Audi win their 13th Le Mans 24 Hours

Le Mans action (photo by Melissa Warren)The 2014 24 Hours of Le Mans provided an exciting race, with numerous ups and downs for the crowd of 263,300 spectators and it was Audi once again,

claiming a 13th victory, thanks to drivers Tréluyer, Fässler and Lotterer (third success for this trio at Le Mans), part of a 1-2 finish this year.

In LM P2, the Zytek Z11SN-Nissan of Dolan, Tincknell and Turvey took the win. Ferrari were victorious in LM GTE Pro (Fisichella, Bruni, Vilander) and Aston Martin took the spoils in LM GTE Am (Poulsen, Thiim, Heinemeier-Hansson).

LMP1

Manufacturers and teams can spend the entire year preparing for Le Mans, but nothing goes as planned. Saturday, after only 90 minutes of racing, a heavy downpour threw the Mulsanne Straight into disarray, leading to a chain of accidents terminally affecting the no 3 Audi driven by Marco Bonanomi and seriously slowing the progress of the no 8 Toyota, driven by Nicolas Lapierre.

When the weather improved, victory for a long time seemed destined for the no 7 Toyota, which at the halfway point had nearly a lap advantage on second place. But just a few minutes later, the Japanese prototype came to a stop at Arnage with electrical problems. “It tears my heart out…I don’t know what to say,” was all, that driver Kazuki Nakajima could muster.

From then, fans could start believing in a 10th win for Tom Kristensen, enjoying a solid lead with teammates Lucas di Grassi and the impressive Marc Gené, who was not supposed to drive this year (the Spanish driver was called in to replace Loïc Duval following the accident from Wednesday evening), was incredibly quick in the Audi R18 e-tron Quattro. Then, a little after 11 am, the no 1 Audi came to a stop on the Mulsanne Straight, then got going again like nothing was wrong, then a moment later slowed again …turbo issues.

Le Mans action (photo by Melissa Warren)Le Mans action (photo by Melissa Warren)Le Mans action (photo by Melissa Warren)Le Mans action (photo by Melissa Warren)An incredible sight for its big return to the top class, Porsche was in the lead and what followed was a tight battle measured in tenths between Mark Webber and André Lotterer.

With only two hours to go, mechanical issues for the Porsche forced retirement. Although the Stuttgart marque goes home empty handed, their good performance will be noticed by many. Porsche will be back next year.

From this carnage, the no 2 Audi driven by Fässler-Lotterer-Tréluyer emerged in the lead, although they had suffered during the night with a turbo problem. The trio claimed their third victory and Audi’s 13th.

In second place, the no 1 Audi finished three laps back while Toyota came home with a podium for Davidson-Lapierre-Buemi. In fourth, was no 12, Rebellion Racing driven by Prost-Heidfeld-Beche.

LM P2

The winning LM P2, the Zytek driven by Dolan-Tincknell-Turvey (Oliver Turvey, who was called up on Thursday to replace Marc Gené) finished fifth overall. The Ligier JS P2 of Badey-Thiriet-Gommendy came home second, a disappointing result as the new Onroak Automotive dominated the majority of the race. The Alpine of Panciatici-Webb-Chatin completed the podium.

LM GTE Pro

Every year, the LM GTE Pro battle is one of the most exciting parts of the race. This year, fans once again saw a great race between the four manufacturers entered: Ferrari, Porsche, Corvette and Aston Martin. Without a doubt, the driver squad to beat in this 82nd edition of the race was that of the no 51 AF Corse Ferrari. Gianmaria Bruni, Toni Vilander and Giancarlo Fisichella were strong against the charging Corvette in the night and then Aston Martin in the morning. This is the second time the all-star trio claimed the class victory for the Italian marque at Le Mans, following up on their success in 2012. Gianmaria Bruni becomes a three-time winner in GT while Giancarlo Fisichella and Toni Vilander now have two wins a piece.

Le Mans action (photo by Melissa Warren)Le Mans action (photo by Melissa Warren)Le Mans action (photo by Melissa Warren)Le Mans action (photo by Melissa Warren)Le Mans action (photo by Melissa Warren)The Corvette team showed promise. For their first time at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the new C7.R showed good performance and competitiveness. Although the no 73 of Jan Magnussen, Jordan Taylor and Antonio García was spared major issues, the no 74 of Oliver Gavin, Tommy Milner and Richard Westbrook had a more difficult race. Having fought for the win they finished only a lap behind the winning Ferrari 458.

