Tag Archives: Le Mans 24 Hours

Countdown to Le Mans: LMP1 Preview

15th June 2016

With all the cars finally taking to the track later today, it really feels like Le Mans 2016 has begun. We are rounding up our previews by looking at 10 talking points from the top LMP1 class on the grid.

1. Rebellion Racing
There’s a buzz around Rebellion Racing this year that has smiles on faces in the leading LMP1 Privateer camp. After engine woes in the latter part of last season the team have reverted to an earlier spec of AER twin turbo V6. That’s paid off in spades, the team finding speed, and taking advantage of an extraordinary early season set of failures for the factory LMP1s. A pair of overall podiums at Spa and Silverstone have put the #13 crew of Dominik Kraihamer, Alexandre Imperstori and the only teenage Le Mans starter in 2016. Mathéo Tuscher in the lead of the LMP1 drivers Championship coming into Le Mans. The other Rebellion meanwhile has Nick Heidfeld joined once again by Nico Prost with Nelson Piquet Jr added into the mix A Piquet and Prost together! Heidfeld and Prost have had a pair of fourth places overall at Le Mans and know how to produce the fast and reliable run that will be needed. Piquet has raced here before too, in an Aston Martin DBR9 back in GT1 days. Rebellion will have to play to their strengths, and keep to their plan – The R-One is the fastest car in a straight line in the entire field, 336 Km/h at the Test Day, but rather slower than the 1000 bhp+ hybrids over the full lap. They cannot win on pace, but will be looking to stay close enough that if those ahead suffer issues, the Rebellions could pounce!

2. Porsche Team
Porsche took a famous win last year and are back for another shot, aiming now for an 18th win to further cement the 919 Hybrid alongside Porsche Legends including the 917, 936, 936, 956, 962 and 911. The signs look good for a reliable and very fast run, and a switch back to last year’s battery pack will only enhance their likelihood of a competitive finish. As above there have been reliability woes in the early races of the season, but Porsche say those issues are now well understood and if they can display the reliability shown there in 2015 then Porsche are looking very, very good indeed.

3. Toyota Gazoo Racing
This is a race that Toyota want to win – desperately. Their Le Mans history has been peppered with ‘almosts’. Second place does not feel like an achievement to this team., it tastes of failure. So they’re back for 2016 with a brand new car, the TS050, a brand new look – the blue and white is gone, and a brand new mechanical/ hybrid package, a 2.4 litre V6 turbo replaces the much loved wailing V8, and the Super-capacitor electrical storage medium is replaced by a battery pack, battery tech having overtaken the Super-Cap’s abilities. They have been much faster already than in 2015, helped too by a move up to the maximum 8 MJ category, and led convincingly as other faltered at Spa until they too hit trouble. Those issues are now well understood, the cars had been bottoming out badly and the shocks, passed through the structure of the car, caused vital components to fail – All fixed we are told! Will they be on Pole – unlikely, will they lead the early stages, unlikely – Do they have a plan – Most certainly! Expect to see the TS050s in the mix if the Hybrids stay out of trouble.

4. Audi Sport Team Joest
Audi are chasing an astounding 14th win in 2016, and they are doing it with a radically different new R18. Before we deal with the looks of the car let’s focus on the hybrid system, now equipped with the currently de rigour battery storage medium rather than the previous mechanical flywheel. It has allowed Audi to move up top the 6MJ bracket, more hybrid energy available then and with an improved, and now uniquely to Audi, diesel fuelled primary engine. The aero work on the car can best be described as radical, the car utterly different to anything that has come before from Audi and, whilst the car is certainly fast, it is unlikely to win anyone’s vote for “most beautiful race car”. If it first to take the flag next Sunday afternoon though few will care!

5. Dunlop
Dunlop have returned to LMP1 with both Privateer teams opting to use the rubber from the boys and girls in Yellow. They are finding new pace too. Dunlop’s LMP2 rubber has proven to be remarkably long-lasting in recent years – could that provide a further edge as the Privateers look to stay close enough to the hybrids to profit from misfortune elsewhere?

