Peugeot calm before the debut of the new 9X8: “Confident of having repositioned our car in relation to the competition”

This weekend, in Imola (April 19-21), the Peugeot 9X8 2024, unveiled on March 25, will be at the start of a round of WEC for the first time. The French Hypercar – which now accommodates a rear wing – then raises many questions about its general performance. Where exactly will it be in relation to the rest of the grid? Difficult to answer at the moment...

« We know that it is intrinsically more efficient (than the 9X8 of 2023, Editor’s note.), even if it is still complicated to judge because we do not yet know at what mass and at what power it will run (1061 kg and 510 kW of power after publication of the BoP of the 6H of Imola, Ed.). We are certain that we have repositioned our car in relation to the competition, but to what extent? The first races will tell us,” explains Olivier Jansonnie, technical director of Peugeot Sport.

The French engineer, however, underlines the immense work carried out by the entire team to successfully complete this project for the Peugeot 9X8 2024: “Our design and operations teams have put in a colossal amount of work to respect our sporting program with the 2023 version and develop the Peugeot 9X8 2024, the specifications of which have evolved over the course of the year in order to integrate everything we was learning in terms of reliability, aerodynamic development and knowledge of the new tires that we rolled in mid-2023 on a mule car.”

From the studio to the pit lane, the #Peugeot9X8 2024 !!#WEC @FIAWEC pic.twitter.com/jSj7pJ5cqV

— Peugeot Sport (@peugeotsport) April 10, 2024

Imola, the unknown factor for Peugeot

For the first time in WEC history, the championship ventures onto the legendary Imola circuit. A factor which must necessarily be taken into account given the route which is so specific and so cramped. « It is a circuit which has never been used in the FIA ​​WEC championship and which we do not know very well, continues Olivier Jansonnie. We didn't test there, but that was also the case in Qatar and we performed well, so I'm not too worried. We worked in simulation and we could see that Imola was a typical high-downforce circuit. »

As for the drivers, this new Italian challenge does not frighten them that much and are rather looking forward to battling it out on this historic track. « I drove to Imola in Formula 3 in the past, then ELMS in 2021, remembers Mikkel Jensen, driver of the No. 93. It's a beautiful track, a bit old school, narrow with big curbs to negotiate. With the traffic, it's going to be a real challenge in Hypercar. »

Paul di Resta, driver of the Peugeot 9X8 n°94, wants to be cautious for the first race of his new prototype and does not forget his main objective, the 24H of Le Mans : « In terms of preparation, it's never easy to arrive at a second round with a new car. We will learn and progress step by step with this Peugeot 9X8 2024, with Le Mans in our sights, which is our main objective. »

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