Image Credit: Audi Media
Owing to the retirement of the leading Toyota on the last lap, the Audi R18 #8 of the last driver in the car Lucas di Grassi and his team-mates Loic Duval Jarvis made it to the podium.
Hence Audi Clinched at least one podium in each of the eighteen years that it has contested the LeMans race.
The Audi R18 #7 was promoted by one position, too. Marcel Fässler, Benoît Tréluyer and André Lotterer moved up to fourth place.
Final positions after 24 hours: 1 Porsche #2 2 Toyota #6 3 Audi #8 4 Audi #7 5 Alpine #36
Audi took positions three and four in the 24-hour race at Le Mans in front of 263,500 spectators, continuing its string of podium finishes in the iconic French endurance race.
In a dramatic race that was only decided on the last lap, Lucas di Grassi (BR), Loïc Duval (F) and Oliver Jarvis (GB) clinched third place for Audi at the last moment. Marcel Fässler (CH), André Lotterer (D) and Benoît Tréluyer (F) finished in position four. With that, Audi, in its 18th participation since the brand’s Le Mans debut in 1999, achieved its 18th podium in succession including 13 overall victories.
“Unfortunately, neither of our two cars made it over the distance without issues,” said Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. “This weekend once more showed why Le Mans is regarded as the world’s toughest endurance race. I’m proud of our squad having managed to bring both cars home. But, obviously, this is not the result we were hoping for. Congratulations to Porsche on their second victory in succession. Following a tremendous race, Toyota, on making their 18th attempt, again just barely missed finally winning Le Mans – that speaks volumes about how incredibly difficult this race is.”
Due to heavy rain falls, the field started behind the safety car for the first time in Le Mans history. Following the all-clear for the race, it took André Lotterer only a few laps to advance from grid position five to first place. However, the #7 Audi R18 lost its chance for victory as early as in the second hour when Lotterer, while leading the race, had to pit for a change of the turbocharger.
From this point on, Audi Sport Team Joest’s hopes were pinned on the #8 Audi R18 which, in spite of various incidents, kept pace with the group of the front runners throughout the night and, on Sunday morning, trailed the subsequent winners with a gap of less than two laps. A defective brake disc caused the deficit to increase to twelve laps four hours before the end of the race. As a precaution, the front brake discs were subsequently changed on the #7 “sister” car
Consequently, Audi still achieved its aim in bringing both new cars home and to score valuable points for the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) that will continue with the 6-hour race at the Nürburgring in Germany on July 24.
Results
1 Dumas/Jani/Lieb (Porsche) – 384 laps
2 Conway/Kobayashi/Sarrazin (Toyota) – 3 laps
3 di Grassi/Duval/Jarvis (Audi R18) – 12 laps
4 Fässler/Lotterer/Tréluyer (Audi R18) – 17 laps
...
13 Bernhard/Hartley/Webber (Porsche) – 38 laps
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 23): both Audi R18 cars before crossing the finish line
The penultimate race hour of the Le Mans 24 Hours went without any unscheduled stops for Audi Sport Team Joest. Lucas di Grassi in the #8 Audi R18 only pitted to refuel and continues in position four. His teammate Benoît Tréluyer handed the #7 Audi R18 #7 over to Marcel Fässler. Before the final 60 minutes, the Swiss continues running in position five.
Positions after 23 hours: 1 Toyota #5 2 Porsche #2 3 Toyota #6 4 Audi #8 5 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 22): quiet racing hour for Audi Sport Team Joest
Following unscheduled stops the hour before, routine returned to Audi Sport Team Joest. After a refueling stop at the beginning of the 22nd hour, Oliver Jarvis completed a stint without any issues and turned car #8 over to Lucas di Grassi in an unchanged position four. With a full tank and on fresh tires the Brazilian entered the penultimate hour of the race.
Shortly before, the #7 Audi R18 #7 of Benoît Tréluyer was supplied with fuel and new tires as well. In the overall classification, the car is listed in fifth place – unchanged as well.
Positions after 22 hours: 1 Toyota #5 2 Porsche #2 3 Toyota #6 4 Audi #8 5 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 21): unscheduled stops for both R18 cars
Following a defect on the front right-hand brake disc that led to further damage, the front right-hand quarter suspension of the #8 Audi R18 had to be changed as well. In spite of a time loss of 39 minutes and 24 seconds Oliver Jarvis maintained fourth position in front of the #7 sister car.
