Audi claims victory at the 79th running of the 24 hours of Le Mans! André Lotterer was able to maintain an incredible pace and setting the fastest lap at (3m 25.289) on lap 229. He was able to successfully navigate the artificial traffic caused by the Peugeot drivers in an attempt to slow him down and crossed the finish line victoriously! The race was a dramatic one with both the #1 car and #3 cars exiting the race in very scary wrecks that destroyed the car. The #2 car set the standard early by taking pole position but they did not lead throughout the race. Once they were the only car left you could tell the stakes were raised much higher. We are so excited for the entire team at Audi Sport and are very thankful for allowing us to share this experience with them! Congratulation to Leena Gade as she is the very first woman engineer to represent the winning team at Le Mans! We will post more pictures and news soon so stay tuned!
The #2 Audi R18 has been trading off positions with the number #9 Peugeot through the entire night. Currently the Audi is running first due to a Peugeot pit stop. As daylight broke we noticed a slight increase in lap times times with Andre Lotterer setting a (3m 25.289) lap. This race is going to come down to the last lap as neither team is able to maintain a comfortable lead. It appears to us that Audi has the advantage and we hope they can translate this into a victory. Currently there’s a slight rain and most teams have switched over to their intermedia rain tires in order to maintain traction. We’ve been watching the weather however the predictions have not been very accurate.
June 11, 2011 - Published By Mike -
in 2011 Le Mans. Closed
I shot this video at 3:30AM this morning from the Audi Racing Lounges. Enjoy the video, if by chance you are having viewing issues, we have also uploaded it to Youtube.
After the devastating crash this afternoon involving the #3 car being driven by Allan McNish. We’ve just learned a few minutes ago that the #1 car being driven by Mike Rockenfeller suffered a serious crash. He flashed his brights and attempted to pass and immediately upon pulling up beside the Ferrari he made contact and hit the wall at full speed. For at least five minutes we were unsure of which car was involved with the crash due to the damage sustained. Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich reported that “Rocky left the car himself and climbed over the barrier himself”. Again we can thank the Audi Ultra design for saving another drivers life.
June 11, 2011 - Published By Mike -
in 2011 ILMC. Closed
With an incredible start to the race we are now 6 hours into the race. The Audi’s are running in 1st and 3rd place as we approach dusk. Four cars have been retired including the #3 Audi. Currently the #2 is running an average of (3m 27) and #3 (3m 29) They are predicting the temps here will drop to around 49 degrees which should allow the teams to start pushing the cars a bit harder. In the typical Le Mans fashion traffic still continues to be a major even on this 8.5 mile track. With night approaching outward visibility of the close cockpit cars comes into question again. We are looking forward to the next 17 remaining hours.
We are happy to report that Allan McNish is ok after an absolutely horrible crash just past the Dunlop bridge. I was no less than 100 meters away when this happened and was among the very first photographers on the scene. I am so happy that my fellow photographers and the volunteer marshalls are all ok. I am sad to say that Allan, Dindo and Tom’s race is over but I am sure they are all just happy that Allan is not injured. This could have easily ended up much much worse. Watch the video below to see just how bad it could have been. We took a large number of photos and will upload them shortly. Photos by Josh Decker and Mike Juergens.
June 11, 2011 - Published By Josh -
in 2011 Le Mans. Closed
QuattroWorld brings you right into the action in the pit lane as the Audi team brings a few cars in for some driver and aerodynamic changes. As you can see from the video it is a bit chaotic down there and the activity only increased as the night came to a close. The team in the #2 Audi R18 claimed pole position and the front row will be all Audi! The race starts in just 2 hours and we will continue to help bring the Le Mans experience home to you through our video and photography!
First pole position for Audi at Le Mans since 2006
Front row is firmly in Audi’s hands
Audi R18 TDI also impresses with consistence
The front row of the grid at the 79th edition of the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans belongs to Audi. In one of the most thrilling qualifying events in recent years the new Audi R18 TDI and the company’s ultra-lightweight technology prevailed. Benoît Tréluyer set a time of 3m 25.738s and clinched the top grid position for Audi. His French team-mate Romain Dumas was merely 0.061 seconds slower.
June 9, 2011 - Published By Mike -
in 2011 Le Mans. Closed
Only hours before his pole run we had the chance to interview André again and we asked him about lap-times. He achieved the fastest lap of an Audi R18 TDI (3m 27.939s) Wednesday night. He predicted the R18 would be able to run a 3.25. Tonight during qualifying he André backed up his prediction and was able to set the pole with a (3m 25.738s) lap. Congratulations to André and the rest the team! We are very excited that we are here covering the race and we hope this translates well during the weekend. Enjoy the video, if by chance you are having viewing issues, we have also uploaded it to Youtube.
Congratulations to the team at Audi Sport who are currently below us in the garages celebrating their pole position for the start of the 2011 running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans! Andre Lotterer put down the fastest lap in the #2 Audi R18 TDI and clocked in at 3:25.738. The #1 R18 will start next to them on the front row thanks to Timo Bernhard’s lap time of 3.25:799. The #3 car had a chance neat the end of qualifying but the best they could do was 5th with a time of 3:26.165. The Peugeot #9 piloted by Simon Pagenaud stole 4th place with a 3:26.010 and the #8 Peugeot of Minassian clocked in at 3:26.156.
We are out of breath here at Le Mans, but will be updating the site as soon as possible with pictures and more news from today!
