Thrilling performances by both driver squads in Mexican debutMarcel Fässler/André Lotterer second following recoveryLucas di Grassi/Loïc Duval/Oliver Jarvis score important points in manufacturers’ standings
Audi showed a strong battle in round five of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC). Following Audi’s pole position, both Audi R18 cars took turns leading the race in Mexico in the early stage. Car number 8, however, lost more than 30 minutes after suffering damage at the end of the third hour. The number 7 sister car recovered from fifth to second place following some setbacks.
The premiere of the FIA WEC in Mexiko City was more than varied. As previously at the Nürburgring, Audi fought a close battle for victory with Porsche. In the first half of the race, the number 8 Audi R18 had the best chance for victory. Lucas di Grassi (BR) took the lead early from his teammate André Lotterer (D) and, running in position one, turned driving duties over to Loïc Duval (F). The Frenchman maintained his place in the group of front runners as well. When Oliver Jarvis (GB) took over car number 8, a technical defect occurred on his first lap. The left front wheel bearing failed so that the Briton had no chance when braking to enter the next turn and drove into a tire barrier. The subsequent repairs cost the squad more than 30 minutes.
At this point in time, when rain set in, Audi Sport Team Joest opted for intermediate tires. André Lotterer proved it was a perfect choice for the shower. The German recovered to the front of the field in this stage: a remarkable performance as car number 7 had previously dropped to fifth place. In spite of correct calculations and impeccable pit stop instructions, the race car with Marcel Fässler (CH) at the wheel had run out of fuel in the pit lane so the team had to push it into its correct position and lost a lot of time. While Lotterer was battling for victory in the final stage a defect in the brake system occurred. This cost additional time, so the team ultimately had to settle for position two after six hours of racing. Consequently, an Audi driver squad mounted the podium for the fifth time this year, marking the best result of the season to date for Fässler and Lotterer.
“This comeback was a strong performance by André, Marcel and the entire team,” said Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. “That we were in contention for victory up until the last hour of the race proves how strong we basically were in Mexico, which makes it all the more regrettable that these technical issues deprived us of our chances for victory.” Car number 8 ultimately crossed the finish line in position 27 following a repair of the hydraulic system. While di Grassi/Duval/Jarvis received no points for this in the drivers’ classification, they secured ten points for Audi in the manufacturers’ classification in addition to the 18 scored by their teammates.
The next race is coming up in two weeks’ time. Audi will contest round six of the FIA WEC at Austin. On the race track in Texas, the brand with the four rings has celebrated two victories since 2013.
Quotes from the Audi team following the season’s fifth podium result in the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) debut in Mexico.
Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich (Head of Audi Motorsport): “We would have had the performance today to win the race. Unfortunately, both cars had technical issues and weren’t able to put their potential on track. This is particularly disappointing in view of the fact that we had the fastest cars in the field for a long time. In such a fiercely competitive racing series, only those who combine top performance with perfect reliability will win.”
Stefan Dreyer (Head of LMP): “Congratulations to the two drivers of our number 7 on clinching second place. We’d very much have liked to achieve a little more. We had the fastest car today, so we’d have liked to clinch victory as well. Both Audi R18 cars were powerful, but not reliable enough. Now we’re going to thoroughly analyze the issues in order to be better at Austin in two weeks.”
Ralf Jüttner (Team Director Audi Sport Team Joest): “Number 8 was running perfectly from the beginning and set the pace.We made the right tire choice as well. Unfortunately, technical issues subsequently occurred and it was only enough for P5 in the manufacturers’ championship at Mexico. Number 7 had to make an early pit stop and lost time because all other opponents stopped later under full course yellow. Instead, André Lotterer regained a lot of time on intermediate tires when everyone else was running on rain tires. André would have had a chance for victory if a brake issue hadn’t occurred near the end.”
Marcel Fässler (Audi R18 #7): “I look back on the race with mixed emotions. On the one hand, our pace was good enough for victory in Mexico. On the other hand, various defects repeatedly caused us to lose ground.André’s performance in rain on intermediate tires was top class.”
André Lotterer (Audi R18 #7): “Mexico was an eventful race – unfortunately! The start was good. Then the tires clearly degraded and we opted to pit early. That cost us a lot of time because the other teams were able to stop later in a full-course yellow period. But in the rain, we suddenly clearly advanced again. I was getting closer and closer to the leading Porsche when an issue with our electronic brake system occurred. Second place doesn’t feel so good knowing that victory would basically have been possible.”
Lucas di Grassi (Audi R18 #8): “Following pole position, the race started in a very promising way. I was initially leading, but then some technical issues occurred.With a basically strong car we’d have liked to clinch a good result. That would have been important for the championship. This way, however, the weekend was a missed opportunity.”
Loïc Duval (Audi R18 #8): “Today, unfortunately, the worst situation you can imagine occurred for our championship: we didn’t score any points in the drivers’ classification in the race. In the beginning, we had great battles withPorsche. The tire choice during the rain was great too, but then the setbacks came. Now we need to make the best of the remaining races.”
Oliver Jarvis (Audi R18 #8): “We were doing really well when I noticed that the car was feeling strange. My engineer warned me saying that I should brake carefully. Unfortunately, I had no chance to react and slid into a tire barrier. The end result is a shame for us and all the team members who did such a good job, because the strategy was perfect as well. We could have made a step forward in the championship today but, unfortunately, we didn’t manage to do that.”
