WEC – Tréluyer maintains morale after the 6 Hours of Spa

If the Tréluyer-Fässler-Lotterer crew is already 40 points behind the leaders of the WEC Davidson-Buemi-Stone (Toyota n°8) after the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, the priority in the Belgian Ardennes was to prepare the 24 Hours of Le Mans which will be played on June 14 and 15. For the R18 e-tron quattro with number 2, the results are mixed since it only took fifth place after encountering several problems during the race. But the hierarchy that emerged last weekend could be very different next month in Sarthe where the Ingolstadt manufacturer remains on four consecutive victories.

Benoît Tréluyer is perfectly aware that the situation remains uncertain even if several points must be resolved before the trip to Le Mans. “Overall, drivers, engineers, mechanics, we all did a good job. The latter were simply extraordinary: they managed to repair the electrical connection of a receiver during a refueling, all without wasting time. On the strategy side, the result is also convincing. There are, in fact, only these minor worries, small grains of sand, which prevent us from expressing our full potential. comments the 2012 world champion. ?Cars are so complex that it?s hard to escape, and as soon as a problem arises it has repercussions on something else. Nevertheless, we were able to learn a lot throughout the weekend and that?s the main thing. We're not yet where we want to be, but we're getting close. »

The No. 2 Audi team quickly focused on improving the reliability of the R18 e-tron quattro in the Belgian Ardennes before preparing as best they could for the 24 Hours of Le Mans which is now fast approaching. “We also intervened on the configurations of the hybrid system to try to find more performance. During my second stint, my confidence returned and I was able to ride well. I then kept the same tires for my third stint and was on my way back up when I experienced a loss of pressure in a tire and had to return to the pits. So I passed the baton to Marcel who, wearing a new set of new tires, was clearly on the pace during his last two stints! »

Discover the analysis of the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps carried out by our special correspondents in issue 1959 of AUTOhebdo, available now in digital version on all platforms, and from tomorrow on newsstands.