Zhuhai, the last fight of the Peugeot 908

Bruno Famin and all the team staff Peugeot Sport present since the beginning of the 908 adventure are expected to experience a moment rich in emotion on Sunday, November 7. Contested on the Zhuhai circuit, the Chinese round of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup will mark the final competitive appearance of the 908 HDi FAP. After this final outing, the Lioness will go to the museum. Next year, the ACO regulations change, and the 908 will leave it to its little sister to defend the colors of the French manufacturer.

From its first laps in 2007, the car proved to be as efficient as its looks were impressive. Bruno Famin remembers:

“We designed this car in record time” admits the latter.

A quick design which in no way hampered the performance of the beast. In pure performance, the 908 is untouchable. With the R10, the R15 and even the R15 plus, Audi will never manage to make a car as fast as its rival leaving the Vélizy workshops. In four editions of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, it took pole position four times, thanks to Stéphane Sarrazin from 2007 to 2009, and Sébastien Bourdais in 2010.

When it comes to rankings, the 908 HDi FAP is also very strong. No great endurance classic has escaped him, his greatest feat obviously remaining his victory at Le Mans in 2009 acquired thanks to the trio David Brabham-Marc Gené-Alexander Wurz. A more than magnificent success, which never suffered from the slightest dispute. Winner of the 2009 and 2010 editions of Petit Le Mans, Sebring this season, the 908 also has two Le Mans Series titles to its credit, won in 2007 and 2010 (thanks to Oreca). In 2007, the French team even allowed itself to make the grand slam, the Drivers' crown being finally taken by Pedro Lamy and Stéphane Sarrazin, who will do it again this year.

But before falling into nostalgia, the entire Peugeot Sport team has one last task to accomplish: Become the first winners in the history of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup. The 908 has not yet won this trophy. And for good reason, this championship was only born this year. What better way to say goodbye to a car that has already become a legend than to win a final coronation with it?

“We hope to give her the ending she deserves with a victory in Zhuhai, concedes Bruno Famin. This would be his 19th success in 28 races.”

But this 19th success may not be easy to seek, as the Technical Director of Sport explains:

“Zhuhai is a circuit that we do not know, he continues. However, we know that this route is a succession of accelerations and braking. Very slow, it is the polar opposite of that of Le Mans for which the 908 HDi FAP was designed. Brakes and transmissions are expected to be under extreme strain. The cars will be in their aerodynamic “sprint” configuration as at Silverstone or Road Atlanta. To prepare for this race, the most difficult thing was to collect as much information as possible to carry out the necessary simulations.

Victorious at Silverstone (Anthony Davidson-Nicolas Minassian) and at Road Atlanta (Pedro Lamy, Franck Montagny and Stéphane Sarrazin), the Peugeot Sport team only needs an 11th place to win the title. But the French are not the type to play grocers. Cars No. 1 and 2, respectively entrusted to the Sébastien Bourdais-simon pagenaud and Franck Montagny-Stéphane Sarrazin will therefore have no other objective than to get on the first step of the podium.

“When we participate in a race, our objective is obviously victory, underlines Olivier Quesnel, Director of Peugeot Sport. For the first official appearance of Peugeot Sport in China, we want to win the manufacturers' title but it will only have more flavor if it is accompanied by a victory. This will be an opportunity for us to end a 2010 season full of emotion in style. We will have to fight and the whole team is ready?

We will have understood it well, at Peugeot we will not take the easy route. Faced with a certainly vengeful Team Audi Sport, the objectives are clear: Win the title and victory, even if the latter is not essential. And once this crown and this success has been acquired, the 908 will then be able to retire and take a well-deserved retirement?