Pikes Peak – Dumas had mechanical problems

Romain Dumas won his second victory at Pikes Peak this Sunday June 26 after a first success obtained in 2014. L'Alésien, who won a week earlier at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, returned with a Norma M20 RD Limited Spec-2016 to face the climb of Colorado.

While he suffered an engine failure during testing for the final part on Friday June 24, the Frenchman was able to sign the reference time of the edition in 8'51''445, four seconds ahead of the electric prototype of title holder Rhys Millen who was faster on the last part where his mount did not suffer from the lack of oxygen linked to the altitude .

Romain Dumas was however slowed down by a pierced hose and brake problems, which can partly explain his delay of 38 seconds on the absolute record held by Sébastien Loeb since 2013 with the Peugeot 208 T16 Pikes Peak.

" It's incredible ! Win the 24 Hours of Le Mans and Pikes Peak a week apart, it goes beyond the dream. I don't know if I really realize, a avoué le pilote officiel Porsche. Victory was the goal from the start but it was not an easy challenge. We were expected because we had to confirm our success two years ago, knowing that the electric prototypes would be fast and that our car was still very young. »

“We wanted to show our level of performance. This is not entirely the case, we have to be honest, and this is explained in particular by a pierced hose and small brake problems at the end. We have first place despite everything, that’s the main thing and I’m very happy about it,” added the Frenchman.

“The guys didn't sleep to get the car back to normal, underlined Romain Dumas who was worried about his engine failure during testing. We were really at the foot of the mountain and we arrived there. We could do better in terms of time, that's for sure. But this ordeal is so special. Pikes Peak has one thing in common with Le Mans: you never know what to expect and you have to put all the pieces of the puzzle together on the big day. So when victory is at the end, with a time under nine minutes, this is already a great victory. »

Discover the Pikes Peak report in AUTO issue 2069hebdo, available from Monday evening in digital version on all platforms, and from Wednesday on newsstands.