Le Mans 24-Hours winners

For all endurance drivers, scoring a win in the Le Mans 24 Hours is a priority career objective. Seven drivers who achieved this feat on 12th June will be at the start of the Imola 6 Hours.

At Imola Marcel Fässler, outright winner of this historic race, is the only representative of the victorious trio in the no. 2 Audi R18 TDI. He will share the no. 1 Audi R18 TDI with Timo Bernhard for the first time in the Italian race. “After my Le Mans win I can't wait to get back behind the wheel of the Audi R18 TDI. Imola is a fantastic circuit and the car will have a new aero package, which suits me down to the ground. We've got everything it takes to have a strong race.”

Tom Kimber-Smith, part of the Greaves Motorsport LM P2 winning driver line-up underlines the importance of a Sarthe victory in a career:” My first win at Le Mans helped me to find a drive in the United States. I hope that with my second success I'll be able to secure my future in Europe.”

This opinion is echoed by Olivier Lombard, the youngest member of the Nissan-engined Zytek trio led by Karim Ojjeh: “I hope that this win will open doors that have remained closed to me up till now. Of course, in this business nothing's sure, but my aim is to be taken on by a manufacturer and become a full-time professional.”

The Larbre Competition guys who won the LM GTE Am category are still savouring this team triumph. “This year, a marvellous programme has been put in place,” smiles Gabriele Gardel. “This victory is a great reward as the whole team worked very hard. It's for them!”

Jack Leconte, the man behind this ambitious project adds: “Our project was a bit special as its aim was to reunite all the members of the Larbre family. The launch of our partnership with General Motors and Corvette Racing has been a total success!”  

At the end of the season, competitors in the Le Mans Series will be given nine invitations to race in the 2012 Le Mans 24 Hours.