The 72nd edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, scheduled for 12-13 June 2004, did not promise to be particularly interesting, also due to the absence of the works teams. Instead, an exciting race came out, thanks to the rivalry of the three private Audi teams. It was the team of Japanese importer Kazumichi Goh that came out on top, and Tom Kristensen scored his fifth consecutive victory in Le Mans. Capello and Ara were the other two drivers of the winning crew, which preceded Herbert / Davies / Smith with the Audi of the Veloqx team and Lehto / Pirro / Werner, with Team Champion’s Audi. Goh was also the first Japanese privately owned team to win at Le Mans.