Thierry Tassin (WRT): “We suffered throughout the race”

We have never felt your Oreca n°31 very lively this weekend. For what ?

In qualifying, we suffered from a deficit in top speed. We even wanted to change the engine, but Gibson let us know that there was nothing abnormal in the data. So we didn't change anything, but we suffered throughout the race.

Where specifically?

In the first and third sectors. This probably comes from an engine problem as we don't lose in a straight line. Apart from that, the car was pleasant to drive and the tire degradation was very good.

Why did you have to put the car in the box?

We encountered a problem with the clutch release. We tried to finish like this, but there came a point where we couldn't restart and had to repair. The idea was to be classified, especially since the n°24, n°25 and n°26 do not mark championships (because they are not registered for the year. Editor's note). And this allowed us to give mileage to Charles Milesi, who rode very well.

There are still some positives to remember, right?

Our drivers didn't make any mistakes, they rode well, racked up the kilometers and neither did the team. But we leave with a question mark. Why are we so slow in a straight line? But that's how it is. We learned a lot of things and that's how you become stronger. The #22 United Autosports car was unbeatable, but I think we could have fought for second without our technical issues. But that's part of motorsport. THE WEC, it is something other thanELMS and we all learned a lot, from the drivers to the engineers to the mechanics and myself on a sporting level.