Michelin Endurance Blog

From start to finish, I’ve had a tremendous weekend. No comparison with my past experience as a fan. A huge thank you to Michelin, who opened all the doors. An immense thank you to Sébastien at Michelin in particular - at the circuit, everyone knows and appreciates him. Without his help, for example, I could never have been with Oreca as they repaired their cars. I’ve witnessed great emotional extremes, had private discussions with several drivers…talking to Alexander Premat, was extraordinary for me. Generally it’s impossible for a fan to meet these people.

My strongest memory will probably remain my track baptism. It was awe-inspiring. And the trophy handover on the podium, which was stunning too. Returning to the tracks as a simple spectator will be hard, but that’s the way it is. I hope Michelin will repeat this experiment in 2009 with other fans, because this is a tremendous idea. This weekend, I made the most of every minute and I will never forget it.

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The LMP1 winners have been called up to the Podium. Immediately after, the Michelin Endurance Tournament winner climbed the steps. Guess who awarded the prize? Yours truly, your Michelin Endurance Expert! This was a great moment for me…I handed over the trophy in front of the television cameras and thousands of spectators. This weekend, the Le Mans Series championship saw the largest crowd in its history - more than 53000 spectators! This podium is something I will never forget.

Audi was jubilant. In the press conference, they declared that they had of course come to win, but that they never expected such success - and that this was “the craziest race of the year”. Charouz and Pescarolo were delighted too. During the conference, I sat just in front of the stage, next to Alexander Premat, and had the opportunity to talk to him for a few minutes. Finally I congratulated the drivers one by one, as they left the room. Also unforgettable…

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Here are the season results for the 2008 Le Mans Endurance Series.

In LMP1, Audi takes all the prizes: drivers, team, and manufacturer.
In LMP2, Van Merksteijn Motorsport’s Porsche RS Spyder wins the manufacturer championship.
In LMGT1, the Luc Alphand team takes the title.
In LMGT2, the Virgo Motorsport Ferrari F430 wins the 2008 Le Mans series.

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The Audis are classed in first and fourth place, respectively. The Charouz Aston Martin achieves a superb second place, a mere three laps behind the Nº1 Audi. The Pescarolo Judd finishes 3rd. The sole remaining Peugeot is 19th.

In LMP2, the Van Merksteijn Porsche RS Spyder finishes 5th, far ahead of its competitors.

In LMGT1, Team Modena finishes a lap in front of the Spartak Racing Lamborghini.

In LMGT2, Virgo Motorsport’s Ferrari F430 beats the Felbermayr Proton Porsche 997 by one lap.

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Just before the Audi nº2 ran into difficulties, I was visiting the German builder. I observed two pit stops from the interior of the pit. It all happens very very quickly. In the workshop, all the necessary parts are at hand to correct recurrent problems : brake pads, bolts, etc.

At the back of the stand, there is a fireplace like the one I see at Peugeot. A 2 metre tall chamber where air is heated to 60ºC. There is space for 12 tires. The mechanics wear gloves, to keep from burning their hands. Oreca has a similar system. This is the answer found by the bigger teams to the heated tire cover ban. It’s very important: if the drivers were to fit tires at room temperature, their times would be much slower for the first few laps, until the tires grow warm.

At Audi, the engineer Michelin drew my attention to the tire valve. A tiny electronic component of about 2×1cm is visible. It measures tire pressure and sends the data wirelessly to a computer installed in the Audi. The information is then communicated to the pits by another wireless system. Quite a setup!

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The Audi nº2 is back on the track, but has lost four laps. The car is now fourth, just behind the Pescarolo Sport. The Charouz is second. The safety car has just left the track. There are 16 laps to go. No change in the other categories.

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I’m back from visiting the Oreca team. I would have preferred to visit under better circumstances. At just the moment when I entered the pit, the nº5 car spun off the track. She came into the pits immediately, and I watched the mechanics work. They completely dismantled the back of the car - : body and chassis covers. Then changed the drive chain and reassembled the car. Less than five minutes on the clock…this is an impressive sight - eight technicians all moving at full speed in such a tiny space. They know exactly where their tools are located, and handle them with astonishing speed.

I had some info about the second Oreca, nº6, the one that lost its classification. A screw broke in the axle and bounced around, gradually wearing it out. Which is why the wheel fixing bolts kept coming loose. Obviously, Oreca doesn’t have luck on its side today. Keep going, I’m with you!

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The Nº2 Audi has returned to the pits, smoke pouring from the back. This Audi was the best placed in the race to the championship. Maybe all is not lost for Peugeot! A few moments later, there was another big accident. The safety car is out again.

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I went to get some information about Silverstone. The circuit is 60 years old this year. It was constructed on an old Royal Air Force base that had fallen into disuse after WW2. The track was very simple in 1948, and hasn’t stopped evolving since. But it’s always getting better, it has gained a lot of character. Today, it’s a very popular circuit among the drivers. The curves are quick, and difficult to negotiate, particularly the Maggots-Becketts-Chapel passage. One of the most challenging sequences out of all the European circuits. Unfortunately, the facilities at Silverstone are getting old now. From 2010, F1 races will no longer be run here. I’m not sure whether the Le Mans series endurance races will also change to a different circuit.

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