As a precaution, the two front brake discs were changed on the #7 Audi R18. The time lost in the pits was only 9 minutes and 29 seconds. Benoît Tréluyer resumed the race in position five.
Positions after 21 hours: 1 Toyota #5 2 Porsche #2 3 Toyota #6 4 Audi #8 5 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 20): #8 Audi in the pits
At 10:40, Audi Sport Team Joest had to cope with another setback: the #8 Audi R18 with Oliver Jarvis at the wheel suddenly lost speed on the track and had to come in for an unscheduled pit stop due to an issue in the area of the front axle.
Positions after 20 hours: 1 Toyota #5 2 Porsche #2 3 Toyota #6 4 Audi #8 5 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 19): “formation flight” of the two Audi R18 cars
On Sunday morning, the two Audi R18 cars of Audi Sport Team Joest at times raced around the circuit at Le Mans in a “formation flight.” In addition, driver changes were on the agenda of both cars. Oliver Jarvis took over the #8 R18 from Loïc Duval and André Lotterer the #7 R18 from Marcel Fässler. After the Swiss had previously reported vibrations over the radio, the team changed the front hood and rear cover of car #7 in the pits in order to be on the safe side. With a twelve-lap deficit to the “sister car” and an eight-lap advantage over position six, for #7 the last five hours of the race will primarily be about finishing safely in order to score valuable Championship points.
Positions after 19 hours: 1 Toyota #5 2 Toyota #6 3 Porsche #2 4 Audi #8 5 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 18): Duval with new Audi best time
In the 17th hour of the race, the group of front runners, including the two Audi cars, increased the pace. LoÏc Duval, with 3m 22.949s, marked the so far fastest race lap of an Audi R18 in the 84th Le Mans running. In the overall classification, car #8 continues to run in fourth position.
Marcel Fässler in the #7 Audi R18 has been setting consistently good lap times as well and, as a result, maintained position five at the beginning of the final quarter of the race.
Positions after 18 hours: 1 Toyota #5 2 Toyota #6 3 Porsche #2 4 Audi #8 5 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 17): Audi took advantage of safety car period for adjustments
After a sequence of incidents, the safety cars were out on track during the seventeenth hour of the race. The pit crew of Audi Sport Team Joest took advantage of the approximately 20 minutes of neutralization to perform minor set-up work on Audi R18 #7. Marcel Fässler remained in the car and maintained the fifth position throughout the hour. One position ahead was Audi R18 #8 with Loïc Duval, who experienced nothing out of the ordinary during the seventeenth hour.
Positions after 17 hours: 1 Toyota #5 2 Toyota #6 3 Porsche #2 4 Audi #8 5 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 16): still eight hours to go for Audi
With two thirds of the Le Mans race duration behind the teams, Audi is in fourth and fifth position respectively. At dawn, Lucas di Grassi only came to the pits for refueling. In the number “8,” he was fourth and handed his car over to teammate Loïc Duval shortly before 7 o’clock. One position down, Benoît Tréluyer was behind the wheel of the sister car with a deficit of seven laps. The Frenchman also had an uneventful stint in which his car only got refueled. Marcel Fässler took the car over before the last third of the race.
Positions after 16 hours: 1 Toyota #6 2 Porsche #2 3 Toyota #5 4 Audi #8 5 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 15): both Audi cars within the first five
In the fifteenth hour of the race, the two Audi R18 cars remained in the top 5 of the overall classification. Lucas di Grassi was driving Audi R18 #8 in fourth place during the dawn at 6 o’clock in the morning. On lap 226, the Brazilian had a routine pit stop for refueling.
Inside Audi R18 #7 it was still Benoît Tréluyer behind the wheel. The Frenchman also pitted for refueling on lap 226 and continued in fifth position thereafter.
Positions after 15 hours: 1 Toyota #6 2 Porsche #2 3 Toyota #5 4 Audi #8 5 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 14): Audi again in the top 5 with both cars
For the first time since the middle of the second hour of the race, both Audi R18 cars are again running within the top 5. André Lotterer improved by one position and handed the car over to Benoît Tréluyer on the 211th lap. Except for one small slip on the from straight, the Frenchman enjoyed a problem free stint and was at times the fastest driver on the circuit.
Lucas di Grassi relieved his teammate Oliver Jarvis of duty in Audi R18 #8. The Brazilian also set fast laps and maintained fourth place, remaining within striking distance of the podium.
