Pierre Veyron facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Pierre Veyron
Pierre Veyron in 1934.
Born	(1903-10-01)1 October 1903 Berc, France
Died	2 November 1970(1970-11-02) (aged 67) Èze, France
Nationality	French
Occupation	Grand Prix motor racing driver
Years active	1930-1953
Known for	Winner, 24 Hours of Le Mans (1939)
Awards	Legion of Honour (1945)

Pierre Veyron (born October 1, 1903 – died November 2, 1970) was a famous French Grand Prix motor racing driver. He raced cars from 1933 to 1953.

Pierre Veyron's Racing Journey

Pierre Veyron first went to university to study engineering. But his friend, Albert Divo, had a different idea! Albert was a racing driver himself and encouraged Pierre to try racing too.

Albert introduced Pierre to André Vagniez, a businessman who loved cars. André helped Pierre by buying him a special racing car, a Bugatti Type 37A. With this car, Pierre won his very first race, the 1930 Geneva Grand Prix!

Driving for Bugatti

In 1932, Jean Bugatti hired Pierre Veyron. Jean was the son of Ettore Bugatti, who started the famous Bugatti car company. Pierre became a test driver and helped design new cars for Bugatti.

Pierre also raced for the Bugatti team. He won many races, including the Berlin Avus races in 1933 and 1934. He drove a Bugatti Type 51A car in these races.

His biggest win was in 1939 at the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans race. This is a very long endurance race. Pierre and his teammate, Jean-Pierre Wimille, drove a Bugatti Type 57S Tank car to victory!

A Hero During Wartime

During World War II, France was occupied by German forces. Pierre Veyron joined the French Resistance. This was a secret group that fought against the occupation. For his bravery and service during the war, France gave him a very special award called the Legion of Honour in 1945.

Life After Racing

After the war, Pierre continued to race cars for a while. However, he started to focus more on his family. He also worked on his company, which developed new ways to drill for oil.

Pierre Veyron passed away in 1970 in Èze, France.

A Car Named in His Honor

Many years later, the modern Bugatti company decided to honor Pierre Veyron. They named one of their incredibly fast supercars after him: the Veyron 16.4. This car is known for its amazing speed and power, just like Pierre Veyron was known for his racing skills!

Pierre Veyron's Le Mans Race Results

Pierre Veyron competed in the challenging 24 Hours of Le Mans race several times. Here are his results:

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Pos.	Class Pos.
1934	Roger Labric	Roger Labric	Bugatti Type 50S	5.0	73	DNF
1935	Roger Labric	Roger Labric	Bugatti Type 50S	5.0	116	DNF
1937	Roger Labric	Roger Labric	Bugatti Type 57G Tank	5.0	130	DNF
1939	Jean-Pierre Wimille	Jean-Pierre Wimille	Bugatti Type 57C Tank	8.0	249	1st	1st
1949	Amédée Gordini Automobiles Gordini	José Scaron	Simca-Gordini T8	S1.1	88	DNF (Transmission)
1950	Manufactures d'Armes de Paris	Fernand Lacour	M.A.P. Diesel	S5.0	39	DNF (Overheating)
1951	Equipe Gordini	Georges Monneret	Gordini T15S	S1.5	130	DNF (Engine)
1952	Donald Healey Motor Co.	Yves Giraud-Cabantous	Nash-Healey	S5.0	?	DNF (Engine)
1953	Nash-Healey Inc.	Yves Giraud-Cabantous	Nash-Healey Sports	S5.0	9	DNF (Engine)