24h Le Mans: Top ten finish for Charouz Racing System - 14.06.2008

The Aston Martin powered LMP1 car managed to finish the famous 24 Heures du Mans race in the top ten on its first attempt and was also the third petrol-engined car to take the chequered flag. The number ten car was shared by Jan Charouz, Tomas Enge and Stefan Mücke, with all three drivers contributing to a great comeback after an earlier delay.

The 76th edition of the 24 Heures du Mans is finished. The debut of the brand new prototype, powered by a production-based engine from the GT1 class winning Aston Martin DBR9, showed that the Charouz Racing System team is more than capable of taking the fight to its petrol-powered rivals.

The trio of Charouz, Enge and Mücke showed right from the start that they have the speed to lead the petrol charge behind the factory diesels and that they also have the morale to climb back after things did not exactly go their way. Young Charouz went off at the end of the second hour when he lost downforce and control of the car as he was overtaking slower cars. The team managed to repair the car, which was not as badly damaged as it looked. A fast and consistent pace in all sorts of conditions subsequently provided a good base to climb up the order.

The number ten car was as low as 48th place after the repair, but steadily made up ground on its competitors, with the exception of the diesels. Finally, the car made it back into the top ten and Enge took the flag ninth in both the overall and LMP1 standings. The Charouz Racing System team finished as the third-best placed petrol car and the final gap of eight laps was considerably smaller than the initial deficit.

Jan Charouz: “I have mixed feelings. I am angry at myself due to the mistake at the beginning of the race that complicated things for us. On the other hand, we showed very good speed and were consistently the fastest petrol car. The conditions were really tough as they were changing a lot. Also, last year we had rain, but at least it was consistent while this year the track was different on almost every lap during the second half of the race. At least we have quite a good idea of how we stand versus the others and the main difference between us and the factory diesels, which is in the torque out of the corners. Honestly, even if I had not had the off we would have not finished higher than seventh.”
www.jan-charouz.cz

Tomas Enge: “It is always nice to see the chequered flag after 24 hours and I actually realized that it was the first time I had crossed the finish line in the car! The team put in a huge effort and we had a technically relatively trouble-free race, which was very positive after challenging test day and qualifying sessions. Driving a prototype was a whole new experience for me and I liked it. On the other hand, it was clear that we can not be a match for the factory diesels, so we were never really in a fight for overall victory. At least we were mostly the quickest of the petrol cars. Last but not least, I want to congratulate my former GT1 team-mates for taking the GT1 class win with the Aston Martin DBR9.”
www.tomas-enge.com

Stefan Mücke: “We are pretty happy. We finished the race without any major technical problems and it is always rewarding to see the finish after 24 hard-fought hours. Without the early accident we would have easily been the highest placed petrol car, but as it is we are third and it is still very good. The conditions were challenging at the end; I was out on the slicks when rain started again, but none of us made any mistakes at the end. We proved our speed and we would definitely like to come back next year and perhaps score an even better result.”
www.stefan-muecke.jgsm.de

Antonin Charouz, Team Principal: “We have reasons to be happy. It was the first start of the car at Le Mans and unfortunately Jan had an off during his first stint after he lost downforce. It looked like we were finished as he stopped twice, but finally managed to bring the car back to the pits. We had some other niggling problems, but we finished the race. We started twice at Le Mans and we have two finishes, which is good. The car clearly demonstrated that speed-wise it is the class of the petrol field and it is not surprising that factory diesels were in a different league. As a privateer, it is always difficult to fight against mighty factory teams with huge resources, regardless of the engine technology. We pushed hard, gained back a lot of time on our direct rivals, so I am happy.”

David Richards: ”The LMP1 was a new step for us and for it to be so competitive at such an early stage of its development is very encouraging. Who knows what the future might bring?”

