A dominant performance in both GTE-Pro and GTE-Am for the AF Corse team secured a fourth return to the top step of the GTE Pro podium for the Prancing Horse, and the first time for the Italian team’s GTE Am entry.
The #51 Ferrari 488 GTE EVO driven by Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Caldo and Côme Ledogar had looked the complete package throughout this meeting’s sessions and fairly bossed the race, regularly running 1-2 with its #52 stablemate of Daniel Serra, Miguel Molina and Sam Bird until a rear suspension failure began a sequence of issues that spoiled what otherwise might have been a Ferrari 1-2 finish. It was Calado and Pier Guidi’s second victory at Le Mans.
The Ferraris were only threatened by Corvette Racing, running its C8.R at Le Mans for the first time. Unremarkable in qualifying performance, the #64 car of Tommy Milner, Nick Tandy and Alexander Sims showed pace in the earlier stages of frantic racing due to variable weather, leading briefly as pit strategies shifted.
The Ferraris had this marked though, until the early hours of Sunday morning brought a clutch issue and a rear diffuser change for the #64 Corvette. A further alternator change would return the #64 car to the race to finish 46th and last of the cars running at the flag. The #63 Corvette of Antonio Garcia, Jordan Taylor and Nicky Catsburg had a lower profile but steadily rose through the order overnight without drama, putting it into contention on Sunday morning. But the #51 crew had the measure of things; any advantage would only be gained by a Ferrari issue.
So, what of Porsche’s challenge? The #91 factory entry of Kévin Estre, Neel Jani and Michael Christensen managed the third step of the podium after shaking the best from their 911 RSR-19. This was simply never in touch with the cars in front, certainly that of the Ferraris, Estre taking some consolation from the result having binned the original chassis in the Hyperpole session and threatened the car’s participation.
Fred Makowiecki, Richard Lietz and Gianmaria Bruni pushed hard in the #91 Porsche, but didn’t quite have the consistency of the #92 car. Makowiecki outbraked himself into the Ford Chicane at the end of the penultimate hour, tearing the rear diffuser and bodywork from the #91 Porsche 911 RSR-19, meaning fourth place would have to do.
The privately run Porsches provided depth to the field but struggled to really get in touch with the race. Although the Taiwanese-flagged #72 HubAuto Racing started from Dries Vanthoor’s impressive class pole position, the wet conditions of the first hour meant it was on the long list of cars in trouble. And despite experience and strong laps from Vanthoor, Maxime Martin and Álvaro Parente, the #72 Porschewas eventually forced into retirement. WeatherTech Racing had a similar race of attrition. They too had their time on page one of the timing screens, but after a challenging night the #79 car was retired with a gearbox related electrical issue on Sunday morning.
One has to check one’s self in reporting this as the first Le Mans victory in GTE Am for the AF Corse team under the AF Corse banner. A constant of the GT paddock in recent history, supporting countless Ferraris, a first ever in-house win is more than deserved.
The win for the GTE Am #83 Ferrari 488 GTE EVO was stealthy in its approach and dominant in its consolidation and delivery. François Perrodo, Nicklas Nielsen and Alessio Rovera kept their heads despite losing time in the pits having been caught out by one of many safety car periods, playing the long game in the wet conditions that challenged the first half of this year’s 24 hours. An early change to slicks on a drying track gained positions as others struggled with deteriorating wets.
For Perrodo, this result adds to two previous WEC GTE-Am championships; for Nielsen the win is a fabulous continuation of form, the Dane having recently taken overall victory at the 24 Hours of Spa.
The attrition in the GTE-Am class was brutal as the 23-car entry slipped, spun and grappled its way into the night, conditions catching out even the most experienced. The pace of the Porsches that had qualified further up the order meant little as accidents and mechanical dramas levelled the field.
The strongest challenge came from the #33 TF Sport Aston Martin Vantage, pedalled hard by Ben Keating, Dylan Pereira and Felipe Fraga. The distinctive turquoise car started from sixth on the grid, Fraga using his experience here to navigate the drama on track and push the car into the lead.
On pace alone the car looked strong, and may arguably have found a win had it not suffered a right rear puncture that damaged its undertray and sent the car into the tyres at the first chicane during the night. Though the TF Sport team turned the car around quickly and deployed an off-sequence pit strategy that allowed its car to regain track position, reduce the gap to the #83 Ferrari and even regain the lead, the AF Corse car was simply too strong – even with a significant BoP boost reduction for the 488 GTE EVOs.
Iron Lynx took third place honours and another accolade for Ferrari. Staying out of trouble, the #80 car driven by Matteo Cressoni, Rino Mastronardi and Callum Ilott stayed focused despite strong opposition in the top ten. Callum Ilott, in his first Le Mans, delivered some solid pace during the night, but the car still overcame a puncture and contact damage that needed attention, rising up through the order to establish a cushion that kept the car in a manageable position.
Alessandro Pier Guidi: “It wasn’t easy at all, sometimes you gain sometimes you lose, so we pushed really hard, the rain made it really hard for everyone. The Corvette was super quick, but we expected that. It’s our second time in this position and it feels fantastic. So big thanks to the team and Ferrari for putting us in this position.”
James Calado: “It probably looked easy from the outside, but there were so many slow zones and safety cars it was a really strategic approach. The Corvette put pressure on us, fast laps towards the end and we were getting nervous, so I’m really happy to get the win.”
Côme Ledogar: “It feels good, but for me I just tried to do my job and drove as fast as I could to deliver the championship points, but the win is fantastic for sure.”
Nicklas Nielsen: “We decided to change to slicks quite early. We knew it would be risky as there was only one line and cars were going off all over the place. There was no room for mistakes. We knew the Aston Martin would be fast so we agreed before qualifying we would try not to show our pace. They still pushed us hard.”
Alessio Rovera: “An emotional win for sure, my first ever Le Mans.The mechanics were excellent in delivering this result and the strategy was perfect in hard conditions. I’m really very happy, the Aston was very fast, particularly Ben Keating and they made us work hard for this.”
François Perrodo: “It’s well deserved for AF, a great result. My second year with Nicklas – he’s flying at the moment and did a great job; not only is he quick but he’s also a really nice guy. Both the guys did an amazing job during the night when over a third of the cars dropped out. We had a clean race with no mistakes and it’s also really good for our championship.”
