It’s a strange combination, but it’s true that Formula 1 team boss Eddie Jordan raced at Le Mans featuring BMW Australia on the banner racing an M1 alongside Pink Floyd’s manager of all people.
A beloved member of the Formula 1 paddock during his team ownership spell between 1991 and 2005, Jordan also raced during the 1970s until the early 1980s when his business skills were used to build a successful outfit in junior formulas.
Steve O’Rourke managed Pink Floyd and fuelled his passion for motorsport by forming a squad called EMKA Racing in 1980 coined by combining the names of his daughters Emma and Katheryn.
Before Pink Floyd’s stardom, O’Rourke was an amateur racer until the band required more attention the bigger it got, but by the 1980s scheduling ensured he was able to return to the track.
O’Rourke and Jordan were joined by the experienced Derek Bell for a trip to Le Mans, but it proved troublesome for the trio racing a BMW M1 in Group 5 specification.
What occurred was a fuel injection problem at the 22 hour mark leading to a disappointing DNF.
However, the windscreen banner on the M1 featured BMW Australia in what is a strange scenario due in part as the driver line-up didn’t feature a representative from down under.
O’Rourke returned on numerous occasions to La Sarthe, finishing a best of fourth partnered by long-time co-driver Tim Sugden and American Bill Auberlen in 1998 to finish fourth outright piloting a McLaren F1 GTR.
In fact, noted revhead and drummer for Pink Floyd, Nick Mason was also a regular at Le Mans generally competing against his manager.
O’Rourke passed away in 2003, while Jordan was still a team owner in Formula 1 of his own eponymous squad.
The Jordan Formula 1 team was always an underdog leading to the start of many careers both off and on the track, notably a driver by the name of Michael Schumacher.