LMP1
Jean-Christophe Boullion – Pescarolo Sport Pescarolo-Judd #16 – 1st LMP1 : “We didn’t qualify well. We should have been able to set a better lap, because the car was fantastic. In fact, the car has been doing well from the beginning of the weekend.”
Jan Charouz – Aston Martin Racing Lola-Aston Martin #007 – 2nd LMP1 : “It was fun but very tough. My first run was good, the Michelin tyres were great but towards the second half of my double stint I was starting to struggle for grip. I had a few critical moments but I managed to get through them all. It is a hard track to drive because you have corners and corners and corners. Even on the straights you can’t really relax because it’s so bumpy that you have to hold the steering wheel really tight to make sure the car doesn’t go offline. I got used to the track pretty quickly so the visibility wasn’t really a problem for me. I think an open car would be easier but we have a closed car and it’s quick so I’m not complaining. I had a great drive tonight.”
Tomas Enge – Aston Martin Racing Lola-Aston Martin #007 – 2nd LMP1 : “My two stints went well, especially the first one. I struggled a little with slow traffic; some of the other cars seemed to take a long time to get used to the dark after they left the pits. It is much harder to see here at night than at Le Mans but it is the same for everybody. I was really careful when overtaking but I didn’t want to be too cautious and lose valuable time. I had a little problem with gear shifting in my second run but I was able to hold my position and I had a lot of fun out there. I am looking forward to the next two races and I think the tracks at Nurburgring and Silverstone will be more suitable for our cars.”
Stefan Mücke – Aston Martin Racing Lola-Aston Martin #007 – 2nd LMP1 : “I had a good start but I couldn’t get past the lead car in the first corner. Then I got lucky with the traffic and had a better exit out of the last corner which allowed me to take the lead on the start/finish straight. I was getting quite a lot of pressure from the car behind but I was able to stay in front. Unfortunately I had a spin whilst overtaking and I ended up in the gravel. I’m not really sure what happened, the rear locked up, I touched the brake and then lost the rear, I couldn’t do anything. We lost the lead but the car was undamaged and we didn’t lose too much time.”
Tiago Monteiro – ORECA-Matmut AIM ORECA 01 #10 – 3rd LMP1 : “It’s a great feeling to be on the podium for my first race here in the Algarve. It’s all the more special as it’s my first drive in the Le Mans Series. ORECA’s done a great job and given us a good car. Bruno, the team and I were all competitive throughout the weekend. Traffic was the main problem; you had to be watchful and not too aggressive. Overall, I was on the pace.”
Bruno Senna ORECA-Matmut AIM ORECA 01 #10 – 3rd LMP1 : “My stints went off well and the car was good and easy to drive. It was difficult coping with the traffic and the track was pretty dirty by the end. We’ve seen that the ORECA has made a lot of progress. It’s important for everybody to continue to go forward. With triple stints, we might have been able to fight for second place, but we’re on the podium and that’s already a good result. I finished third in Barcelona but the situation wasn’t the same. We were more competitive here. It’s certainly been our best weekend in the Le Mans Series.”
Hugues de Chaunac – Oreca Group President : “Both ORECA 01s finished with one on the podium, and the other just behind. It’s a good result, but after qualifying we were aiming for victory. A fuel line prevented us from fighting for the win and it’s a pity. Overall, it’s been a positive weekend. The car has moved up a step as has the team in getting the best out of it. That’s one satisfaction, the other is Tiago and Bruno on the podium. We’re now looking forward to September when we have a couple of important rendezvous!”
Nicolas Lapierre – ORECA-Matmut AIM ORECA 01 #11 – 4th LMP1 : “We had a winning car but we lost the race because of a leaking fuel line. It’s tough as we had the right opportunity to put on a good performance. We fought hard to get back and finish just outside the podium. It’s infuriating to cover twenty-four hours without a hitch and then run into trouble in a 1000-km race. The positive point is the step up in terms of sheer performance as shown by qualifying and our race pace.”
Olivier Panis – ORECA-Matmut AIM ORECA 01 #11 – 4th LMP1 : “The way the race turned out is frustrating. We had what it took to fight for victory and our car was capable of winning, but we ran into a mechanical problem. When I got in the car I had the bit between my teeth and I fought my way back. That’s when you’ve got to get your head down. We made a great comeback and there are lessons to be learned. We’ve improved the ORECA 01’s performance and there are more updates to come. It’ll pay off!”
