Le Mans – Laurent: “I can’t make it happen”

When we visited you in mid-April, you already didn't realize that you were going to participate in the 24 Hours of Le Mans...

Yes, because until a few months ago, that wasn't even the plan. So it goes without saying that realizing the fact of having won the event in LM P2 is even more difficult. Taking part in Le Mans was, for me, a 1000-horsepower dream. But there is victory in LM P2 and second place in the general classification, the icing on the cake. It’s nice, I’m not going to say otherwise. I don't really know what to say except that I can't realize, even if I'm constantly told that I was at the top of the general classification of the 24 Hours of Le Mans for an hour, at the wheel of an LM. P2.

Saturday afternoon, you drove straight to Indianapolis. What happened ?

I'm not even sure if I'm entirely responsible for it. I got back to the box and everyone told me it wasn't… I'm not going to lie, it upset me. After the end of my first stint, I was really embarrassed but Oliver (Jarvis. Editor's note) came to cheer me up by telling me that the race was still very long. They comforted me more than anything else...

How did you experience the arrival?

With 10-15 minutes to go before the checkered flag, the Chinese began to regroup and chant “DCR 1st and 3rd”. In the engineers' corner, I was telling Oliver that I didn't like it. He went to see them and reminded them of the mishap experienced by Toyota last year (technical problem at the start of the last lap. Editor's note). And that calmed everyone down... I didn't go to see my parents because I knew that my father was in tears and that if I saw him, I was going to cry too. On the way back to the stands, when some people asked me questions, I felt tears coming and I tried to stay calm. It was beautiful…

Discover the full interview with Thomas Laurent in issue 2120 of AUTOhebdo, available now in digital version on all platforms and on kiosks.