This represents Corvette's first class pole at Le Mans
Corvette
Aston Martin
Spyker
Risi/Krohn
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Corvette
LE MANS, France, June 12, 2008 – Corvette Racing won the GT1 pole at the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the first time as Jan Magnussen set the pace in tonight's final qualifying session. Magnussen's 3:47.669 lap time in the No. 63 Compuware Corvette C6.R was the quickest in the GT1 division, while Oliver Gavin qualified the No. 64 Compuware Corvette C6.R third in the category at 3:48.539.
"It was a really good lap," said Magnussen. "We've hit on something good, and we just need to work on the setup in small steps."
Predictions for evening showers in the Loire Valley proved to be inaccurate, but a flurry of red flags interrupted the first hours of qualifying and practice. The first session, scheduled to run from 7 to 9 p.m., lost a total of 52 minutes to two red flags. Magnussen and Gavin both turned their fast times on their first flying laps at the start of the night qualifying session at 9:45 p.m.
"It didn't start off too well because we were all packed together," Magnussen recalled. "I thought I'd be able to pass two GT2 cars in front of me on my out lap, but I didn't catch them until Tertre Rouge on my first flyer. I lost some time on the straightaway, but just as I was starting to get angry, a prototype whipped past me. I got into his slipstream and got back all of the time I'd lost!"
Magnussen's pole-winning time was 4.461 seconds faster than the C6.R's qualifying pace in 2007. Last year the top Corvette qualified at 3:52.130, putting it third in the GT1 field.
"Winning the pole at Le Mans is historic, but at some point in time it was also inevitable," said Corvette Racing program manager Doug Fehan. "It's a testament to the team's perseverance, dedication to the mission, flawless preparation, and most of all, to GM management's belief in the value of this program. That commitment has allowed Corvette Racing to compete here at Le Mans for nine consecutive years, and that continuity is what produces success.
"The Corvettes' improvement in performance is attributable not only to the guys who work on the cars, but also the engineers who develop the chassis and aerodynamics, our partners at Michelin, and Katech, which has been our partner on engine development since the program's inception. Everybody knew they had to put their shoulder to the wheel this year. We weren't happy with the outcome last year, and I think tonight we showed just how unhappy we were."
The last time Corvette won a class pole at Le Mans was in 1976 when John Greenwood set the fast time in the IMSA class with a 3:54-second lap. Chicanes were subsequently installed on the course to slow the cars.
"It's always great fun going out there and racing against Jan, trying to put a good lap down," said Gavin. "But we're not just racing the No. 63 Corvette – there is some really strong competition here. It can't get any tighter at the top, and they are the cars that are going to be in contention for a win.
"Hats off to the crew at Corvette Racing," Gavin continued. "They've done a marvelous job of preparing the cars and finding a substantial amount of speed. Of course I'm disappointed to not be the fast qualifier, but we're going to look at the data with my engineers and see where the differences are. The car will be virtually brand new for the race."
The Le Mans regulations require that all drivers complete three laps in darkness during qualifying. After losing track time to red flags in yesterday's session, Johnny O'Connell and Olivier Beretta both completed their mandatory night qualifying laps.
"It was very important to complete three laps in darkness to qualify, and I was quite happy during my night test," said Beretta. "Jan did a very good lap, and both cars were very quick. The conditions were very good – the track was cool and clean.
"Le Mans qualifying is good for the ego, but it doesn't make the race," Beretta cautioned. "We still have 24 hours in front of us. We just have to stay cool and calm, and see what happens."
On Friday the drivers will participate in the Parade des Pilotes (drivers parade) through the streets of Le Mans while the Corvette Racing crew installs fresh LS7.R small-block V-8 engines in the Corvette C6.R race cars. The 24 Hours of Le Mans will start at 3 p.m. local time (9 a.m. EDT) on Saturday, June 14 and finish at 3 p.m. (9 a.m. EDT) on Sunday, June 15. SPEED will televise the start of the race live on June 14 from 8:30 a.m. EDT to 12 p.m. EDT, and the finish from 9 p.m. EDT on June 14 to 9:30 a.m. EDT on June 15.
CORVETTE RACING QUOTES:
Ron Fellows, No. 63 Corvette C6.R: "With this afternoon’s rain showers the track was very green again in the beginning, very slick. In the first half of the session we were still chasing the back of the car as it was still oversteering turning into he corners and in the middle of the corners. In the night session I found that the headlights were a bit off, but we’ll adjust that tomorrow. Other than that the car is just great and we’re looking good for the race."
Johnny O'Connell, No. 63 Corvette C6.R: "The first issue of the day was to get my mandatory three nighttime laps in, which was just a formality. The car now feels way, way better than yesterday, and much more stable through the Porsche Curves. It improved dramatically since yesterday, as you can tell from Jan’s time. It’s nice to have a good car going into a race like Le Mans and we honestly expect to have a very good race."
