Toyota had retired long ago, but Audi still threatened to be its own worst enemy in the final hours of the 2012 Le Mans 24 Hours. The #1 R18 TDI driven by last year’s winners Andre Lotterer, Benoit Treluyer and Marcel Fassler crossed the line serenely a lap ahead of its closest challenger, but the [...]
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The Toyota TS030 Hybrid’s race debut has come to an end with the retirement of the #7 car from the Le Mans 24 Hours due to engine trouble. The team’s challenge for the lead had fizzled out several hours earlier, after contact with the Nissan DeltaWing and a lengthy stay in the garage, but it [...]
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After several hours of controlled tension, drama has exploded at Le Mans as Anthony Davidson suffered a huge crash after coming together with a Ferrari 458 on the Mulsanne straight. The #8 Toyota clipped the front right of the #81 AF Corse GTE-Am car (driven by Piergiuseppe Perazzini) while passing it, sending Davidson spinning through [...]
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Andre Lotterer has picked up where he left off at Le Mans – leading the race in the #1 Audi R18 e-tron quattro that he qualified on pole position on Thursday night. After a clean start with no accidents, the field has now run through its first pitstop cycle and settled into a race rythmn.
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Audi’s 12-strong driver line-up at Le Mans is a cosmopolitan one, with Britain, France, Denmark, Switzerland and Germany all represented. But there are also two Italians in the ranks: young newcomer Marco Bonanomi and respected veteran Dindo Capello. The two men are at opposite ends of their careers, but both stress how lucky they feel [...]
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It’s not running in any of the four classes, but the Nissan DeltaWing is still one of the biggest stories at Le Mans this year. We spoke to long-time Nissan works driver Michael Krumm about what it’s like to get behind the wheel of this innovative and groundbreaking machine.
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Andre Lotterer, Benoit Treluyer and Marcel Fassler will start the 80th edition of the Le Mans 24 Hours from pole, giving them the best possible chance of repeating their victory from last year. And while Toyota did better than many expected to split the Audis and line up third, the eventual pole position time was [...]
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BMW had the pace and Mercedes looked potent at times, too, but it was Audi that vanquished the oppostion at the 2012 Nurburgring 24 Hours with a dominant 1-2 finish courtesy of customer squads Team Phoenix and Mamerow Racing. Non-German marques didn’t get a look in at any point during this fascinating race, which included [...]
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Much of the attention at the Nurburgring 24 Hours these days is focused on the top-flight GT machinery piloted by some of the world’s best pros. Seeing these cars and drivers tackle the Nordschleife with maximum commitment is a huge part of the race’s attraction, but there’s another, equally fascinating side to the Ring 24 [...]
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