Double Le Mans winner Allan McNish will take his first steps towards clinching a hat-trick of victories in the 24-hours endurance classic when he tackles the opening round of the Le Mans Series at the Paul Ricard circuit, near Le Castellet in France, this weekend.
The 40-year-old from Dumfries, who last won for Audi in 2008, will be partnered by Rinaldo Capello and Tom Kristensen in their diesel-powered Audi R15TDI-plus for the eight-hours race this Saturday.
“Winning the Le Mans 24 Hours is Audi’s main objective this year,” McNish, who also won the race with Porsche in the late Nineties, admitted today, “and this weekend’s race will form a big part of our test and development programme.
“Racing conditions simply can’t be simulated in normal track tests; that’s why we’re contesting a race at such an early stage. Le Castellet will strictly be about gathering additional experience with the R15 plus. But ideally we’d like to win.”
JM