Max Papis, No. 64 Corvette C6.R: "It was a good stint, I ran seven consecutive laps in the dark. I felt we made very good progress with the car, and it's getting faster and faster. Twenty-four hours is different than making one lap. It's going to take staying out of trouble and driving super hard. Sometimes you need a little bit of luck; we didn't have much luck last year, so hopefully we'll get it all back."
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Aston Martin
Successful qualifying session for Aston Martin at 76th Le Mans 24 Hours
The Aston Martin Racing team has enjoyed a successful final qualifying session for the 76th Le Mans 24 Hours, which will get underway at 3pm on Saturday 14 June.
This evening witnessed the second of two sessions - following on from the first qualifying period yesterday - to determine the places on the grid for the endurance classic.
After tonight's four hours of running, the 009 and 007 cars will line up fourth and fifth on the GT1 grid respectively when the French tricolour drops on Saturday to mark the start of the race. In 009, Antonio Garcia set the quickest lap of 3m48.994s, while Andrea Piccini was fastest in the 007 car with a time of 3m49.060s.
It was also a highly-successful evening for the Aston Martin-powered LMP1 prototype entered by Charouz Racing System, which was the fastest petrol-engined car qualifying in sixth overall on its Le Mans debut.
Despite some heavy rain showers during the afternoon, tonight's qualifying periods - from 7pm to 9pm and 10pm to midnight - were dry and consistent. Both the car crews worked at refining the overall race set-up throughout the evening, and by the end of the session they were all confident that the two Gulf-liveried DBR9s had a good race pace and sufficiently versatile settings to prepare for the unpredictable rigours of the 24-hour race.
Car 007:
Heinz-Harald Frentzen (D): "We're getting into the right rhythm now. It really helped that we had consistent track conditions today, as the conditions we had during the test day were not enough for us to get a proper idea of where we were at. Now we have a much better idea and I'm very encouraged. The car felt very nice, and I think we're in really good shape."
Andrea Piccini (I): "We did a lot of really useful work tonight and now we have the car as we want it. Although it was the final qualifying session, it was a lot more important to concentrate on finding the best race set-up that will work well over 24 hours rather than just a few laps. I think we achieved that, so I'm just looking forward to getting the race started now."
Karl Wendlinger (A): "I had a good feeling with the car from the start of the first session yesterday, and that hasn't really changed. Today was more a question of refinement work, just evolutions rather than any big revolutions - which is always a positive sign. I feel that I know the car quite well now, so we are as well-prepared as we can be."
Car 009:
David Brabham (AUS): "We made a few quite important changes to the set-up at the rear of the car today, which was a great benefit. It was an idea that we had considered previously, and in race conditions - which is what we were simulating today - it seemed to work well. The sort of car that you need to run a strong race is not necessarily the same as an ideal car for qualifying: I think we're in a good position."
Antonio Garcia (E): "I had a good feeling with the car, but I got a bit of traffic on my quickest lap so I still think that we could have gone quicker. The car felt fine, although we steadily made a few improvements to counteract a bit of nervousness. In the end we weren't pushing too hard to set the times, which is a very good sign."
Darren Turner (GB): "I'm happy: we worked through everything that we needed to and had no problems at all. We were aiming to have a car that felt similar to the one we had in the race last year, which was really solid and planted. We maybe started off with a car that was on the safe side, but I think we've ended up with a really good compromise."
Stefan Mucke (D), who set the Aston Martin-powered LMP1 prototype's sixth-fastest time, commented: "The time was a good one, although it just came to me rather than being the result of a particularly big effort. The best thing about it is that our time is genuinely indicative of our race pace; we weren't using a special qualifying set-up. That's a very positive sign for the future.
Two privately-entered DBR9s also took part in the first qualifying session, entered by Team Modena and Vitaphone Racing. Team Modena's car, number 59, will start the car eighth on the GT1 grid, while the number 53 car of Vitaphone will start ninth.
Aston Martin Racing Team Principal George Howard-Chappell commented: "Overall it's been a very pleasing qualifying session. We're particularly pleased with the qualifying session from Stefan Mucke. The LMP1 team had quite a difficult time getting dialled into Le Mans but to split the Audis was a great achievement. On the GT1 front we're exceptionally pleased with our race set-up and pace, and now I feel that we are very well-prepared for the epic battle due to start on Saturday."
On Friday all the Aston Martin drivers will take part in the traditional drivers' parade through the streets of Le Mans.
Spyker
Spyker Squadron: Le Mans qualifying results
Le Mans, 12 June -- After yesterday's action packed qualifying sessions, the teams got another chance today to further improve their race setup and qualifying times today. Like yesterday two two-hour session were scheduled and today's goal was to finalise a satisfactionary setup for this weekend's race.
The number 85 Spyker C8 Laviolette GT2R, driven by Peter Dumbreck, Ralf Kelleners and Alexei Vasiliev, will start the race this Saturday from a 9th position in class. The number 94 car with Andrea Chiesa, Benjamin Leuenberger and Iradj Alexander behind the wheel will start from a 12th place.