6. Swiss drivers in every team
Extraordinarily every single LMP1 team in the race this year has a Swiss driver on their roster – Except Swiss flagged Rebellion Racing who have two! Audi’s Marcel Fassler, Porsche’s Neel Jani, Toyota’s Seb Bulemi and ByKolles driver Simon Trummer are joined by Mathéo Tuscher and Alexandre Imperatori. Two of the factory teams have Brit drivers too with Oliver Jarvis in the #8 Audi, Anthony Davidson in the #5 Toyota and Mike Conway in the sister #6 TS050. Oliver Webbn fly the flag in the Privateer class for the UK in the #4 ByKolles CLM

7. Regulations change for boost and fuel
LMP1’s Hybrid Regulations are all about efficiency and once again in 2016 the powers that be have reeled in the fuel allowance – down 7% on 2015. That means that Audi, for instance, are now using much less than 50% of the fuel they used at the start of the diesel era for cars that are producing faster lap times! In no small part of course that is because of the increased capabilities of the hybrid systems but there too there is a change for 2016 – As the race organisers look to try to put a brake on tumbling lap times a Le mans only restriction on the amount of hybrid boost that can be deployed in one shot has been introduced. The reality though is that the overall energy capacity of the systems has not been reduced so the cars can deploy the lower power output allowed for longer! That saw lap times at the Test Day within tenths of the times seen last year!

8. Leena Gade
Le Mans in 2016 marks the final races in the FIA WEC for one of the most recognisable faces in the paddock. Audi Sport Race Engineer Leena Gade has been with the factory outfit for a decade, and in that time has contributed to multiple major race wins, including no fewer than three Le Mans wins, and a World Championship win. She’s moving on to a management role with the Bentley Motorsport outfit, handling customer programmes with their GT3 cars. She’ll be looking to make it a nice round four wins though for ‘her’ crew, the #7 car. And for the final time the Radio Le mans crew will be able to say – Don’t second guess ‘The Gade!’

9. No third cars
One of the most noticeable changes this season is the reduction from three cars to two for the Porsche and Audi squads, this a response to the VW Gate emissions scandal with all VAG group companies forced to make cuts in programmes. It adds a frisson of uncertainty, one fewer bullet in the gun means strategy options are reduced – Will they employ one ‘Tortoise’ and one ‘Hare’ once the race settles down? We’ll see!

• ByKolles Racing Team
Last but not least is the solo effort from ByKolles Racing, the CLM P1/01 AER does battle with the Rebellion pair in the Privateer sub class. The only ever Austrian flagged LMP team at Le Mans it is, realistically, looking to run for the finish and see what that brings. The team invested in new aero for 2016 and whilst that has worked elsewhere their speed at Le Mans seems somewhat underwhelming at present. Brit Oliver Webb joins the team for 2016 and Pierre Kaffer rejoins the effort for Le Mans, the ex Audi factory pilot back from US racing commitments thus far in 2016.

To all Travel Destinations customers at Le Mans this week, we hope that you enjoy a great race. We look forward to making your reservations for Le Mans 2017 when you return.

Written by Graham Goodwin
Photography by Dailysportscar

Le Mans News

Countdown to Le Mans: LMP2 Preview

14th June 2016

With race week begun & scrutineering over we look at 9 things you should look out for in the LMP2 class

Biggest ever P2 field
3 cars is the biggest ever field of LMP2 Prototypes with the FIA WEC, ELMS, IMSA and Asian Le Mans Series all represented. Realistically at least half are capable of winning the class battle on sustained pace. All are now reliable enough to expect a finish of Le Mans doesn’t catch them out!