Results of 24h Le Mans 2008 ZDE

Foto: BPA/Petr Frýba
Foto in higher-res HERE

Foto: BPA/Petr Frýba
Foto in higher-res HERE

Foto: BPA/Petr Frýba
Foto ve větším rozlišení ZDE

Foto: BPA/Petr Frýba
Foto in higher-res ZDE

24h Le Mans 2008 - updates from start until finish
Just three hours remaining to the end of the 76th edition of the 24 Heures du Mans and the Aston Martin powered prototype is running in the top ten. Stefan Mücke did long three stints in the wet morning and simply continued the trend set by his team-mates Jan Charouz and Tomas Enge. He closed the gap to the rival petrol cars even though he had to drive without traction control during one stint.

„Overall it was very tricky. We use public roads and there are quite slippery. Normally, the absence of the TC is not a big problem but with very slippery white lines it was really on the edge. The team fixed it during the stop. We are now in the top ten and hopefully we can move a bit forward before the end,“ said Stefan.

Jan Charouz was next one behind the wheel and, as was the case with both Mücke and Enge, he was also one of the fastest petrol cars on the track. His time in the car was a bit shorter than planned after he suffered a tyre delamination during the second stint.

„I had to be very careful as the track conditions changed each lap depending on the rain. Our car worked well the only problem was when the tyre delaminated. Fortunately, just the tread separated but the inner tube was intact, so we did not loose too much time,“ said Jan. Tomas Enge boldly took intermediates when the track started to dry out and it paid off. He pushed hard and sneaked into the overall top 10 before handing the car to Mücke. The Charouz Racing System car lies 9th in the LMP1 class and it is third best petrol car.

Reaching top 10 – 18 hours report
Rain has been falling at Le Mans, but the Aston Martin powered Charouz Racing System car continued its charge through the field to rejoin the top ten LMP1 cars. Tomas Enge completed a triple stint during the daybreak. The former-F1 driver showed his skills in the wet and lapped quickly around the La Sarthe track. He was mostly the quickest petrol car and often on a par with some of the factory diesels.

“It is a bit funny because I did not have the best feeling behind the wheel, only to find out that my times were really very good compared to the others. We were able to do all three stints on one set of wet tyres, which shows Michelin’s durability,” said Enge.

The cameras suggested that visibility was quite poor in the dark and wet, but the Czech did not complain. “It is clear that in the dry it is better, but it was okay for me in the wet. Sometimes there is water spray, but you can cope. Actually the biggest problem with visibility was during my previous run in the dry. Some cars leaked oil and it got onto the windscreen. When this happens the windscreen picks up all the dust from the cars in front; that was a problem, as I hardly saw anything,” explained Enge.

Stefan took over and managed to get into the top ten in the LMP1 class and 11th overall. The car then developed an electronic problem that resulted in a slightly longer pitstop than normal. Although this cost some track time as the team tried to cure the problem, the car did not lose track position. Mücke is due to hand over the car to Jan Charouz shortly.

It is raining – 15 hours report
The 76th edition of the 24 Heures du Mans brought more drama as rain started to fall in the 14th hour of the race. Charouz Racing System continues its recovery and has a top ten position in sight. It had been an all-dry first half of the race, but the situation changed just as all the competitors were waiting for daybreak. Jan Charouz was driving the number 10 car when rain started and he found himself busy keeping the car on the track on slicks, before he eventually pitted.

“Everything went smoothly before the rain. I completed two laps on the slicks when rain started and was lucky to keep it together. It was like driving on ice,” said Jan about the treacherous conditions at the end of his stints.

After taking over from Jan, the experienced Czech, Tomas Enge, worked hard to further reduce the gap to the front. As the race reached the 15-hour mark, the team lay in 12th overall and 11th in the LMP1 class, with its closest rival just four laps ahead.

It is half time – 12 hours report
Jan Charouz, Tomas Enge and Stefan Mücke reached the 12-hour mark of the prestigious endurance race at Le Mans. Charouz Racing System car has been steadily moving up the order. The new Aston Martin powered prototype has shown quite a turn of speed in the dark and gained another few position as the race reached the halfway point. All three drivers have been happy with the car.

