- 2,247
- Athens
- VQS_Ntinoskonsta
Hello! This is my first race report, so please don't go blaming me if it's crap 
Recently, I unlocked the 24 Minutes of Le Mans and decided to give it a try to see what all the fuss was about. I bought an Audi R8 '01, thinking it was the perfect car for the race. Or was it…?
Starting grid:
Lap 1:
I get by Poulain at the first chicane. Rothstein and Hansen fall at Hunaudieres, while the others have already gotten away. I spend the rest of Hunaudieres and another ~3km trying to catch up. Eventually, I close the gap and pass Janssen going into the Porsche Curves. 11 cars dive for the pits at the end of the lap to switch to RI tires, but Oneill, Savidis, me, Janssen and Poulain stay out. I end the lap in 3rd, 18 seconds behind Oneill.
Lap 2:
I get penalized at the first chicane, which costs me a few seconds. The sun sets as I roar through Hunaudieres, and I turn on the headlights. Savidis, my fellow Greek racer, is overtaken for 2nd at Mulsanne. The gap is reduced to 16 seconds at the Porsche Curves and Savidis is way behind me. Oneill and I pit at the end of the lap, but Savidis stays out for a third lap, and so does Janssen.
Lap 3:
Oneill is briefly passed in the pits, but he leaves his pit box while I stop at mine. My fuel tank is refilled and my tires are replaced with new ones of the same type. Meanwhile, Nishida passes me. I exit the pits 26 seconds behind Savidis. Nishida is passed at Tertre Rouge, but he doesn't give up without a fight. We battle until he pits. Savidis, Janssen and Oneill pit too in order to switch to racing hards, enabling me to lead the race for the first time.
Lap 4:
The other cars make long pit stops, so I build up a comfortable lead of 18 seconds. However, my tires are worn, resulting in a spin while exiting the second Hunaudieres chicane. The gap plummets to 9.5 seconds. Savidis shaves another 2 seconds off the gap by Mulsanne, dropping it to 7.5 seconds. I suffer extreme wheelspin throughout the rest of the lap. I slide through Indianapolis, losing another half second to Savidis, who's clearly got the upper hand. He gains 4 seconds at the Porsche Curves due to me sliding through the last curve and losing a lot of speed. I drive into the pit lane and end the lap 2 seconds ahead.
Lap 5:
I get a refill and switch to racing hards, as the track is completely dry. Savidis, Oneill, Nishida, Janssen, Ishida and Soininen pass me while I am stopped. I exit the pits in 7th place, 27 seconds behind Savidis. I overtake Soininen for 6th at Tertre Rouge. I reach Janssen at Indianapolis, but I have to wait until the Porsche Curves to get by him. Oneill, Ishida and Nishida make their last pit stop. I end the lap in 2nd, 16 seconds behind Savidis.
Lap 6:
Aware of the fact that both Savidis and I are going to make our last pit stop in this lap, I try to reduce the gap as much as possible. It's already down to 13 seconds at Tertre Rouge, then 11 seconds at Mulsanne. I take advantage of Savidis' worn tires to shave another 5 seconds off the gap. I cross the finish line for my last lap at 23 minutes and 35 seconds elapsed. Knowing that I will not be able to gain 6 seconds in the last lap alone, I opt for 20 liters less than normal. It works like a charm.
Lap 7:
Oh crud! I had forgotten that Oneill wasn't going to pit in. He crosses the line to begin his seventh lap at 23 minutes plus 58 seconds elapsed and passes both of us while we are in the pits. I exit the pits 5 seconds behind.
Hunaudieres doesn't help much; I only shave off 5 tenths of a second and I'm still 4 seconds behind with less than half a lap left. The gap is unchanged at Indianapolis, but it is reduced to 2.8 seconds at the Porsche Curves. I'm still a second behind at the first Ford Chicane, however I get a much better run out of it and pass Oneill at the last chicane! With my heart racing and my legs shaking violently, I cross the finish line 0.557 seconds ahead of Oneill. Whew!
Final results:
Overview:
A very exciting race. I never knew where I was going to end up. The spin in the 4th lap could have cost me the race, but thankfully it didn't. I also don't know if I could have avoided that last pit stop altogether. But what matters is that it was a great race.
Recently, I unlocked the 24 Minutes of Le Mans and decided to give it a try to see what all the fuss was about. I bought an Audi R8 '01, thinking it was the perfect car for the race. Or was it…?
