Inauguration of M24 The Motorsport Museum – Interview with Pierre Fillon, President of the ACO

There's definitely a palpable emotion surrounding this inauguration. Is this the culmination of eleven months of hard work?

Yes, eleven months of hard work. It was a complicated project because we're next to the airport. And we couldn't build upwards. In the initial design, we wanted a walkway where people could see the circuit. Unfortunately, that wasn't possible due to regulations, so that's why we excavated the mound behind the old museum. There was a lot of preparation involved. The old museum had to remain open until the end of the Le Mans Classic season, so early July (2025). And it had to be open for the 24 Hours of Le Mans (June 10-14, 2026. Editor's note). We had 11 months. At the first site meeting, I indicated that Le Mans will leave on Saturday at 16 p.m. The museum will leave on May 28 at 10 a.m., you have no choice.

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway also recently renovated its museum. We now have major motorsport museums all over the world, and especially here in Le Mans. It's important to move to a new generation with new approaches. As you mentioned earlier, the museum used to be very static, and now it needs to offer more immersive experiences?

Yes, you have to come with experiences. You have to relive the emotions you feel when you come to watch a motor race. And also pass on a heritage, because it is a heritage. Tell the story of motorsport with everything it has contributed to mobility and will continue to contribute. It's not just cars driving on a track; it's technologies that are developed, and that's extremely important for the future. We're talking about decarbonization now, and we'll soon be integrating hydrogen into the 24 Hours of Le Mans to move in that direction. And then, it's important that this museum becomes a destination, a place people want to come back to. So, this museum, as you see it today, will be different in a year because we have a collection of 500 cars, which we'll rotate regularly. Then there's a section behind the building that you haven't seen, which is closed today, and where there will be temporary exhibitions and themes that we've done in the past with McLarenetc. This will evolve. Something will always happen.

And you personally, what is your favorite part of this museum?

As I mentioned earlier, I really wanted people to experience the emotions of a driver and what it's like to race at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. I haven't raced in the 24 Hours of Le Mans myself, but I've participated in Le Mans Classic many times, and I've spent many nights on the Mulsanne Straight, and I really wanted to share that with the public. So the immersive aspect, especially the nighttime film, was something that was very important to me. There are also the life-size dioramas, because those are our childhood dreams.