Dumas: “It’s going to be difficult”

Romain, you joined Oreca last Sunday, after your Grand Am race, to take your first steps with Oreca. How did you experience this start of collaboration?
I was very tired when I arrived at Petit Le Mans, coming from Utah, where I had competed in the Grand Am race but the first tests went well. It allowed me to discover all the possible scenarios. I was able to make my seat, in order to be comfortable in the car. Olivier (Panis) and Nicolas (Stone) learned the circuit, I learned to know the car. We tried to make some adjustments at the end. And since we weren't able to ride much, we went over a lot of details that usually take time.

How do you find this car, compared to what you knew?
J?étais agréablement surpris sur plusieurs points. La voiture freine très bien, c?est un point très positif. C?est certes une LMP1 mais on n?est pas débordé par le poids qui pousse au freinage. Sous la pluie, elle était hyper facile à conduire. J?ai aussi trouvé la voiture très saine, très agréable à conduire. Elle donne confiance, que ce soit sur sec, sur piste grasse ou mouillée. En ligne droite, c?est sûr que ça va plus vite que la Porsche RS Spyder mais ce n?est pas une Audi non plus, il n?y a pas la même puissance.

How did your integration into the Oreca team go?
Very good, I get along really well with Nicolas and Olivier! I already knew Olivier (Panis), I had already worked with Jean-Philippe (Pelaprat, car engineer) a few years ago at Le Mans and I was able to quickly integrate into the team. From the first day, we were able to work well before attacking this week as best as possible.

Have you set a personal goal for the race?
I want to fight with the Acuras. If I was asked to come here, it is to achieve this objective. I hope we will have the speed to do it. But, for a European team coming here for the first time, it will be very difficult. We are trying to find the right settings while they have already raced here for the last two years. Come and win here, with the LMP1s opposite you, right? You shouldn't dream too much. The goal is to run the best race possible without making mistakes, without stopping for long, to obtain the best possible result. We are all aware of it.

Three months after Le Mans, you must retain a taste of unfinished business. What assessment do you make, looking back?
It is the same as after the race. I was very frustrated. The only thing I miss today Endurance is to win Le Mans, even though I'm still quite young. Spa, the Nürburgring and Sebring, I managed to win there with Porsche but Le Mans, if you don't have the car to win, there's almost no point in going there. I finished third with Pescarolo a few years ago and it's difficult to do better. So, driving with Audi, I thought we were going to be able to do well but it didn't work out for us?