Le Mans – An “incredible” final stint at Aston Martin

Rarely arrival of 24 Hours of Le Mans, here in GTE Pro, will not have been so competitive. Until the last moments of the double clock tower in Sarthe, Aston Martin et Corvette ont émergé comme les deux marques à pouvoir s’imposer dans la catégorie, Porsche, Ford and Ferrari appearing more behind this weekend.

Regularly placed at the forefront of the event throughout the entire race, the No. 97 Vantage of Daniel Serra – Darren Turner – Jonny Adam finally placed itself as the last holdout against the No. 7 Corvette C63.R. XNUMX of Magnussen – Garcia – Taylor, after the setbacks of the #95 Vantage, which made a mistake in the gravel trap shortly before 8:30 a.m.

If Daniel Serra had already faced Jan Magnussen before midday for third place, the revenge took place between Jordan Taylor on the American GTE and Jonny Adam on his British colleague for the final victory. A maneuver full of mischief at the Raccordement chicane, after a first failed attempt at Arnage, will be enough to take a decisive advantage on the penultimate lap. The puncture in the wake of the Corvette will put an end to American hopes of regaining success at Le Mans, already abandoned to Ford in 2016.

“The car was great throughout the weekend until the last stint, confesses Jonny Adam. When the opportunity came at Arnage, he had to seize it. Unfortunately, I started a little wide and he regained a little margin. The key was to stay focused on our goals, and it was great to be in this situation to fight until the end. It's a dream come true. My dream was to compete in this race, and to win on your second attempt is a great accomplishment, especially to do it with these two guys who are great teammates who were very fast in the car. »

An asset and an understanding

Among those entered in GTE Pro, Aston Martin has the particularity of evolving with Dunlop rubber, while its rivals are fitted with Michelin tires. A difference that Darren Turner highlights in this weekend's result.

“It was perfect working with Dunlop, believes Turner. We could not have achieved this result without working with them, but also without sharing the car with Daniel and Jonny. Jonny's last stint was incredible: keeping such pressure on the Corvette was epic. The race was tough. The competition responded. And being in this position at the end, Jonny was able to put pressure on and attempt this maneuver. This represents a real team effort. We deserve this. The team has really raised its game in recent years. No one behind the wheel really made any mistakes, and that's what we needed to do to ensure we won the race. »

The Turner – Adam tandem also played the role of big brother for Daniel Serra, recruited by Aston Martin for this season. The Brazilian also maintains close ties with Dunlop, for whom he regularly worked as a test driver. “I am grateful to AMR, Dunlop and my teammates who helped me a lot to understand several things, racing, how it works. I just won the biggest race in motorsport. » admits Serra.

On this occasion, Aston Martin Racing achieved its fourth success at Le Mans, after victories in GT1 in 2007 and 2008 (with Darren Turner in the squad), and success in 2014 in GTE Am.

Find the full report and analysis of the 85th edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, produced by our special correspondents in Sarthe, in issue 2119 of AUTOhebdo, available tomorrow evening in digital version, and from this Wednesday on newsstands.