After last weeks weather drama the majority of time was spent yesterday on installation laps and a basic setup. Alexei started in the #85 car before switching seats with Ralf Kelleners. At the begin of the first session the air temperature was still high and the crew paid extra attention to the engine and cockpit temperatures. Regulations demand the cockpit temperatures to be lower than 32 degrees centigrade and violations will be penalised. With 30 minutes to go Peter got in the car for his share of track time. Towards the end of the first two-hour session he went for two flying laps and set the 8th time in GT2.
In the other car it was Andrea Chiesa who kicked off the first session. He spent little over an hour in the car and returned a number of times to the box for changes to improve the behaviour of the car. At a quarter past eight he handed the car over to Swiss Benjamin Leuenberger. Iradj Alexander completed the last 15 minutes to the checkered flag.
In Wednesday's second session the goal was to complete the mandatory night laps - three for each driver. Peter Dumbreck did improve his time in the 85 car although their plans for another quick lap towards the end of the second session were abandoned due to another code red.
At 19:00 today green light was given for the third two-hour session. Just before the start of the session a few showers hit the track, but with the sun replacing the clouds all cars went out on slicks. After only six minutes an LMP1 went into the barriers and caused another red flag situation. It took the marshals about 25 minutes to clear the track and repair the guard rails before the cars went out again at 19:30. Session-starter Alexei Vasiliev switched with Ralf Kelleners after the code red was lifted. Ralf worked with the mechanics on the last bits of setup-work and after the session he said he was happy with the setup and handling of the car. Just after 20:30 another code red was given for shunt of an prototype and at 20:48 the organisation announced that the session was finished as the marshals required all time to clean the track.
In the fourth and last qualifying session both crews were able to improve their times. Benjamin Leuenberger and Andrea Chiesa improved their time and will start this weekend from a 12th position. In the other car it was Peter Dumbreck that set a quickest lap of 4:03.641, which will put him and his team mates 9th on the GT2 grid.
Andrea Chiesa: "We concentrated on the race setup instead of a good qualifying result. Instead of being further up the grid we have saved some soft tires for the race that we can use at night. As a driver of course you always want to be quick but I think this will pay off in the race. I am happy with the setup of the car. Of course we could always have used another test day but I am looking forward to a reliable race without too much trouble". Peter van Erp, managing director Spyker Squadron: "We have been able to complete a lot of work in the last two days. We managed to work out a good setup and eventually we have set a very acceptable time. Although I think our time is really good, the competition is stronger than ever and it is unbelievable that the first teams dropped below the 4-minute mark. All drivers had plenty of track time to start the race with confidence. We managed to stay out of trouble and will start tonight to prepare the cars for the race.
Tomorrow is 'preparation day'; the team already started to remove the engines. Fresh race engines will be installed in both cars and all sorts of other preparation have to be completed before Saturday, the race day. The 76th edition of the 24-hours of Le Mans starts at 15:00.
Risi/Krohn
RISI COMPETIZIONE READY FOR SATURDAY'S RACE
In the last four hours of running before the start of the 24 Hours of Le Mans on Saturday, Risi Competizione ran through to completion its planned program of set up changes, driver familiarisation and mandatory night laps.
The first part of the evening was punctuated by further interruptions and breaks in track time due to a number of crashes and incidents which befell entrants in the prototype classes, but all six drivers had time behind the wheel and a last chance to get themselves fully comfortable in the surroundings of their Ferrari 430 GT car before the start of the race.
While several of the GT2 competitors were able to profit from ideal track conditions to improve their times, the Risi Competizione strategy was one of safety and preparation, keeping to the forefront of their minds that the race takes place on Saturday and not in qualifying! The #82 car will start from sixth place in class.
The Krohn green car had limited laps in today's four hours of running as it was earlier fitted with its race engine and gearbox. All three drivers have taken their turn behind the wheel, primarily for set up work in today's cooler conditions, and also so that Eric van de Poele could complete his mandatory night laps.
Nic Jonsson said after his early evening run in the car: "We made some changes to the front ride height and the front bar, and put some soft tires on the car and it's so much more drivable now. It's like night and day. The car feels really planted in the corners, especially at the rear and that's just what we need - a good, comfortable race car for the 24 hours. Now we have to do what you do best and stay out of trouble and spend the minimum of time in the pits. If that happens, we have a very good change of finishing well."
Mika Salo took to the track as the green flag dropped (for the second time) at 7:30pm but quickly reported a big vibration at the rear of the car. Preferring to err on the side of caution, the team took its time to make a thorough check of all areas, including the floor and transmission, and Salo was able to re-join some thirty minutes into the second, night-time session. This meant he had unfortunately missed the optimum time for an improvement on lap times but -- as previously stated -- safety and preparation were paramount and the drivers all followed a "risk nothing" line of attack.
The Finn said afterwards, "We were bedding in some things for the race but most of all we wanted to make sure everything lasts for the race. We didn't want to risk anything by going flat out to try and get a 'glory' lap. We know the Porsches are fast, but we also know we've got a good race car now."