Interview - Allan McNish
Le Mans Underdog? Think Again.

With less than a week to go before track action begins for the 76th running of the Le Mans 24 Hours, dsc caught up with Allan McNish ahead of what promises to be a classic year.

Can we begin with the Test Day – what did you and the team get from such a difficult day?

“Wet! That’s mostly it. In terms of relevance, it was a write-off. We had no opportunity to see what other people could do – obviously the 3:22 from the Peugeot was a fantastic time; and they’ve certainly laid their cards out on the table – but in terms of fuel mileage, number of laps, etc., we haven’t a clue.

“We had to be out there on track, though, despite the conditions; you don’t learn anything sitting in the garages. We know where we are, but that’s about it.”

Will it take long to make up the lost ground during test week?

“Everybody was affected by the weather in some way, so I don’t think we’ve suffered any major disadvantage compared to the others.”

Is the pressure more on Peugeot to deliver this year?

“It’s definitely more on them than us. You’ve only got to look at the squad they’ve assembled for this year; all quick, aggressive, well-known drivers. They’ve won all the LMS races this year; so I suppose, on paper, they’re easily the favourites - and, obviously, it’s a French car at a French race.

“There’s also the (national press) adverts that they’ve been running - which I found extremely funny, despite being on the receiving end of the “3-0” message - very aggressive advertising.  So the pressure is definitely there.

“What you need to remember about the LMS races is that they have been quicker in qualifying, but in the race we kept coming back through at them. Who would have thought that an Audi would have been within 30 seconds of the winning car at Spa?

“The other thing from the LMS races is that a Peugeot may have won, but their other car has always hit trouble and our team has been better at getting its cars back out when repairs have been required. 

“We’ll be there, nipping at their heels.”

You’ve mentioned the pace of the Peugeot – with some observers at the weekend suggesting that the car was capable of a 3:18, are speeds now too fast?

“I don’t think a 3:18 lap is possible. That’s perfect world stuff and Le Mans is in no way a perfect world. Yes, the Peugeot could probably have gone quicker in a longer dry period, but there are so many factors to take into account in a Le Mans lap.

“The (Marc Gene) crash was very costly to Peugeot – with the car being completely written off, their entire spares inventory has been reduced by one – and that will be in their minds next week; keeping speeds down.

“For whatever reason, the test day tends to see quicker times than race week anyway. Look at Pescarolo – they’ve always gone quick on test day, but haven’t been able to replicate the pace later on.”

Again picking up on something you’ve touched on - with your team rebuilding your car in ridiculous speed during the Monza race, will the 24 Hours be determined as much in the pits as on track; even with the speed advantage of the Peugeot?

“They have a speed advantage over one lap and have always gone faster in qualifying; but not in race trim.

“The fuel consumption advantage is very much in our favour and that equates to two seconds per lap on average – that’s not just for one lap; that’s for the whole 24 hours.

“Our pit-stops are always very good and if something does go wrong our team are excellent. It was just amazing to watch them in action at Monza when Dindo brought the car in, in about 30 pieces; I honestly thought we were out. But suddenly we had about 20 guys working in absolute harmony to rebuild the car – and that included guys from the other car – and they did a superb job.

“All the Audi guys have been going to Le Mans since 1999 and you can’t underestimate that level of experience. We’ve got people like Lothar; he’s been with Team Joest forever and he must have been born when Le Mans started.

“The 24 Hours is the equivalent to five and a half LMS races, don’t forget; an entire season in one race.”

Do the petrol cars figure in the team’s plans at all?

“They do, but in a different way. It’s unfair to call them ‘the petrol cars’ and I don’t like doing it. The distinction should be ‘manufacturers’ and ‘privateers’.   

“When you look under the skin of the Charouz outfit, it’s essentially a Prodrive/Lola effort and it should go well. The team has had its problems with the car in the LMS and I’m not sure what happened to them at the test day, but even though they’ve still got issues with reliability we’re expecting it to be quick.

“I think the biggest challenge will come from ORECA more than Pescarolo. It’s a very good team and they know what they are doing. Now that they are properly under the skin of the Courage for the first time, they should do well.

“Pescarolo is probably now the slowest of the three, but again there is a huge amount of experience there. They’ll be looking for a top six finish, with what is essentially the exact same car that they’ve been running for the last three years; they haven’t needed to change much at all.”

Has the R10 changed much since last year’s race?

“There’s engine stuff and aero stuff; small changes instead of anything major.

“That’s mainly because we had such a good package to begin with; the fundamentals are right and when you’ve got that there’s no need to reinvent the wheel.”

Will Audi have to do that with the R10’s successor?

“That depends on the regulations and the competition.

“The thing is, when the R10 was built it was the first car of its kind; it was a step into the unknown. But even though they designed an excellent car, if anything, they were on the conservative side. Now it looks as though we are reaching the development parameters for a car designed under those circumstances.

“Dr Ulrich obviously knows more, but he has said that the next car will probably need to be all-new.”

You clearly very badly want a second win at Le Mans – how much is that for Audi and how much for Allan McNish?

“Ask any driver that question and if he says it’s for the team, he’s been attending too many PR seminars!

“I want it for me because it’s personal; it means something specific to Allan McNish. If I didn’t want it for myself, I wouldn’t be a racing driver - and if I told you it was just for the team I’d be a politician-in-training; and a liar.

“Having said that, Audi wants to win Le Mans and they don’t care which drivers get it as long as their car comes home first.”

Mark Howson