Endurance ace Pierre Ragues is set to take part in his eighth 24 Hours of Le Mans this weekend as the French star joins Larbre Competition for the 82nd running of the prestigious event.

 

Reigning European Le Mans Series champion, Ragues has built up an enviable career in the world of endurance racing, and his vast experience will be hugely valuable to the Larbre Competition team as they make a key transition from GT into LMP2 for this year’s Le Mans.

 

Pierre will join Ricky Taylor and Keiko Ihara in the cockpit of the Larbre Morgan-Judd car, equipped with Michelin tyres, against a competitive field of 18 LMP2 entries. The trio got their preparations for this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans underway during the official test day at the start of June, beginning an intense period of car set-up work, tyre evaluation and re-acquaintance with the legendary Circuit de la Sarthe. They also had a very positive training camp last week in order to gel as a team. 

 

The trio completed 67 laps of the demanding but exhilarating 13.629km circuit during the test building positive momentum ahead of the big event. Ragues has had the added challenge of adapting back into endurance driving following a successful entry into the competitive world of rallying earlier in the season.

 

Pierre has risen to the challenge, demonstrating his diversity by getting quickly up to speed for the Larbre Competition team. Pierre will draw from his impressive career at Le Mans over the years, which includes many highlights but none more so than his LMP2 podium in 2008 and fourth place in 2012. He will be hoping that his skills behind the wheel, together with those of his new team-mates and professional Larbre Competition colleagues will help him fight for a strong result in this year’s race.

 

In addition to the support he has received from Larbre Competition, as well as from Alpine, for whom Pierre continues to act as an ambassador, the 30-year-old also benefits from the backing of his personal partners Group Auto, who will be right behind Ragues all the way this weekend.

 

The build-up to the main event has already begun with the hugely popular scrutineering which has been taking place at the Place de la République since Sunday. Larbre Competition went through the meticulous scrutineering check at 17:00 on Sunday afternoon but for Pierre the enjoyment of being part of the technical procedures comes from the presence of thousands of passionate fans who follow the entire process. 

 

Pierre Ragues said: “It is always a joy and a privilege to be part of the Le Mans 24 Hours and I am thrilled to be taking part in my eighth Le Mans this year. Larbre Competition is a very well-known, professional team and has been extremely successful over the years in GT racing. I am proud to be part of the line-up for their first LMP2 entry. I will do all I can together with Ricky and Keiko to deliver them a positive result. We had a solid test day here earlier in the month, as well as a fantastic training camp, so I think we have built strong foundations to build upon. We will continue to work on the set-up of the Morgan Judd LMP2 car which has been built with support from Onroak, as well as on adapting the car to the Michelin tyres. We know LMP2 is a competitive field but I am confident in the professional approach of the team and our combined skills. Whatever happens, Le Mans is special and I will enjoy every minute of the week and the support of the fantastic crowds. We already had the chance to experience the immense support at the scrutineering yesterday. It is always fabulous to have the fans join us from the very beginning of the week and to follow the complete journey with us. It’s a pleasure and I am grateful to Larbre for giving me this opportunity, as well as to my supporters Group Auto, and Alpine.” 

 

For more information about Pierre Ragues, please visit www.pierreragues.com or www.quadrasports.com. You can also follow on Twitter @pierreragues and @quadrasport

 

 

 

10:30 Drivers Photo Session

17:00-18:30 Drivers Autograph Session

 

 

16:00-20:00 Free Practice Session

22:00-00:00 Qualifying Practice Session

 

 

19:00-21:00 Qualifying Practice Session

22:00-00:00 Qualifying Practice Session

 

 

17:30-19:30 Drivers Parade

 

 

09:00-09:45 Warm-Up Session

15:00 Start of 82nd 24 Hours of Le Mans

 

 

15:00 End of 82nd 24 Hours of Le Mans