Positions after 14 hours: 1 Toyota #6 2 Toyota #5 3 Porsche #2 4 Audi #8 5 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 13): Audi remains in positions four and six
Audi R18 #8 is back on course. Marcel Fässler missed a braking point, couldn’t engage a gear and drove electrically. Only then he could engage gears regularly again. After the halfway mark, André Lotterer got into the car and started his stint with fast laps for another comeback drive. By 4 o’clock in the morning, the car was in sixth position with a twelve-lap deficit to the leader.
The sister car was driven during the thirteenth hour by Oliver Jarvis. Audi R18 #8 was running in position four, two laps behind.
Positions after 13 hours: 1 Toyota #6 2 Porsche #2 3 Toyota #5 4 Audi #8 5 Rebellion #13 6 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 12): problems for Audi #7
Another setback for Audi R18 #7 during the Le Mans 24 Hours: Marcel Fässler successfully advanced to fifth position, but shortly thereafter he encountered a drive train problem and had to complete a very slow lap, losing about eleven minutes and dropped back to sixth position.
By halftime, Audi R18 #8 continued to circulate in fourth, with a two-lap deficit to the race leader. Oliver Jarvis took the car over from Loïc Duval on lap 172.
Positions after 12 hours: 1 Toyota #6 2 Porsche #2 3 Toyota #5 4 Audi #8 5 Rebellion #13 6 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 11): Audi continues in positions four and six
Both of the Audi R18 cars from Audi Sport Team Joest remained in positions four and six between 1 and 2 o’clock in the morning during the Le Mans 24 Hours. A large portion of the eleventh hour was spent under safety car conditions, due to oil on track in the Porsche Curves. Audi #7 took advantage of the safety car period to complete a driver change, wherein Marcel Fässler took over from Benoît Tréluyer. Shortly before 2 o’clock, the Swiss had to return to the pits, because of a front left puncture.
Positions after 11 hours: 1 Toyota #6 2 Porsche #2 3 Toyota #5 4 Audi #8 5 Rebellion #13 6 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 10): puncture on Audi R18 #8
After ten hours, the two Audi R18 cars from Audi Sport Team Joest continue to run in positions four and six in the 24-hour race in Le Mans. Audi R18 #8 lost further ground when Loïc Duval had to come into the pits at 00:20, due to a left rear puncture. By one o’clock, Audi R18 #8 was almost two laps behind the race leader.
Positions after 10 hours: 1 Toyota #6 2 Porsche #2 3 Toyota #5 4 Audi #8 5 Rebellion #13 6 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 9): Audi in fourth place at midnight
At the Le Mans 24 Hours, Audi R18 #8 moved forward one place shortly after 11 o’clock, when Porsche #1 had to undergo a long repair in its pit box. Loïc Duval took advantage of a short safety car period for a full pit stop with fuel added and tires changed. By midnight, he was one lap down from the Toyota ahead.
Audi R18 #7 improved its position up to sixth place, despite a short excursion through the gravel, which resulted in the nose of the car needing to be changed.
Positions after 9 hours: 1 Porsche #2 2 Toyota #6 3 Toyota #5 4 Audi #8 5 Rebellion #13 6 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 8): both Audi R18 cars lose time
At the 24-hour race in Le Mans, both of the Audi R18 cars had to complete unscheduled pit stops shortly before 11 o’clock in the evening. The race number lighting system, which is mandated by the regulations, was not working on both cars.
The #8 Audi R18 lost just under three minutes during the pit stop and is running one lap down after eight hours of racing. The seventh placed #7 Audi R18 has a seven lap deficit to the race leader.
Audi Sport Team Joest also utilized the time during the repair to change drivers: Loïc Duval took over the #8 and Benoît Tréluyer in the #7.
Positions after 8 hours: 1 Toyota #6 2 Porsche #1 3 Toyota #5 4 Porsche #2 5 Audi #8 6 Rebellion #13 7 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 7): positions unchanged
The seventh hour of the Le Mans 24 Hours produced no position changes whatsoever at the front of the field. Lucas di Grassi in the #8 Audi R18 continued to run in fifth place. André Lotterer in the #7 Audi R18 #7 reduced the gap to the Rebellion in front of him to one lap.
