The 24 Hours of Le Mans is an ageless classic. At the 85th edition contested on 17/18 June, 60 cars and 180 drivers will again take up the challenge. With 18 overall and 105 class wins, Porsche is the most successful manufacturer in the history of this prestigious pursuit twice around the clock and is represented again this year by a large contingent. The Porsche GT Team fields two new 911 RSR in the famously cutthroat GTE-Pro class. This marks the debut at the world’s toughest automobile race for the 510 hp race car, which was developed by Porsche Motorsport in Weissach based on the seventh generation of the iconic 911 sports car. With two 919 Hybrid contesting the LMP1 class as well as four 2015-spec 911 RSR campaigned by Porsche customer teams competing in the GTE-Am class, a total of ten Porsche race cars, 13 Porsche works drivers and one Porsche Young Professional take on the Le Mans marathon.
The race
The fascination of the Le Mans 24 Hours is as unique as the challenge for drivers and teams. This is not least due to the 13.629-kilometre Circuit des 24 Heures with its combination of a permanent racetrack and normal national roads. Also setting this racetrack apart are its legendary corners like Mulsanne and Tertre Rouge as well the almost five-kilometre-long Mulsanne straight. In the list of winners, the best racing drivers in the world have been immortalized. Even Hollywood has paid tribute to the prestigious long distance race in the French province: The 1970 film Le Mans featuring Steve McQueen in the lead role is regarded as one of the best racing movies of all time.
The Porsche drivers
In the GTE-Pro class, Richard Lietz (Austria), Frédéric Makowiecki (France) and Patrick Pilet (France) share the cockpit of the new 911 RSR with the starting number 91. Their works driver colleagues, Michael Christensen (Denmark), Kévin Estre (France) and Dirk Werner (Germany) man the second Porsche 911 RSR (#92) fielded by the Porsche GT Team. In the GTE-Am class, Porsche customer teams take on the 24-hour challenge with four 911 RSR from the 2015 model year. In this class, the Porsche Young Professional Matteo Cairoli (Italy) celebrates his first ever Le Mans race. He shares driving duties in the #77 vehicle run by Dempsey Proton Racing with the two German racing drivers Christian Ried and Marvin Dienst. Porsche works driver Patrick Long (USA) tackles Le Mans for the 14th time, this time in the #93 Porsche 911 RSR campaigned by Proton Competition with Abdulaziz Turki Al Faisal (Saudi Arabia) and Mike Hedlund (USA). The drivers of Proton Competition’s second 911 (#88) is the former Porsche Junior Klaus Bachler (Austria) as well as Stéphane Lemeret (Belgium) and Khaled Al Qubaisi (Abu Dhabi). In Gulf Racing’s 911 RSR (#86), Ben Barker and Michael Wainwright from Great Britain join forces for the long-distance classic with Nick Foster (Australia).
The Porsche 911 RSR
The 911 RSR, which celebrated its race debut at the Daytona 24-hour classic in January, is a completely new development: the suspension, body structure, aerodynamic concept, engine and transmission have all been designed in Weissach from scratch. Depending on the size of the restrictor, the motor, which is now positioned in front of the rear axle, puts out around 375 kW (510 hp). Thanks to the particularly large rear diffuser combined with a top-mounted rear wing, the level of downforce and the aerodynamic efficiency were significantly improved. The 911 RSR, whose predecessor model claimed a double victory at Le Mans in 2013, tackles the second 24-hour race of its maiden season again sporting the further developed factory design with the primary colours white, red and black.
The schedule
The race starts on Saturday, 17 June, at 15.00 hrs CEST. The free practice is held on Wednesday from 16.00 to 20.00 hrs, followed by the first qualifying session from 22.00 hrs to midnight. Qualifying 2 and 3 are contested on Thursday 19.00 to 21.00 hrs as well as 22.00 hrs to midnight respectively. The warm-up on Saturday is between 09.00 and 09.45 hrs.
Live on TV and in the Internet
Eurosport 1 broadcasts the entire race right through to the podium ceremony live. The free practice and the first qualifying on Wednesday, the 2nd and 3rd qualifying on Thursday as well as the warm-up on Saturday are covered live on this channel free-to-view. As part of the live broadcast, Le Mans record winner Tom Kristensen will provide a running commentary on the race as well as background reports and news from the paddock. n-tv broadcasts live from Le Mans at six different times: On Saturday from 14.30 to 16.00 hrs and from 19.00 to 21.00 hrs as well as Sunday from midnight to 02.00 hrs, 08.00 to 10.00 hrs, 12.00 to 13.00 hrs and from 14.00 to 14.45 hrs.
On www.porsche.de/lemans (German) or www.porsche.com/lemans (English) a 24-hour web special with live onboard camera footage from the cockpit of the factory vehicles will be shown. The website also provides information on the current race status via live ticker and live timing as well as photos and videos. The FIA WEC App is free in its basic version, however, for a fee, the App offers a live stream of the entire race plus live timing and interviews.
Additional TV coverage of Le Mans
Documentaries on the preparation for the race of the year can be watched on n-tv (Only Victory Counts) and on Sport 1 (Road to Le Mans): n-tv on Saturday, 10 June, at 11.05 hrs (with repeats on Saturday before the start of the race), Sport 1 on Friday, 16 June, at 23.00 hrs. Highlights of the race will also be aired on Monday, 19 June, at 17.00 hrs. RTL broadcasts a ten-minute race roundup on 24 June before the Formula 1 qualifying of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
