LE MANS, France — As predicted, the 76th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans came down to a battle of the diesels.
The No. 2 Audi of Tom Kristensen, Allan McNish and Dindo Capello ultimately brought home the victory on the historic 8.48-mile road course.
Audi’s victory was its eighth in the last nine years and firmly established Kristensen as the greatest driver in the history of the hallowed endurance classic as he extended his record Le Mans wins to eight.
For teammate McNish, it was the second Le Mans win for the heralded Scot, the first coming 10 years ago in a Porsche. The victory was Capello’s third.
“It was one of the toughest races we have had here,” said Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich, head of Audi Motorsport. “But we proved that we are a really strong team and have the technology. That’s what we are here for.”
McNish agreed. “This was probably one of the hardest races I’ve ever been involved in. The Peugeot guys put us under a lot of pressure. We put them under a lot of pressure. But finally we got it.”