Positions after 7 hours: 1 Toyota #6 2 Porsche #1 3 Toyota #5 4 Porsche #2 5 Audi #8 6 Rebellion #13 7 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 6): #7 Audi back in the top 10
The first six hours of the 84th running of the Le Mans 24 Hours are history. And the #7 Audi made its comeback into the top 10. Marcel Fässler advanced to seventh position, still trailing the top four by six laps.
The #8 Audi continued to run among the top five that were within one lap after 93 completed laps. There, Lucas di Grassi had taken over driving duties from Oliver. At the change of the hour, the Brazilian was fifth.
Positions after 6 hours: 1 Toyota #6 2 Porsche #1 3 Toyota #5 4 Porsche #2 5 Audi #8 ... 7 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 5): business as usual
Both cars of Audi Sport Team Joest reeled off lap by lap with consistently good times in the fifth hour of the race. Oliver Jarvis kept the #8 Audi within striking distance of the front. However, due to a routine stop shortly before the end of the hour, at which the left door was additionally changed, the Briton meanwhile dropped from third to fifth place.
The #7 Audi driven by Marcel Fässler continued to recover one position after the other. Following 76 laps, the Swiss was running in position 14.
Positions after 5 hour: 1 Toyota #6 2 Porsche #2 3 Porsche #1 4 Toyota #5 5 Audi #8 ... 14 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 4): Audi remains in contention for the top spot
The three-way battle between Audi, Porsche and Toyota for the top continued to dominate the fourth hour of the race. After 49 laps, Loïc Duval turned over the #8 Audi to Oliver Jarvis. At the top of the hour, the Briton, with a 45-second deficit, was in position 3. Following his stint, Duval reported: “Our R18 is running impeccably. I had a number of great duels out there.”
Benoît Tréluyer continued his recovery in the #7 Audi on a track that remained dry. Within one hour, he improved from 51st to 23rd overall, before letting Marcel Fässler take his place in the cockpit. Both Audi cars only made routine pit stops.
Positions after 4 hours: 1 Porsche #1 2 Toyota #6 3 Audi #8 4 Porsche #2 5 Toyota #5... 23 Audi #7
Hollywood stars visit Audi at Le Mans
Hollywood stars in the pits, the new Audi TT RS on the race track, Mattias Ekström in the rally cross Audi and many other thrilling moments: off the race track, there was a lot going on at the Le Mans 24 Hours as well.
Jason Statham is a guest of Audi’s at Le Mans
A touch of Hollywood at Le Mans: In the garage of Audi Sport Team Joest, action hero Jason Statham watched the start of the Le Mans 24 Hours for which Brad Pitt officially waved the flag. The night before, Keanu Reeves had received an exclusive tour of the Audi garage by Le Mans record winner Tom Kristensen. Other guests of Audi’s watching the 84th running of the iconic French endurance race included actors Mathieu Kassovitz and Riccardo Scamarico, actress Valeria Solarino and singer Andreas Bourani.
Adrien Tambay visits colleagues from the WEC
Adrien Tambay took a brief trip to Le Mans on Thursday to wish his fellow drivers from the WEC good luck for the race and to gather a few current impressions himself. At a Le Mans event held this weekend at the newly opened Audi City Paris on Place du Marché St-Honoré, he shared them with the guests there, as did Nico Müller, Edoardo Mortara and Mike Rockenfeller at the Audi Cities in Berlin, Beijing and Moscow.
Soccer mania also at Le Mans
The UEFA European Championship was a hot topic at Le Mans too. André Lotterer together with most of the mechanics of Audi Sport Team Joest kept his fingers crossed for the German team in the match against Poland. During the numerous interruptions of the qualifying session on Thursday the opportunity to watch the match live on television for a few minutes behind the garage even presented itself.
Benoît Treluyer and Loïc Duval previously witnessed the 2-0 victory of their Équipe Tricolore against Albania on Wednesday and Marcel Fässler was watching his compatriots play against Romania in the match that ended in a 1-1 draw.
Mattias Ekström thrills guests in rally cross Audi
In 2007, Mattias Ekström was driving an Audi R10 TDI on the test day at Le Mans. In 2008, he won the DTM race at Circuit Bugatti. Now the Swede returned to Le Mans with a new mission. During the 24-hour race he took guests for a ride in his near-600-hp Audi S1 EKS RX Quattro from the FIA World Rallycross Championship. “Anyone who’s ever been a passenger in our S1 knows why our hashtag is #welovequattro,” says Ekström.
