Petit Le Mans: Peugeot as an outsider

Peugeot , like other companies present on the Road Atlanta circuit, is preparing for the next endurance season. After competing against each other during the 12 Hours of Sebring and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Peugeot 908 HDi FAP and the Audi R15 TDi will meet this weekend for their third and final duel of the year.

On this track, Peugeot will be the outsider, Audi having much more experience of American races, having dominated the American Le Mans Series in recent years. Olivier Quesnel knows that reliability will be the key word on the Road Atlanta circuit. “ After Le Mans (24 hours) and Sebring (12 hours), Road Atlanta (10 hours) is the third longest endurance race in the world, recalls the director of Peugeot Sport. It is therefore an excellent exercise for the whole team. The priority objective is to deepen a whole body of knowledge about endurance: strategy, traffic, reliability, competition? especially since all these phenomena are significantly accentuated on this very atypical route. The numerous safety cars and the speed differences between the different cars can quickly turn your race into a headache and hell. »

However, the director of Peugeot Sport recognizes that a new domination over Audi would not be refused. But experience is on the side of the firm with the rings. “ Obviously we will do everything we can to bring about victory but we are not the favorites in this endurance race which has been dominated for nine years by Audi, formidable on this terrain. »

For this race, Peugeot enters two cars, the No. 7 driven by Nicolas Minassian and Pedro Lamy, and the No. 8, whose crew is made up of two Frenchmen, Franck Montagny and Stéphane Sarrazin. In terms of aerodynamics, the 908 will find the configuration adopted this season during the 1000 km of Spa-Francorchamps (Le Mans Series) and not that of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Bruno Famin, technical director of Peugeot Sport, explains this choice. “ We opted for this aero version because it is a circuit that requires more downforce. reason why our competitor will be at his advantage and will prove very difficult to beat. The difference between our two cars can, in places, be significant as was the case in the first corner of Sebring where they were 10km/h faster than us, simply because their car generates more downforce. »

In terms of engines, these are the blocks that were used in free practice on Wednesday during the 24 Hours of Le Mans which will be reused in Atlanta. “ Each engine has nearly 1500 kilometers on the odometer », confirms Bruno Famin. Since the 24 Hours, the two cars have been dismantled, inspected and maintained, before returning to the track for testing during the summer. “ We only dismantled cars 7 and 8, car 9 being in high demand, says Bruno Famin. Except for the brakes and clutch, we could have left for several more hours of racing! It is a great satisfaction to see such reliability of the 908s. »