen and Brundle drove hard through afternoon, evening and night, reaching 2nd place by the end of the 17th hour! Sadly, the #1 car was not destined to finish. Nielsen got back behind the wheel at 9am but was back 4 minutes and a single lap later. Brundle, still in his helmet, surveyed the scene as the engine cover was removed, releasing a cloud of steam. A head gasket failure was quickly diagnosed and the car retired from the race.
With seven hours still to go, could the leading #2 Jaguar hold on? Only time would tell...
