Audi is preparing for its fifteenth entry to the 24 Hours of Le Mans and will be hoping to secure its twelfth win at the famous race.
The #1 Audi R18 e-tron quattro will be aiming for a hat-trick of victories, with the trio of Marcel Fassler, Andre Lotterer and Benoit Treluyer looking to become the first team since the Audis of Frank Biela, Emanuele Pirro and Tom Kristensen in 2000, 2001 and 2002.
“Finally, we’re returning to Le Mans and I can run on this track in the Audi R18 e-tron quattro again,” said Treluyer. “After Spa, I drove the car once more on the test day at Le Mans. That was good practice. A home round is always something very special. Many fans and friends will come to the event to support me. That’s a nice feeling.”
The first challenger to the #1 team, though, is their own sister car, the #2 machine of Loic Duval, Allan McNish and all time record-winner with eight wins, Kristensen.
Finally, rounding out the three-car line-up, Marc Gene, Oliver Jarvis and Lucas di Grassi will join forces in the #3 machine, with di Grassi making his first appearance at Le Mans.
“This year, Le Mans will be a particularly great challenge for us,” said Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. “There have been various changes made to the regulations in recent months. This has put us in a position that will make it difficult for us to decide the competition in our favor based on our racing performance. But we’re going to focus on our strengths as a team, which we’ve demonstrated on numerous occasions. It’s about doing a one-hundred-percent perfect job. We’ve got to reduce the stopping times in the pits to a minimum and, that way, try to compensate for the restrictions which the regulations have imposed on us.”