Interview with Allan McNish : Post 24 Hours of Le Mans race

You celebrated your third victory at Le Mans. How important is this victory in the long list of wins on your list? 

Obviously, every race win is great. However, victories at Le Mans are always something extra special. This race is simply unique. I also noticed this when I was in the Formula 1 paddock on Friday. Really, everybody spoke to me about this race. The actual win itself will remain in my memory for years to come because it was possibly the most difficult race in my career due to the constantly changing weather and the ever-changing track conditions. 

Did you expect this win after the good results in the first two WEC races this season? 

When you compete at Le Mans in an Audi you actually always have a great chance of winning the race. We knew from the results at the pre-test and qualifying that our R18 e-tron quattro also functions well at Le Mans. It was certainly an advantage that we didn’t start with a new development this year, but in fact an evolution of a race-winning car. However, at such an endurance race you can never expect to win. So many unforeseen things can happen. Because of this, I was only really sure we would win when Tom (Kristensen) actually crossed the finish line. 

You lead the WEC drivers’ standings together with your team mates Tom Kristensen and Loïc Duval. A defining moment in the title battle? 

Definitely not! The circuit at Le Mans is unique in the WEC race calendar due to its special nature. We still have another five tough races ahead of us. The disadvantage of the lower fuel capacity in our R18 compared to the Toyota will certainly have a greater effect in these races than it did at Le Mans. So, it’s never over until it’s over. We have to keep working hard and push in the races. It goes without saying that our big goal is also to finish the final race of the season as World Championship leaders. We’ll do everything to achieve this.