Enge, who got out of the car shortly after midnight, said: “I enjoy driving in the night and usually I am very quick. There were no problems with the car during my stints. However, you have to be very careful out there because some car leaked oil on the track and it is tricky.”

Stefan Mücke took over and pushed hard to further improve the position of the number 10 car. His stints also went well. “Obviously, we are not gaining places as quickly as we were at the beginning, but the main thing is to keep pushing. There is still long way to go; we are just approaching halftime. Reliability is the key,” said Mücke, after handing over to Jan Charouz.

The youngest driver of the team currently holds 13th place overall, which hopefully does not bring any bad luck, and 11th place in the LMP1 class, six laps behind the team’s closest competitor.

Recovery continues – 9 hours report
The number 10 car of Charouz Racing System has maintained its steady pace and continues to climb back up the order. The Aston Martin powered prototype was running in the top 20 as darkness fell over Le Mans. Stefan Mücke got out of the car as the race reached quarter distance. “Our car is okay and I have had no problems during my stints; everything went well,” he said, after completing three stints in a row.

Jan Charouz showed no side effects after his troubled first stint of the race and put in consistent lap times. The young Czech was often the fastest petrol driver out on the track and followed in the steps of his team mates Tomas Enge and Stefan Mucke to climb up the order before handing over to Tomas Enge in 23rd position, just as the darkness decended. “This was much better. To be honest I did not know what lap times the others were doing, but I know that I was consistently in the low 3m30s. The dark was not a problem as far as traffic is concerned. My only problem was a dirty windscreen, which was difficult to see through,” said Jan.

Tomas Enge is driving until midnight and has already moved into the top 20.

Making ground – 6 hours report
Charouz Racing System managed to climb up in the order between the third and sixth hours of the 24 Heures Du Mans to move into 28th place. Tomas Enge was in the car as the three’ hour mark passed. The experienced former-F1 driver, began an impressive climb back up through the field after an earlier delay due to an accident when Jan Charouz was behind the wheel.

„I am sorry, it was an unfortunate situation. There was a group of cars and I had to go off the line. I also lost some downforce and the car suddenly spun. It is a pity because we were very strong,“ explained Jan sadly.

The team managed to repair the car relatively quickly, taking less than half an hour. The damage looked much worse than was in reality and the bodywork was changed. Enge rejoined the track in 48th position and started his long climb back up the order. „The car felt okay. Actually it was the first time that I have done a long stint with this car here. I felt more and more confident and enjoyed my stints. We are far behind our competitors, but the race is very long and a lot of things can happen,“ said Enge.

He handed over to Stefan Mücke and the young Berliner continued the trend. He triple stinted and had moved up to 28th place by the time he came into the pits, almost exactly at the six’ hour mark, and handed over driving duties to Jan Charouz.

After 3 hours
Stefan Mücke had the honour of starting the race and the German held sixth position for a while before he was passed by the diesel prototype, which the team had out-qualified. Mücke continued to lead the other petrol powered cars until the first stop, which was a little longer than normal to allow the team to cure a problem with the gear shift.

Mücke stayed behind the wheel and continued as the second placed petrol car, before pitting after approximately 90 minutes from eight position overall. “The car felt okay at the beginning, but we had some problems with up and down shifting. We cured the problem during the first stop and although the repair was quick we lost some time and position. The rear was a bit nervous, but we were quick. We were able to close the gap to our competitors and it looked good,” said Stefan

Jan Charouz took over during the second pit stop and was fighting with other petrol powered cars for top spot behind the leading diesel cars. Unfortunately, shortly before the two hour mark he lost control of the car after dicing with another car and hit the barriers at the Dunlop Curve. He managed to bring damaged car back to the pits where the team carried out extensive repairs. Fortunately, the damage was mainly to the bodywork and the car rejoined the circuit with Tomas Enge at the wheel, although down in 48th place.

Foto: BPA/Petr Frýba
Foto in higher-res HERE

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