2. Nissan vs Honda vs Judd
There are three different engines represented in the field, and it’s likely to be the last time we see at least two of them here with a chance of winning the class. Nissan dominate in the numbers game with 20 of the 23 runners featuring their venerable but hugely effective V8. But it will cease to be a competitive proposition from next year with a ‘spec’ Gibson V8 to be on tap with more than 100 bhp more than the current crop. Similarly the BMW block-based Judd will be outgunned next season, the Rugby-built engine features in just a pair of LMP2s, the So24! Liger and the Race Performance Oreca, neither are expected to be at the sharp end of proceedings, but they’ll sound great in the midfield! The twin turbo Honda V6 meanwhile has only one taker this time out, the very Orange Ligier of Michael Shank Racing – a very accomplished outfit on their Le mans debut, Audi GT star Laurens Vanthoor is the quick man here but he may not be enough to keep them in the mix and prevent a Nissan whitewash

3. Oreca blitz testing
An Oreca 05 Nissan won the class last year and that result certainly helped a sales drive – No fewer than seven of the cars are back this year, two badged as Alpines, but those cars are identical to their Oreca siblings. And the car seems to have retained its performance advantage – For much of the Test Day, held two weeks prior to the race on the same circuit, the Oreca/ Alpine squad filled the top seven slots on the timing screens, late session efforts from Laurens Vanthoor (Ligier Honda) and Jake Dennis (Gibson Nissan) were the only runs to spoil the pattern!

4. Audi Factory drivers in P2
A trio of Audi factory drivers grace the LMP2 field, two are refugees from the cancelled third LMP1 Audi, this a victim of the fallout from the VWGate emissions scandal. Rene Rast is with he G-Drive Oreca effort, he was right in the thick of things at the Test Day and looks set to be front runner in the team’s #26 Oreca Nissan. Felipe Albuquerque is similarly inconvenienced by the lack of a third R18 this year but the Portuguese is already a race winner in LMP2, last year in the ELMS with Jota Sport and this season with a win in the opening WEC race of the season at Silverstone in ‘his’ #43 RGR By Morand Ligier Nissan; and Laurens Vanthoor, the coming man in the Audi camp. Almost peerless in GT3, he races convincingly well here last year in a Ligier Honda and will pilot a similar car this time around.

5. ESM triple crown
Extreme Speed Motorsport have swapped their 2015 Honda Power for Nissan in 2016 and have also moved the team into the Oak Racing Workshops here at Le mans from their previous in-house operation. They come to Le Mans with a unique feat in mind. The team’s solo (and still Honda engined) car triumphed overall earlier this year in both the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring – A Le Mans win would make a nice set, 2016 new addition to the team Pipo Derani was the undoubted star for the team in the US races an he’s joined by another quick Pro, Ryan Dalziel in the #31 car for the full WEC including Le Mans. One major visual difference for the #30 and #31 cars here – Strict French laws concerning alcohol sponsorship once again prevent the team from promoting Tequila Patron – the black and green livery therefore changes for a one-off outing for the cases in white and black Paul Mitchell hair products livery.

6. BR01 From Russia With Love
The Russian flagged SMP Racing squad have their pretty pair of BRO1 Nissans in the race. Designed by prolific sportscar designer Paulo Catone the car should be on the pace. The team will be super keen to bring home a result and have shuffled their squads to boost their chances with ex Peugeot factory man Nic Minassian sharing the #27 car with 2016 IndyCar star Mikhail Aleshin and semi-pro Maurizio Mediani. In the sister #37 F1 refugee Vitaly Petrov returns to Le Mans for the first time in 10 years to anchor the car alongside 2015 GTE Am winner Viktor Shaitar and team regular Krill Ladygin in an all-Russian line-up.

