NOT THE RESULT WE HOPED FOR
A
udi 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 rainfalls, 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 the
front of the field.