Scrutineering Conversations - Part 19
Factory Fellows 3 - Peugeot
We’re going to completely leave aside the continuing wrangles about the eligibility of the Audi R15 – dsc is here to cover a race and that’s what we asked several of the Peugeot Sport squad about in the scrutineering session yesterday.
Bruno Famin
"We have some major changes to the front aero. A bigger change than that though is that the whole team now has more experience.
"Remember in 2008 here our whole team was still very new; we had been together for just 15 months and, because we were spending a lot of time dealing with some big reliability issues, other things, including work on the traction control for instance, was delayed.
"Now the whole squad is far more mature as a unit and the car has much better reliability.
"The proof of where we are, though, will be after the first practice session. In testing, the drivers always end the session happy with the car; the focus there is on them and on getting the car to be perfect, with no distraction from traffic or a competition or battle.
"Here of course it is entirely different - you rarely get a driver getting out of the car at a race meeting who is entirely happy with it."
Alex Wurz
"Last year the race could have gone either way – the Audi though had the perfect race and we hit some problems.
"We have to play to our strengths and to analyse and deal with any issues very quickly.
"If it’s wet were are better prepared than before - we have worked on set-up and on traction control to optimise the car in the wet; but it is certainly still true that we still have very limited experience of racing the 908 in the wet."
David Brabham
"I was at the Autosport International show in the UK and appeared on stage. I met Nic Minassian at our charity kart race there and he asked me what I was doing at Le Mans and I told him that I was free to race this year; that Highcroft had given me the OK to talk to people. I honestly thought nothing more of it at that point.
"I flew the next morning to the USA, went to the track and later that day picked up my emails only to find one from Serge Saulnier titled ‘Le Mans’
"I, of course know of Serge and damn right I know about Le Mans, so you can be sure I opened that email up right away!
"To cut a long story short; within three days I had clearance from HPD to talk to Peugeot, so massive thanks to them, it’s a simple arrangement – I don’t talk to Peugeot about Acura and I don’t talk to Acura about Peugeot.
"At that stage it seemed to be between Anthony Davidson and me for the final seat, so I guess it was my experience here that got the gig for me. It will be my 16th race here this year, equal with Christophe Bouchut as the most experienced driver in this race on the grid.
"I think I’m here at the perfect time - it is the third year of a factory programme, the car is fast and well developed and the team is well gelled. Is this the best chance I’ve had for a long time to win it? – I should say so, certainly since the Bentley run in 2003!
"Certainly there have been times in recent years, when I was in the Panoz GT2 car for instance, that I thought my chance had gone. Again then that’s a big thank you for the opportunities offered through the Acura programme to be able to show what I have still got."
Nic Minassian
"We come here without some of the advantages we had in 2008, but what we have lost in terms of a speed advantage we have more than gained in terms of team efficiency.
"The team as a whole has worked very hard in all areas where we had weaknesses.
"Looking after tyres is going to be critical here; but that’s not to say that we will be hanging around – I’ll be pushing like a b*****d in every single stint."
GG
