VICTORY AT THE NÜRBURGRING AND A PODIUM AT LE MANS!
ROMAIN’S 48 HOUR WEEK!

The Nürburgring 24 Hours

A week after the Le Mans test weekend and two weeks after having scored a magnificent win on the Nordschleife in a round of the German VLN championship, over the weekend of 9/10 June Romain Dumas was back racing on the long circuit of the Nürburgring, a track which the driver from the Gard département in southern France was able to get to know a little by competing in VLN events. But it could never be enough practice as the circuit, due to its length and complexity, resembles a rally stage more than a race track, but that really is the case!

Thanks to a new rear wing and diffuser, the Manthey Racing Porsche 997 showed its potential in qualifying, when Timo Bernhard quite simply went out and grabbed pole position!  This was a warning shot to the other competitors from the Manthey Racing quartet of Tiemann, Lieb Bernhard and Dumas ahead of a race which was predicted to be both hotly contested and very perilous, in view of the weather forecast for the weekend. And on that point, the German meteorologists weren’t mistaken. “As well as the torrential rain which fell before and during the race, there was also hail and fog thick enough to be cut with a knife. I’ve never raced in such extreme conditions”, said Romain. The conditions were so dangerous at one point that the race had to be neutralised for five hours on Sunday morning. “It was terrifying. There were crashed cars all around the track. It was just crazy. There was so much water streaming across the circuit in places that it was difficult to keep the car on the road. But that’s what we had to do and so we didn’t lose concentration, we had to keep pushing just a little bit all the same. I frightened myself sometimes. That explains no doubt how we were able to be 7 or 8 seconds quicker than the Viper behind us”.

It was all worth it, though, because at the end of the race, which had to be shortened by about a quarter, the Manthey Racing Porsche crossed the finish line in first place, crushing the Aston Martin, BMW and Lamborghinis opposition. Romain considers this win, in front of 220,000 spectators, among his very best. “It’s a major event in Germany and it’s a shame it’s not better followed in France, because it’s a unique event with an extraordinary atmosphere. To win on my first attempt, it’s something I won’t easily forget, especially because, for Porsche, it’s also a special result. I’ve already won the Spa-Francorchamps 24 Hours in a Porsche. I’m very proud to be able to add this second great victory with the marque to my CV and I hope it won’t be the last!”

Le Mans 24 Hours

Romain hardly had the time to celebrate his win in the Nürburgring with his co-drivers and all the Manthey Racing team, before he was on a plane again back to Le Mans, ready for the traditional ‘weighing-in’ on the Place des Jacobins, where he was able to meet his fan club, who had also followed him from the Eifel mountains to the Sarthe! It was a pleasure to see their enthusiasm, especially when Romain, Emmanuel Collard and Jean-Christophe Boullion, his Pescarolo team-mate, were invited to the stage to be interviewed by Bruno Vandestick.

The consecutive running of the Nürburgring and Le Mans 24 Hour races had not made any mark on Romain’s physical condition, who is always in great shape. In practice on Wednesday evening, the task of qualifying the car had fallen to Emmanuel Collard, so Romain concentrated on familiarising himself with the Pescarolo-Judd in its Le Mans configuration. This work went well, especially since his team-mate (who is also a works Porsche driver) easily set pole position time for the petrol-engined cars, ahead of the Courage, Dome and Lolas.

« Given the difference in performance between the petrol- and the diesel-engined cars, it was difficult to imagine that we could battle it out with the Peugeots and Audis” Romain admitted. “So we settled on a simple strategy: go as quick as possible, making no mistakes so that for one, we could take advantage of any mistakes by our competitors, but secondly, with the aim of being the top non-diesel car. That was the best plan as far as we were concerned”.  In addition, as well as the traditional uncertainty involved in motor-racing, there was perhaps one other major factor which would have to be taken into account - rain, which was forecast for the weekend. And indeed shortly after the start it fell violently, catching out one of the three R10 Audis and causing its immedaite retirement. The perfect regularity of the driving trio of the lead Pescarolo car, Boullion, Collard and Dumas, apart from one minor fright on Sunday morning, kept the car among the top five places. It became fourth when the engine in one of the Peugeots started to play up and then third after a second Audi crashed on Sunday morning. The race ended behind the Safety Car because of the torrential rain which was falling again, so no change in the classification in the final hour looked likely, until the No 7 Peugeot 908 had to retire. Under a cloud-burst, Emmanuel Collard brought the No 16 Pescarolo-Judd safely home in third place, earning the Pescarolo team its third consecutive podium finish! “It’s fantastic for Henri and the whole team. They are all really great guys, passionate and hard-working. Given all the factors this year, I don’t think we could have hoped for a better result. Especially when you remember that the other two Audis retired. I am very happy and proud to have contributed to this result. I had to do three periods of three and four consecutive stints. I really got the hang of the car in the second relay at the wheel. Everything went very well, the car was perfectly balanced, which was crucial in view of the conditions we had to race in this year. It’s a great family atmosphere in the team and I’ve met up again with some guys who I worked with when I first started out in motor-racing. It really has been the most wonderful experience. I have to thank Henri and all the team”.

After 12 consecutive weekends racing, Romain is now off for a short break before heading back to the USA for the next round of the ALMS at Lime Rock over the weekend of 7/8 July, to defend his lead in the LMP2 category.

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