Tom Kristensen expert at Eurosport
A new experience for Tom Kristensen: The record winner of the Le Mans 24 Hours for the first time served as an expert to the television channel Eurosport in the pit lane at the classic French endurance race. Beyond this commitment “Tom K.,” as usual, had an extremely busy schedule at Le Mans again.
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 3): three-way battle at the front
In the third hour, a thrilling three-way battle ensued between the fastest hybrid sports cars from Audi, Porsche and Toyota. At times, the three manufacturers were within three seconds of each other.
At 18:00 Loïc Duval in the #8 Audi with a 21-second deficit maintained fourth position. Benoît Tréluyer in the #7 Audi with consistently fast lap times improved to 51 place overall.
Positions after 3 hours: 1 Porsche #1 2 Toyota #6 3 Audi #8 4 Toyota #5 5 Porsche #2 ... 51 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 2): #8 Audi leading some of the time, #7 Audi in the pits
Shortly after the race was released, the track began to dry at the beginning of the second hour. André Lotterer was the first driver from the group of front runners to get slicks while Loïc Duval pitted a lap later as well. After all top cars had switched from wets to slicks, the #7 Audi was clearly leading before Lotterer, at 16:20, had to pit for changing the turbocharger, which took about 20 minutes. With a six-lap deficit #7 – now with Benoît Tréluyer at the wheel – resumed the race in position 59.
Loïc Duval in the #8 Audi took the lead for some of the time but during the second hour dropped back to fourth position.
Positions after 2 hours: 1 Toyota #6 2 Toyota #5 3 Porsche #1 4 Audi #8 5 Porsche #2 ... 58 Audi #7
Le Mans 24 Hours (hour 1): start behind the safety cars
Due to heavy rain, the 84th running of the Le Mans 24 Hours started behind the safety cars – for the first time in the history of the race. Because of water on the track and extremely poor visibility race control only released the race after 52 minutes. On the first two flying laps, André Lotterer and Loïc Duval improved to positions four and five.
Positions after 1 hour: Toyota #6 2 Porsche #2 3 Porsche #1 4 Audi #7 5 Audi #2 6 Toyota #5
Before the Le Mans 24 Hours the weather went haywire. That is why the starting grid has little indicative value. Quotes before the most important endurance race of the year.
Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich (Head of Audi Motorsport): “The weather conditions on both qualifying days were really extreme this year. We had only brief periods in which the track was dry and offered good grip. On parts of the track it was raining nearly continuously and there were many interruptions. As a result, we lost some time and weren’t able to do all the things we’d been planning to do. In addition, we weren’t out on track with both cars when it was possible to set good times. Consequently, we can’t tell what would have been possible for us on a dry track. We need to accept that and concentrate on the race. Good qualifying results are always nice and good motivation for the team – but for the race their relevance is not that great.”
Ralf Jüttner (Team Director Audi Sport Team Joest): “I can’t remember us ever having had such conditions on the qualifying days at Le Mans. Rain is okay – but if it’s inconsistent it’s a little difficult to do a decent job. To claim that we’re optimally prepared would be a bit of an exaggeration. But I don’t think anyone up and down the pit lane can say that about themselves. Now we have to trust our Le Mans experience and build on that. The performance delivered by the mechanics here up to now has to be emphasized, for instance the repair on our car number ‘8.’ It normally takes five hours and the guys managed it in three hours and 20 minutes and, as a result, gained some valuable track time.”
Marcel Fässler (Audi R18 #7): “Due to the constantly changing weather, it wasn’t easy to get into a rhythm and build the resulting confidence. To find a perfect set-up we’re still lacking some kilometers on a dry track – but everyone has to cope with that. On the test day, we saw that our car fits this track well. The competition will be fierce and the spectators can look forward to a thrilling race. We’re going to try our best.”
André Lotterer (Audi R18 #7): “That surely wasn’t the easiest Le Mans preparation but the conditions were similarly difficult for everyone, although some may have caught a better time in the cockpit than others. I had little luck on both days but was still able to set the best time with our car. But that’s not what we focused on. For us it was important to try out as much with the car as possible in order to be well prepared. We managed to do that.”
Benoît Tréluyer (Audi R18 #7): “Our car was fast from the beginning but the conditions were difficult. We changed the set-up a little but that made us somewhat slower. That’s why we set up our Audi for Thursday once more. It felt very good on a wet track and when it began to dry off, handling remained stable. That’s why we’re starting the race with confidence. The lap times don’t show where we really stand yet.”
...notes from STP