Ecuadorean-American racer Elton Julian drove for 10 hours of this year’s 80th edition of the Le Mans 24 Hours endurance classic to anchor a strong run to fifth place in the 20-car LMP2 category and 12th overall, shared with teammates Christian Zugel and Ricardo Gonzalez in the Zytek Z11SN-Nissan fielded by 2011 class winners Greaves Motorsport. Elton put in three long quadruple stints behind the wheel, following the number 41 machine’s strategy of minimizing the time lost to pit stops by changing tires only when switching drivers.
Julian was returning to the famed La Sarthe circuit for the first time since 2005, when he finished as the highest-placed rookie and set the team’s fastest race lap on his way to fifth in class and seventh overall in the Racing for Holland Dome LMP1. Elton was keen to apply the lessons learned back then.
“We took an under-the-radar approach all week, and focused on setting up the car to conserve the tires and make it consistent and easy to drive, given that Christian and Ricardo were rookies here,” said Julian. “We had to discipline ourselves to let the others go for pace, but 2005 taught me that Le Mans is all about planning ahead to avoid mistakes. We were really determined to stay on track so we could take full advantage of the team’s brilliant preparation and reliability record here.”
The race opened with triple stints from Gonzalez and Zugel, with Julian entering the fray to handle the tricky transition to darkness. Ricardo suffered a minor off and a slow puncture during his second stint, requiring a couple of extra stops. After less than three hours of rest, Elton took over just after 2am, rejoining the race 12th in class. By the end of the always treacherous overnight stretch, Julian had hauled the Greaves car up to fifth in LMP2 as the first hints of dawn streaked the sky over La Sarthe.
Zugel made the most of the traditional mid-morning ‘happy hour’ to set his fastest time of the week before handing off to Julian for one last quadruple stint to consolidate fifth position. To Gonzalez went the honor of the driving the final hour to the checkered flag and the cheers of the assembled crew, family, and friends. True to plan, the 41 car had spent the least time in the pits of any LMP2 finisher.
“Christian did such an awesome job, never put a foot wrong, and really earned his big grin at the finish,” said Elton. “I can’t thank him enough for making me part of realizing his Le Mans dream, and giving me me a full season at World Championship level by extending his program to include the Bahrain race. The little bad luck we did have fell on Ricardo, but it didn’t cost us a place, and he showed the savvy you need here. And the team just couldn’t have been better, from Jacob Greaves right down through our entire crew. Tim and Wendy Greaves kept everything on an even keel and we really enjoyed the enthusiastic support from our car owner, Renate Ojjeh.”
Source : Elton Julian