Derek Bell
We worked like crazy.
At the Porsche Experience Centre in Leipzig, Bell and his colleagues encountered the winning car from the
1982 24 Hours of Le Mans with chassis number 956-002. Also present was the 956 with chassis number
956-005, which won the 1,000-kilometre races at the Nürburgring and Spa, among other triumphs. This racing
car was fully restored by the Porsche Museum and returned to its 1983 livery. These cars were also joined by
the IMSA-spec 962 from 1984, which posted the fastest qualifying time in Daytona, and the 962 C that won
the Supercup in 1987, both of which had also been restored to their original glory. Beside them was the 962 C
with the starting number 17, the Le Mans winner in 1987. Also present was the youngest representative of
Group C, the fourth-place finisher at Le Mans in 1990: the 962 C with chassis number 962-015, from the Joest
customer team.
The reunion was also attended by then-test engineer Helmut Schmid and – joining by video – Norbert Singer,
the head of the project and metaphorical father of the legendary car. Such an assembly of experts and stars
needed a host who can meet them on an equal footing – in this case Timo Bernhard, the Le Mans winner in
2010 with AUDI and 2017 and two-time World Endurance Championship winner with Porsche. “The 956 is the
most successful racing car in the history of Porsche. It dominated everyone. And it remained a winner for an
unbelievable 12 years,” he said to kick things off. The 956 was unbeaten at Le Mans from 1982 to 1985, and
this success was seamlessly continued by its successor, the 962 C, which took first place in the 24-hour
race at the Circuit de la Sarthe in 1986 and 1987.
The car’s list of successes is indeed impressive: five manufacturer’s and team titles, 43 individual victories at
WEC races, five WEC driver’s titles, seven overall victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans (from 1982 to 1987
with the 956 and 962 and with the 962 Dauer Le Mans GT in 1994), four IMSA titles, 52 individual victories in
the IMSA races and five victories at the 24 Hours of Daytona.
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