Harold Primat – Aston Martin Racing Lola-Aston Martin #009– 5th LMP1 : “I started well but then I had contact with another car, I didn’t think it was a big issue but the car felt a bit strange so I came into the pits for the team to check it over. The car was fine and the rest of my stint was ok but not great, it is difficult in traffic here. It was the beginning of the night when I got in the car and it took a while to adjust to the level of visibility.”
Franck Mailleux – Team Signature Plus Courage-Oreca #12– LMP1 : “I was extremely happy with my triple stint, as we optimised the set-up and race strategy perfectly. This was a very tricky, dirty and bumpy track, making the start especially complex. But I am very pleased that we were able to make so much progress and hand the car over in fourth place. The team did a very good job under difficult circumstances and I think we showed our pace here.”
Danny Watts – Strakka Racing Ginetta-Zytek #23 – Retired (LMP1) : “I was going for the lead when I got baulked by a back-marker, and Boullion simply had the better line and got a run on me. He overtook and there was nothing I could do, but it was a very exciting start to the race. The car started to develop a misfire about ten laps before I was due to come in. I was able to push on to the scheduled stop, and handed over to Nick, but then the car wouldn’t restart.”
Andrea Belicchi – Speedy Racing Team Sebah Lola-Aston Martin #13 – Retired (LMP1) : “We are disappointed in retiring so early in the race. Our qualifying session has been difficult because we couldn’t find the right set-up. At the beginning of the race, the car was much better and I could catch up the fifth place overall.”
LMP2
Olivier Pla – Quifel-ASM Team Ginetta-Zytek #40 – 1st LMP2 : “At the beginning, I pushed hard and I could make my way through traffic and widen the gap. We aimed to be out of reach. For my second double-stint, the gap with the other prototypes was growing and growing in the first part of this stint, so I could slow down a bit in the last minutes. The only warning sign came from the radio, which was not working anymore. But as a whole, the car was highly competitive, very easy to drive. We already tested here before Le Mans, but the team, Ginetta-Zytek and Dunlop did an awesome job. The car has been perfect from start to finish. This is a great pleasure to be back on the first step of the podium and win in Endurance for the very first time. After second place at Barcelona, Spa and Le Mans have been difficult. This time, we didn’t miss the victory. It was the right time because the race took place in Portugal. I am delighted for the whole crew. The team effort is rewarded.”
Xavier Pompidou – Speedy Racing Team Sebah Lola-Judd #33 – 5th LMP2 : “This race was important for us to clinch the title, we scored 4 points but the trend has to be reversed from Nürburgring. We need to take the victory to stay confident for the championship.”
Matthieu Lahaye – OAK Racing Pescarolo-Mazda #35 – 6th LMP2 : “I am very happy with the way I started the race. We were well down on the grid due to the penalty we received for changing the engine but after a few laps I was up to third place. Unfortunately we quickly encountered various problems, two slow punctures in a row, a lack of fuel pressure and a broken spark plug. We only finished 12th overall and sixth in class despite being one of the fastest LMP2 cars and having second place was within our reach. It is really frustrating.”
Mike Newton – RML AD Group Lola-Mazda #25 – 7th LMP2 : “At first I assumed it was pick-up. The Astroturf was flapping around the front wheel and wishbone assembly, which combined with the normal tyre pick-up to create a severe vibration. That made my second stint very difficult, with driving in the dark being complicated by blurred vision from the juddering. Despite these niggly problems, we clearly had the pace. We managed a clean, consistent, safe run, but that only serves to demonstrate just how competitive the LMP2 class is. You can’t afford to encounter even a very minor issue without falling back out of contention. One good point to come out of this race is that the engine felt very stable, and it’s certainly well run-in now, so hopefully it will be OK for the Nürburgring. We’ll also arrive there without facing any fresh penalties, which is a real bonus!”
Jacques Nicolet – OAK Racing Pescarolo-Mazda #24 – 8th LMP2 : “My first stint was tough as we lost tyre temperature while waiting on the grid. My team-mate Richard was excellent but unfortunately I had a small spin after being tapped by an Aston Martin and then we had the starter motor issue. I feel very sorry for Matthieu and Karim in the #35 car. Their stunning performances today were sadly not reflected on the result sheet. Matthieu was exceptional on the track and has shown his qualities and those of the car.”
From teams press release,
Cécile Bonardel