Cunningham. The American dream at Le Mans

  • 01 November 2023
  • 2 min read
  • 5 images
Cunningham. The American dream at Le Mans image

Photo credit: The Collier Collection, Revs Institute, Wheelsage

Briggs Cunningham, the son of a wealthy entrepreneur from Cincinnati, developed the idea of establishing his racing team in the late 1930s, primarily due to his connection with the Collier family, with whom he participated in the 1939 Le Mans 24-hour race, driving an MG. The Colliers, who are prominent collectors today, were the founders of the Automobile Racing Club of America, later renamed the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) in 1944. Cunningham began his journey, eventually becoming an automobile constructor under his own name, in the post-World War II era. He began with a hybrid called the “Bumerc” (that combined a Buick 8V engine with a Mercedes-Benz chassis) and later with an MG TC and a Ferrari 166.

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