Aston Martin Racing made an impression but the only V8 Vantage to take the start in LM GTE Pro (the No. 99 withdrew after qualifying) was unable to rally to the finish. Darren Turner, Stefan Mücke and Bruno Senna delivered a great battle until the 18th hour when the V8 Vantage gave up the ghost. Consolation prize, and a telling achievement, for the no 97 Aston Martin is its fastest race lap: 3:53.763.

In the Team Porsche Manthey clan, the two 911 GT3-RSR entries were never in a position to score the class win, likely due to a deficit in top speed. Nevertheless, the reliability of the no 92 gave drivers Marco Holzer, Frédéric Makowiecki and Richard Lietz a third place finish while the sister car (no 91) finished the day with a 30 lap deficit following major mechanical issues.

RAM Racing’s debut at the 24 Hours of Le Mans was unsuccessful for Dan Shufflebottom’s team. The Ferrari 458 Italia of Matt Griffin, Álvaro Parente and Federico Leo retired after 140 laps.

LM GTE Am

Le Mans action (photo by Melissa Warren)In the LM GTE Am class, the no 95 Aston Martin held off the impressive AF Corse armada of six cars. Kristian Poulsen, David Heinemeier Hansson and Nicki Thiim took home the spoils, three laps ahead of the no 88 Proton Competition Porsche (Ried-Bachler-Al Qubaisi) and the no 61 AF Corse Ferrari 458 Italia. The no 77 Porsche of Dempsey, Long and Foster finished 22nd overall and fifth in class. Barthez, Ayari, Pons (Ferrari no 58) took 27th overall and ninth in class, while Hallyday, Narac, Armindo (Porsche no 76) took 29th overall and 11th in class.

56th Garage

It was a short-lived appearance for the Nissan ZEOD RC, as it was only able to complete five laps of the Circuit de La Sarthe before retiring.

The third round of the FIA World Endurance Championship, the 24 Hours of Le Mans was the race not to miss, as points counted double. The next race on the calendar will be held at Austin, Texas (USA), in September 2014.

Results

1 2 Audi Sport Team Joest FÄSSLER / LOTTERER / TRÉLUYER Audi R18 e-tron quattro LMP1 – H M 379

2 1 Audi Sport Team Joest DI GRASSI / GENÉ / KRISTENSEN Audi R18 e-tron quattro LMP1 – H M 376

3 8 Toyota Racing DAVIDSON / LAPIERRE / BUEMI Toyota TS 040 – Hybrid LMP1 – H M 374

4 12 Rebellion Racing PROST / HEIDFELD / BECHE Rebellion R-One – Toyota LMP1 – L M 360

5 38 Jota Sport DOLAN / TINCKNELL / TURVEY Zytek Z11SN – Nissan LMP2 D 356

6 46 Thiriet By TDS Racing THIRIET / BADEY / GOMMENDY Ligier JS P2 – Nissan LMP2 D 355

7 36 Signatech Alpine CHATIN / PANCIATICI / WEBB Alpine A450b – Nissan LMP2 D 355

8 24 Sebastien Loeb Racing RAST / CHAROUZ / CAPILLAIRE Oreca 03R – Nissan LMP2 M 354

9 35 OAK Racing BRUNDLE / MARDENBOROUGH / SHULZHITSKIY Ligier – Nissan LMP2 D 354

10 43 Newblood By Morand Racing KLIEN / HIRSCH / BRANDELA Morgan – Judd LMP2 D 352

11 33 OAK Racing – Team Asia CHENG / TUNG / FONG Ligier JS P2 – HPD LMP2 M 347

12 34 Race Performance FREY / MAILLEUX / LANCASTER Oreca 03R – Judd LMP2 D 342

13 51 AF Corse BRUNI / VILANDER / FISICHELLA Ferrari 458 Italia LMGTE Pro M 339

14 73 Corvette Racing MAGNUSSEN / GARCIA / TAYLOR Chevrolet Corvette – C7 LMGTE Pro M 338

15 92 Porsche Team Manthey HOLZER / MAKOWIECKI / LIETZ Porsche 911 RSR LMGTE Pro M 337

16 29 Pegasus Racing SCHELL / LEUTWILER / ROUSSEL Morgan – Nissan LMP2 D 336

17 95 Aston Martin Racing POULSEN / HEINEMEIER-HANSSON / THIIM Aston Martin Vantage V8 LMGTE Am M 334

18 74 Corvette Racing GAVIN / MILNER / WESTBROOK Chevrolet Corvette – C7 LMGTE Pro M 333

19 88 Proton Competition RIED / BACHLER / AL QUBAISI Porsche 911 RSR LMGTE Am M 332