7. G-Drive Gibson record
Just five open-topped cars remain in the LMP2 class this year, and the #38 G-Drive car is the one most likely to feature at the sharp end of proceedings. This is the very same chassis that has raced for the the team for the past five seasons and has won this race, just two years ago with a stunning fightback drive. They almost repeated the feat last year with second place after a startlingly similar stumble at the very start of the race. Now they’re back for another crack, likely their last with the Gibson chassis. Simon Dolan, team co-owner is an ever present in the team, a massively committed non-Pro driver who truly measures himself against his Professional colleagues. His full season partner this year is another F1 refugee Giedo van der Garde who anchored the team to a race win in the opening ELMS round this season with a very quick stint. Rounding out the trio is young British Driver Jake Dennis, with van der Garde a Le Mans rookie, and also a very quick driver indeed, clocking the fastest non-Oreca time of the Test Day – These guys are still very much in the hunt!

8. Manor
Manor Motorsport’s arrival in the FIA WEC was one of the biggest stories of the beginning of the 2016 WEC season. John Booth and Graeme Lowden looked jaded buy the effort to break through in the notoriously harsh environment of the F1 paddock and look reborn now! They have one regret, that they did not initially enter two cases for the full WEC. By the time they pushed the button on their second (#45) Oreca 05 it was too late too get the car into the Le Mans 24 Hours. The last minute LMP2 driver merry go round though rather strangely sees five of the Manor six on the grid for the 24 Hours. Tor Graves stays aboard his full season #44 car where he is joined by Roberto Mehdi and Matt Rao from the sister #45 – Rao bid higher than regular #44 driver James Jakes for the LM24 seat whilst Mehri stepped in after Will Stevens took the offer of a seat with G-Drive for Le Mans only in the #26 car. The third #45 driver meanwhile, Richard Bradley, will race in the #47 KCMG Oreca!

9. KCMG Return
Back for a one-off race to defend their Le Mans win last year are Chinese team KCMG. They field the very same car, again an Oreca 05 Nissan, that took the win last year here, and two of the same drivers too. Richard Bradley has a near full season drive with Manor in an identical car and his confirmation here keeps him in with a shot of the WEC drivers title, double points are on offer for WEC runners at Le Mans. Matt Howson shared the car in a full WEC campaign with Bradley last season but this is currently set to be his only major race of the season. Tsugio Matsuda is the reigning, and three time, Super GT Champion from Japan. He knows the team, and the circuit, and could be a strong addition to KCMG’s race winning hopes.

Written by Graham Goodwin
Photography by Dailysportscar

Le Mans News

Countdown to Le Mans: GTE Am preview

8th June 2016

10 Things To Watch For In GTE Am At Le Mans 2016

The 2016 GTE Am class at Le Mans, consists of a healthy 13 entries, in a class which has created so many story lines for the race in recent years. Four marques are represented in the field, with the six full-season WEC entries being joined by four ELMS cars, an IMSA Ferrari and two Asian-based teams. The SMP Racing Ferrari which won the class last year isn’t present, but the teams and drivers present are unlikely to disappoint fans of the private runners in the GTE ranks.

Here’s 10 key storylines to follow in this year’s race:

1. Johnny O’Connell’s return
Johnny O’Connell was once a mainstay at Le Mans with Corvette Racing, winning his class four times, three of them with the American factory team, but has been an absentee since 2010. It’s clear that he’s coming back to try and put one last win on his career résumé before he hangs up his helmet. Driving for Team AAI in its second trip to the race with last year’s GTE Pro class-winning C7.R alongside Oliver Bryant and Mark Patterson, a good result could well be on the cards.

2. Welcoming a tyre war
We have a tyre war in both GTE classes, which is a welcome storyline in the race with Aston Martin’s pair of Vantages running Dunlop rubber and the rest on Michelins. For Aston’s headline WEC championship-leading #98 crew, a result could swing the whole year their way given the right conditions, as so far this year they’ve been extremely competitive, winning at Spa and finishing second at Silverstone.

3. Last year of the 458?
The Ferrari 458 Italia has been a fan favourite since its inception, with its screaming V8 engine and its striking looks, but this could well be its final ride at La Sarthe. With the turbo-charged 488 already in use in the Pro class, it’ll be the car of choice for the smaller teams very soon, leaving the 458 relatively redundant and potentially out of competition in ACO series’. Thankfully there’s still five on the entry at this year’s race to help you make the most of its potential swansong year.