Starting grid:
- S. Nishida - Toyota MINOLTA Toyota 88C-V [RS]
- K. Oneill - Pescarolo C60 Hybride - Judd [RI]
- A. Ishida - Nissan R92CP [RH]
- P. Soininen - Nissan R89C [RM]
- F. Kok Jaguar - XJR-9 [RM]
- T. Woodward - Bentley Speed 8 [RS]
- W. Dietrich - Mazda 787B [RH]
- F. Martins - Pescarolo-Courage - Judd GV5 [RM]
- H. Savidis - Audi R8 [RI]
- A. Marchetti - BMW V12 LMR [RS]
- J. Philippe - Peugeot 908 HDi FAP [RM]
- D. Janssen - Audi R8 Playstation [RI]
- P. Hansen - Toyota GT - ONE [RH]
- K. Rothstein - Audi R10 Stealth [RM]
- B. Poulain - Audi R18 [RI]
- Me Audi R8 - [RI]
Lap 1:
I get by Poulain at the first chicane. Rothstein and Hansen fall at Hunaudieres, while the others have already gotten away. I spend the rest of Hunaudieres and another ~3km trying to catch up. Eventually, I close the gap and pass Janssen going into the Porsche Curves. 11 cars dive for the pits at the end of the lap to switch to RI tires, but Oneill, Savidis, me, Janssen and Poulain stay out. I end the lap in 3rd, 18 seconds behind Oneill.
Lap 2:
I get penalized at the first chicane, which costs me a few seconds. The sun sets as I roar through Hunaudieres, and I turn on the headlights. Savidis, my fellow Greek racer, is overtaken for 2nd at Mulsanne. The gap is reduced to 16 seconds at the Porsche Curves and Savidis is way behind me. Oneill and I pit at the end of the lap, but Savidis stays out for a third lap, and so does Janssen.
Lap 3:
Oneill is briefly passed in the pits, but he leaves his pit box while I stop at mine. My fuel tank is refilled and my tires are replaced with new ones of the same type. Meanwhile, Nishida passes me. I exit the pits 26 seconds behind Savidis. Nishida is passed at Tertre Rouge, but he doesn't give up without a fight. We battle until he pits. Savidis, Janssen and Oneill pit too in order to switch to racing hards, enabling me to lead the race for the first time.
Lap 4:
The other cars make long pit stops, so I build up a comfortable lead of 18 seconds. However, my tires are worn, resulting in a spin while exiting the second Hunaudieres chicane. The gap plummets to 9.5 seconds. Savidis shaves another 2 seconds off the gap by Mulsanne, dropping it to 7.5 seconds. I suffer extreme wheelspin throughout the rest of the lap. I slide through Indianapolis, losing another half second to Savidis, who's clearly got the upper hand. He gains 4 seconds at the Porsche Curves due to me sliding through the last curve and losing a lot of speed. I drive into the pit lane and end the lap 2 seconds ahead.
Lap 5:
I get a refill and switch to racing hards, as the track is completely dry. Savidis, Oneill, Nishida, Janssen, Ishida and Soininen pass me while I am stopped. I exit the pits in 7th place, 27 seconds behind Savidis. I overtake Soininen for 6th at Tertre Rouge. I reach Janssen at Indianapolis, but I have to wait until the Porsche Curves to get by him. Oneill, Ishida and Nishida make their last pit stop. I end the lap in 2nd, 16 seconds behind Savidis.
Lap 6:
Aware of the fact that both Savidis and I are going to make our last pit stop in this lap, I try to reduce the gap as much as possible. It's already down to 13 seconds at Tertre Rouge, then 11 seconds at Mulsanne. I take advantage of Savidis' worn tires to shave another 5 seconds off the gap. I cross the finish line for my last lap at 23 minutes and 35 seconds elapsed. Knowing that I will not be able to gain 6 seconds in the last lap alone, I opt for 20 liters less than normal. It works like a charm.
Lap 7:
Oh crud! I had forgotten that Oneill wasn't going to pit in. He crosses the line to begin his seventh lap at 23 minutes plus 58 seconds elapsed and passes both of us while we are in the pits. I exit the pits 5 seconds behind.
Hunaudieres doesn't help much; I only shave off 5 tenths of a second and I'm still 4 seconds behind with less than half a lap left. The gap is unchanged at Indianapolis, but it is reduced to 2.8 seconds at the Porsche Curves. I'm still a second behind at the first Ford Chicane, however I get a much better run out of it and pass Oneill at the last chicane! With my heart racing and my legs shaking violently, I cross the finish line 0.557 seconds ahead of Oneill. Whew!
Final results:
- Me - 27:39.766
- K. Oneill - +0.557
- H. Savidis - +12.530
- D. Janssen - +35.589
- A. Marchetti - +37.476
- F. Martins - +44.132
- T. Woodward - +53.228
- A. Ishida - +1 Lap
- S. Nishida - +1 Lap
- J. Philippe - +1 Lap
- P. Soininen - +1 Lap
- W. Dietrich - +1 Lap
- F. Kok - +1 Lap
- B. Poulain - +1 Lap
- K. Rothstein - +1 Lap
- P. Hansen - +1 Lap
Overview:
A very exciting race. I never knew where I was going to end up. The spin in the 4th lap could have cost me the race, but thankfully it didn't. I also don't know if I could have avoided that last pit stop altogether. But what matters is that it was a great race.
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