Fractional Life hits Le Mans

The Le Mans 24 Hour is a yearly Mecca for petrolheads. Now in its 75th year the 24 Heures du Mans (to use the French) is the most famous endurance race in the world, run on a circuit utilising the closed public roads of Sarthe. The race is not only a test of driver skill but of the stamina of manufacturers cars.

Although the Fractional Life convoy hit Le Mans slightly later than intended due to a spot of satellite navigation malfunction leading us through the centre of Paris but that blip aside a fantastic weekend was had by all… there was plenty of beer swilling, manly camaraderie and tent erecting but what of the race itself?

Audi took it's a commanding victory despite the poor weather- the second such win for their revolutionary R10 TDI diesel racer and their seventh successive Le Mans win. Although they took pole the other two Audi team cars were unfortunately totalled before the race was over which allowed Peugeot to finish in second place- again with a diesel in form of the 908 HDi FAP. The second Peugeot was retired before the close.

So a good result for the aurally disappointing diesels with the first petrol car (woo-hoo! Proper racecar soundtrack!) to finish being the third position Pescarolo Judd of Collard/Boullion/Dumas.

On the subject of noise if podium places were awarded for the loudest car of the day then Team JLOC Isao Noritake with their Lamborghini Murciélago would have romped to victory. Regrettably, especially considering the pre-race efforts made by the team, the Murciélago did not complete the full 24 hours.

Aston Martin finally managed to shatter the Corvette stranglehold by prevailing in the GT1 class. The victorious Brabham/Rydell/Turner works DBR9 also claimed fifth spot overall ahead of the second placed Corvette of O'connell/Magnussen/Fellows. Aston swept the boards by scoring third, fourth and sixth in the GT1 category.