The all-female Iron Dames line-up of Sarah Bovy, Rahel Frey and Michelle Gatting drove a brilliant race in the #85 Porsche 911 RSR-19, in front of a huge and passionate crowd celebrating a landmark anniversary in recognition of 100 years of endurance racing on the Circuit de la Sarthe.
The LMGTE AM race was one of the closest fights, with four cars locked in an intense battle for the entire 24 hours.
The pink crew made the most of their start with no room for mistakes for anyone and quickly fought at the front, with the lead changing hands several times as the race ebbed and flowed, with Safety Cars, yellow flags, slow zones and track evolution all coming into play.
The race was hotly contested in the LMGTE Am class, with the Iron Dames playing the leading roles stint after stint. They fought for victory against the #33 Corvette Racing entry and the #25 ORT by TF Aston Martin.
A final pitstop with a change of brakes inside the 24th and decisive hour dropped them back to fourth place, losing track position to the #86 GR Racing Porsche. As fate intervened, the pink car was denied a top three finish to come home fourth.
The 2023 Le Mans 24 Hours was a tough one for Iron Dame, Doriane Pin, as her #63 Oreca LMP2 had to be retired. Taking on the second stint from Daniil Kyat, while the legendary track was hit by adverse weather, Doriane managed the conditions to perfection. She continued a remarkable comeback started by Daniil from P22 when air intake and bodywork issues, caused by debris from lap one, prompted a pair of early pitstops.
Unfortunately, when chances seemed brighter for a podium battle, Kvyat lost control in the Porsche Curves, making multiple impacts with the barriers. The driver emerged from the incident unscathed, but was forced to retire the #63 with severe damage. By Melissa Warren
