For the fifth consecutive year I took part in the most important endurance race of the world, and the more times I race this, the most I like it. Once again, we were at the top until the last minute but this is Le Mans, a race where you not only need to be competitive but also lucky to win. Having won this race a couple of years ago, it is easier to say that next year we will try again. I do know it is possible as Peugeot is every year more and more competitive and I'm sure we will have options. Le Mans is a race that after 24 hours it might be decided just by seconds, and this year it was a matter of thirteen seconds, a race full of strategy, teamwork, luck ... and this is why it is so special.
The days before the race are very special because the atmosphere is phenomenal and thousands of fans arrive from everywhere. This time I took part in the qualifying and I quickly realised it would be very competitive with six cars separated by five tenths. When the race started, we saw that Audi was quicker but Peugeot was more efficient, so the time Audi was winning during the race we were able to recover it at the pit stops.
I made three very long shifts, all in different circumstances. The first consisted of more than three hours from nine to m to midnight and just with the sunset. At that time, all the crowd starts preparing dinner and light barbecue, this creates a kind of smoke on the track which combined with the sunset makes the concentration a very important skill. During this shift there was also the spectacular second crash by Audi and for more than an hour and a half, I drove with the safety car. As the pace was slower, I had time to realise the hard work that has to be done to clean the track and is really impressive. My second shift was about five o'clock and with the sunrise making driving a bit difficult as all the sun comes directly to your face, but we were fighting for the top positions so every lap was important.
When I was told that my last shift will coincide with the end of the race, I decided to take a nap to rest and prepare for that as at that moment, the victory was still an option, but when I was going to the motorhome, I heard the commentator announced that Wurz had had an accident. Unfortunately, the victory was slipping from our hands. However, we decided to keep fighting until the end as you never know what can happen in Le Mans. My last shift last again for almost three hours. I have to admit I was more focused on the fight between Audi and Peugeot for the top position than myself. It was nice to be driving right at the end of the race, but I could not compare this with 2009 when I crossed the finish line in the first position.
However, I always like to be positive and I would like to highlight that Peugeot was very reliable. We have been working hard all this year round and to be able to finish the three cars (in quite remarkable positions again) shows that we are working in the right direction.
At the moment we are leaders of the International Le Mans Series (ILMS), a competition that will be more important next year when Le Mans 24 Hours would be part of this new world championship of endurance. This will be the equivalent of F1 in endurance, and team that proves more consistent throughout the season, will win. Winning Le Mans will still be very special, but I think the championship itself will also get more international recognition and prestige when this race is added to the calendar.
So there is no time to lose and I only think about next season. Peugeot has shown once again that we can win again Le Mans.
See you soon!
Marc Gene
The days before the race are very special because the atmosphere is phenomenal and thousands of fans arrive from everywhere. This time I took part in the qualifying and I quickly realised it would be very competitive with six cars separated by five tenths. When the race started, we saw that Audi was quicker but Peugeot was more efficient, so the time Audi was winning during the race we were able to recover it at the pit stops.
I made three very long shifts, all in different circumstances. The first consisted of more than three hours from nine to m to midnight and just with the sunset. At that time, all the crowd starts preparing dinner and light barbecue, this creates a kind of smoke on the track which combined with the sunset makes the concentration a very important skill. During this shift there was also the spectacular second crash by Audi and for more than an hour and a half, I drove with the safety car. As the pace was slower, I had time to realise the hard work that has to be done to clean the track and is really impressive. My second shift was about five o'clock and with the sunrise making driving a bit difficult as all the sun comes directly to your face, but we were fighting for the top positions so every lap was important.
When I was told that my last shift will coincide with the end of the race, I decided to take a nap to rest and prepare for that as at that moment, the victory was still an option, but when I was going to the motorhome, I heard the commentator announced that Wurz had had an accident. Unfortunately, the victory was slipping from our hands. However, we decided to keep fighting until the end as you never know what can happen in Le Mans. My last shift last again for almost three hours. I have to admit I was more focused on the fight between Audi and Peugeot for the top position than myself. It was nice to be driving right at the end of the race, but I could not compare this with 2009 when I crossed the finish line in the first position.
However, I always like to be positive and I would like to highlight that Peugeot was very reliable. We have been working hard all this year round and to be able to finish the three cars (in quite remarkable positions again) shows that we are working in the right direction.
At the moment we are leaders of the International Le Mans Series (ILMS), a competition that will be more important next year when Le Mans 24 Hours would be part of this new world championship of endurance. This will be the equivalent of F1 in endurance, and team that proves more consistent throughout the season, will win. Winning Le Mans will still be very special, but I think the championship itself will also get more international recognition and prestige when this race is added to the calendar.
So there is no time to lose and I only think about next season. Peugeot has shown once again that we can win again Le Mans.
See you soon!
Marc Gene