After a topsy-turvy race that saw the weather throw everything at the 62 cars participating in the 92nd edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, United Autosports took their second LMP2 24 Hours of Le Mans victory with the no22 Oreca 07-Gibson taking the chequered flag ahead of last year’s class winners Inter Europol Competition.
The race was extremely close with less than 40 seconds separating the top five LMP2 finishers after 24 hours of racing.
ELMS regulars Oliver Jarvis and Bijoy Garg were joined on the top step of the podium by American teammate Nolan Siegel after Jarvis took the chequered flag 18 seconds ahead of Clement Novalak, despite the British driver having an off-track moment in the final minutes of the race.
Job Van Uitert brought the no28 IDEC Sport Oreca home, 14 seconds behind the second-place car, to claim the third spot on the LMP2 podium for the French team with Paul Lafargue and Reshad de Gerus celebrating with their Dutch teammate.
Oliver Jarvis #22 United Autosports Oreca 07-Gibson: “It’s always an incredible feeling just to be in Le Mans, but to be able to win it is an honour.I have to say that this one took more out of me than most, I was certainly relieved to see the chequered flag; what a tough race. Just staying on the track was already an achievement, the conditions were so difficult.
“When I got into the car with the lead I had to push and take a lot of risks.There were times I wasn’t sure if we were going to win it or stick it in the wall but thankfully, we got to see the chequered flag.
“A big thank you to my two teammates, they arrived here as rookies, and they are leaving as winners.United Autosports, as always, gave us a phenomenal car and they had a tough job as well trying to choose the right tyres, the right strategy and they just got everything right.We can all be very proud of what we achieved here today.”
The LMP2 Pro-Am winners were the ELMS LMP2 Pro-Am reigning champions AF Corse, with Francois Perrodo, Ben Barnicoat and Nico Varrone securing the top spot on the Le Mans podium in 4thin LMP2 overall.This was Francois Perrodo’s second victory at Le Mans, winning the LMGTE Am title in 2019 alongside today’s overall winner Nicklas Nielsen.
The no14 AO by TF Oreca finished second in LMP2 Pro/Am, a lap behind the AF Corse Oreca and 2m25s ahead of the third placed car, the no33 DKR Engineering Oreca.
Francois Perrodo #183 AF Corse Oreca 07-Gibson: “It’s my second victory at Le Mans so it feels very special. This one was really hard.Even at the beginning when it wasn’t under Safety Car the conditions could be a bit mixed sometimes. It was drizzling or raining in some parts of the track, so you had to manage this on slicks which wasn’t easy, especially for me as an amateur.I managed to not make any mistakes, which was key to bringing the car home on the podium and considering how high the competition was in LMP2 Pro/Am we are very happy.
"To be able to be on the top step, alongside two amazing drivers who have become good friends, is amazing. Overall, it’s been an amazing week.”
While the LMP2 teams celebrated, Ferrari were spraying the champagne in true motorsport style after securing the Italian’s second Le Mans victory in Hypercar in a row.
Three former ELMS champions stood on the overall podium, with 2019 LMGTE Champion Nicklas Nielsen and 2021 LMGTE Champion Miguel Molina standing on the top step of the most famous podium in the world after a dramatic race that saw the no50 Ferrari 499P finished 14 seconds ahead of the no7 Toyota GR010-hybrid.
The no51 Ferrari finished third 22 seconds behind the Toyota, with 2019 ELMS LMGTE Champion Alessandro Pier Guidi joining his teammates on the third step.
CLICK HERE for the result from the 92nd Edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