4. Neilsen looking to make history
Danish female driving talent Christina Neilsen is looking to make history this weekend, as the only female driver to have won her class at both Sebring and Le Mans. After Jackie Ickx and his daughter Vanina both raced at Le Mans Neilsen is also only the second woman to take part in the race as the daughter of a former Le Mans starter. Her father Lars-Erik Nielsen took part in the race in the early 2000s and if Christina scores even a podium finish she and her father will both have achieved that honour.

5. Collard’s 22nd Le Mans
Manu Collard has become a figurehead in the Le Mans paddock over the years, competing in the race for over two decades driving for in just about every class and for fan favourite teams including Pescarolo Sport. Nowadays the Frenchman shares his driving duties in the WEC with François Perrodo and Rui Aguas in an AF Corse-run Ferrari 458, but has just as much potential to win his class at Le Mans as he did in the prime of his career.

6. Dalla Lana to looking for redemption
After crashing out of the GTE Am class lead in the final hour of last year’s Le Mans 24 Hours, Canadian gentlemen driver Paul Dalla Lana is looking to bounce back in 2016 and standon the podium.
Dalla Lana has worked so hard to improve his race-craft ten fold over the past couple of years, and it’s shown with him entering round three of the season in the WEC championship lead. After the heartbreak of 2015, a podium or win for himself and teammates Pedro Lamy and Mathias Lauda in the #98 Aston Martin would be well deserved.

7. Red hot rookies
Both Clearwater Racing and Formula Racing are racing at Le Mans this year for the first time, and as reigning champions of their respective series. Clearwater impressed last year winning the GT class in the Asian Le Mans Series with its McLaren 650S GT3, while Formula Racing claimed top honours in the ELMS GTE ranks. It’s going to be interesting to see how they both get on in their first runs at La Sarthe, and strong driver sets for both they could spring a surprise or two by Sunday morning.

8. Gulf Porsche back at Le Mans
After years of multiple cars showing up at Le Mans sporting the iconic Gulf oil colours, 2016 sees just one. Gulf Racing UK’s Porsche 911 RSR looks splendid, and will be a fan favourite not just for being the first Gulf Porsche for ten years at the race; the last being Ice Pol Racing’s GT3 RSR in 2006, but also because the team has an all British lineup of drivers, with former A1GP champion Adam Carroll being joined by Ben Barker and Mike Wainright. After a tough start to the WEC season the team will also be highly motivated to get its year back on track, with the double points on offer for the runners.

9. American invasion
2016 is turning out to be quite a landmark year for Americans at Le Mans, with the return of Ford, GTE Am features the only two all-American driver lineups in the race. Both Scudera Corsa’s Ferrari and Proton’s WeatherTech-backed Porsche combine for six of the American drivers in a year which sees 20% of the entry list made up of US-based teams. Leh Keen, Cooper MacNeil and Marc Miller will drive the Porsche, while Jeff Segal, Townsend Bell and Bill Sweedler are due to share the 458.

10. Larbre’s third seat
What should have been the car which saw Paolo Ruberti continue the search for a first Le Mans class win has now become a bit of a mystery. With Ruberti out after a hefty testing shunt left him needing surgery, there’s a big pair of shoes to fill from the team’s chosen replacement. The Larbre team, in its second year with the C7, finished the Test Day running with the quickest time from call-up Nick Catsburg, but whether he’ll join Yamagishi and Ragues remains to be seen as Jean-Phillipe Belloc also joined the team for the Test Day as a potential candidate for the third seat. Catsburg has effectively ruled himself out of contention in more than one public statement since Test Day, Belloc meanwhile looks likely to fill the vacancy, he too was quick in the car during the Test.

Preview written by Stephen Kilbey
Photography: Dailysportscar