20 61 AF Corse PEREZ-COMPANC / CIOCI / VENTURI Ferrari 458 Italia LMGTE Am M 331

21 90 8 Star Motorsports MONTECALVO / RODA / RUBERTI Ferrari 458 Italia LMGTE Am M 330

22 77 Dempsey Racing – Proton DEMPSEY / FOSTER / LONG Porsche 911 RSR LMGTE Am M 329

23 42 Caterham Racing KIMBER-SMITH / McMURRY / DYSON Zytek Z11SN – Nissan LMP2 D 329

24 98 Aston Martin Racing DALLA LANA / LAMY / NYGAARD Aston Martin Vantage V8 LMGTE Am M 329

25 66 JMW Motorsport AL FAISAL / NEIMAN / PUMPELLY Ferrari 458 Italia LMGTE Am M 327

26 70 Team Taisan NAKANO / EHRET / RICH Ferrari 458 Italia LMGTE Am M 327 24:04’38.095 52 Laps

27 58 Team Sofrev ASP BARTHEZ / PONS / AYARI Ferrari 458 Italia LMGTE Am M 325

28 57 Krohn Racing KROHN / JÖNSSON / COLLINS Ferrari 458 Italia LMGTE Am M 324

29 76 IMSA Performance Matmut NARAC / ARMINDO / HALLYDAY Porsche 911 GT3 RSR LMGTE Am M 323

30 53 RAM Racing MOWLEM / PATTERSON / HAMILTON Ferrari 458 Italia LMGTE Am M 319

31 79 Prospeed Competition MacNEIL / BLEEKEMOLEN Porsche 911 GT3 RSR LMGTE Pro M 319

32 67 IMSA Performance Matmut MARIS / MERLIN / HELARY Porsche 911 GT3 RSR LMGTE Am M 317

33 97 Aston Martin Racing TURNER / MÜCKE / SENNA Aston Martin Vantage V8 LMGTE Pro M 310

34 91 Porsche Team Manthey PILET / BERGMEISTER / TANDY Porsche 911 RSR LMGTE Pro M 309

35 27 SMP Racing ZLOBIN / SALO / LADYGIN Oreca 03R – Nissan LMP2 M 303

36 62 AF Corse MALLEGOL / BACHELIER / BLANK Ferrari 458 Italia LMGTE Am M 295

Not classified

14 Porsche Team DUMAS / JANI / LIEB Porsche 919 Hybrid LMP1 – H M 348

20 Porsche Team BERNHARD / WEBBER / HARTLEY Porsche 919 Hybrid LMP1 – H M 346

50 Larbre Competition RAGUES / TAYLOR / IHARA Morgan – Judd LMP2 M 341

Retired

7 Toyota Racing WURZ / SARRAZIN / NAKAJIMA Toyota TS 040 – Hybrid LMP1 – H M 219

72 SMP Racing BERTOLINI / SHAITAR / BASOV Ferrari 458 Italia LMGTE Am M 196

75 Prospeed Competition PERRODO / COLLARD / PALTTALA Porsche 911 GT3 RSR LMGTE Am M 194

52 RAM Racing GRIFFIN / PARENTE / LEO Ferrari 458 Italia LMGTE Pro M 140

26 G-Drive Racing RUSINOV / PLA / CANAL Morgan – Nissan LMP2 D 120

60 AF Corse MANN / CASÉ / GIAMMARIA Ferrari 458 Italia LMGTE Am M 115

47 KCMG HOWSON / BRADLEY / IMPERATORI Oreca 03R – Nissan LMP2 D 87

13 Rebellion Racing KRAIHAMER / BELICCHI / LEIMER Rebellion R-One – Toyota LMP1 – L M 73

48 Murphy Prototypes BERTHON / GONZALEZ / CHANDHOK Oreca 03R – Nissan LMP2 D 73

41 Greaves Motorsport MUNEMMAN / LATIF / WINSLOW Zytek Z11SN – Nissan LMP2 D 31

71 AF Corse RIGON / KAFFER / BERETTA Ferrari 458 Italia LMGTE Pro M 28

3 Audi Sport Team Joest ALBUQUERQUE / BONANOMI / JARVIS Audi R18 e-tron quattro LMP1 – H M 25

81 AF Corse WYATT / RUGOLO / BIRD Ferrari 458 Italia LMGTE Am M 22

37 SMP Racing LADYGIN / MINASSIAN / MEDIANI Oreca 03R – Nissan LMP2 M 9

0 Nissan Motorsports Global ORDOÑEZ / REIP / MOTOYAMA Nissan ZEOD RC CDNT M 5 

 

 

  By Melissa Warren

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