GP2 surbaissée “tank”. Although showing its age, the 3-litre engine had been tuned to now put out 96 bhp. It was driven by works drivers Robert Laly and Louis Rigal. As before the team also entered a pair of smaller 1.1-litre CC4 cars. The biggest car in the field, by engine volume and stature was a Stutz BB Blackhawk. Its 5-litre engine produced 125 bhp and the car had been winning many races in the American AAA racing series. It was entered by Charles Terres Weymann, the Paris-based American car-distributor and aviator and driven by Le Mans veterans Édouard Brisson and Robert Bloch formerly of Lorraine-Dietrich. After a promising debut in the 1925 race, Chrysler returned with a big four-car team, once again entered by its French distributor, the Grand Garage St Didier Paris. The “72” was the latest version of the same Chrysler Six but had a bigger 4.1-litre sidevalve engine that developed 85 bhp. The team hired a squad of grand-prix drivers: Henri Stoffel (1925 Chrysler driver) was with dual race-winner André Rossignol, up-and-coming race-winner Louis Chiron ran with Cyril de Vere, Conte “Freddie” Zehender was paired with Jacques Ledure while the Cantacuzino brothers (Parisian-resident Romanian aristocrats) had the fourth car. Alfa Romeo had been vying with Bugatti for top Grand Prix honours in the mid-1920s. In sports-car racing they were also proving to be the team to beat with the fantastic new design from Vittorio Jano. The 6C-1500 Super Sport dominated Italian races, including winning the new Mille Miglia event. The supercharged 1.5-litre version only put out 75 bhp but gave a top speed of 140 kp/h (85 mph). The Russian émigrée Count Boris Ivanowski entered one for the race. However, the ACO scrutineers rejected it, saying it was “too racy” with too many standard components of a touring car removed to be eligible. Itala’s best racing days were pre-war, but two cars came to Le Mans for the manufacturer’s only appearance. The Tipo 65 had a twin-cam 2-litre engine producing 70 bhp and capable of 130 kp/h (80 mph). Guy Benoist, winner of four Grand Prix in 1927 was partnered with former Chenard-Walcker driver Christian Dauvergne, while the two French nom-de-plumes “Sabipa” and “Christian” drove the other car. Like Itala, the British Lagonda company had been racing since before the war. The new 2-litre Speed Model had been very successful in 1927. It had a top