Patrice Lafargue: “The notion of pleasure is essential”

How do you feel before starting the centenary edition of 24 Hours of Le Mans from LM P2 pole position?

It’s true that it’s beautiful. We found our Paul-Loup, it's his second pole at Le Mans so it's not a coincidence. He is a great driver, we knew that, but we must also salute the performance of the car because a good driver cannot shine without a good car. I would like to congratulate my entire Team, from the engineers to the mechanics who have prepared a car that is both easy to push to the limit according to the drivers, and efficient. It was truly teamwork that brought this pole position. We put everything end to end so it’s just happiness.

Especially since the LM P2 category is once again one-make this year.

It doesn't matter much from one team to another, that's clear. The set-up of the car is essential and since the start of the year we have put our finger on good settings. Once again, in terms of performance, but also driving comfort, which is perhaps my greatest source of satisfaction. We start the race with a car that is healthy.

This 7th participation as a team, finally marked by a great week without incidents, must do you good?

We experienced a lot of misfortune at Le Mans, and spent sleepless nights rebuilding the cars. This week everything went well, from the start to the start of the race.

This year you are fielding a particularly homogenous crew with Paul-Loup Chatin, Laurents Hörr and your son Paul, who Paul-Loup says is his brother at the wheel.

I appreciate him saying that. It's true that they have the same technical feedback and that they are looking for the same thing in terms of the car. We must also highlight the perfect integration of Laurents, a nice boy who arrived with great simplicity and who is particularly quick. It's not easy when you join an experienced crew, but it is. Immediately found its place. I'm really happy with our crew.

A fast and balanced trio © IDEC SPORT

What are your ambitions for the race?

It's way too early to set a goal. We've been participating in the 24 Hours of Le Mans for a few years now and we know that it never goes as we planned! This year with the weather as the referee it could be a real lottery.

You know this race well having competed in it and finished it twice behind the wheel. What advice can you give to your pilots?

You need patience and never forget that fame is Sunday at 16:00 p.m. and not before. One of the keys to success is to stay on the track, regardless of the classification at the start of the race. At Le Mans, going off the track or going to the pits to repair mechanical damage means saying goodbye to a good result. If you get overtaken, you get overtaken, it doesn't matter. 24 hours is a long time

You now have new, ultra-modern premises near the Paul-Ricard circuit with a simulator. IDEC SPORT continues its development but what are your sporting objectives for the coming seasons?

Frankly as we speak, we don’t know. This future depends largely on Paul. We will see by the end of the year but we have the ambition to return to Le Mans. In what form and with what car, I cannot answer. We will always be on the circuits, that’s obvious, but I don’t know in which series. We have the people and now the infrastructure, and what is certain is that we will not enter into a financial arms race because we are not car salesmen. The notion of pleasure is essential. So have a good time and have fun like with this pole position for the Centenary edition.

Could your partnership with Delage lead to other projects?

It was an opportunity to make a little nod to history, not a long-term plan. But we're a little superstitious and it turns out that this blue color and this logo works well for us. We'll see tomorrow if that's still the case.

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