Silverstone sizzler sets up stage for an epic WEC season

A couple of years ago, Allan McNish described the 24 Hours of Le Mans as the entire Formula 1 season in one day. It is the one race that I absolutely look forward to, love watching, even if it robs me of sleep and denies me of any rest. 

Goodness knows how the drivers who do their double, triple stints feel and my hats off to them all, in every category, seriously.. Now when i look back at that i am really glad that the folks that made it happen made the FIA World Endurance Championship happen, it’s like having a mini Le Mans all the time and having a great build-up to that incredible highlight race in June. 

Granted Le Mans is a really special race, one that I would dare go so far as to suggest as being incomparable to any other. That it’s historic, even legendary goes without saying, the 24Hrs of LeMans is glorious without being overtly ostentatious. It’s pure racing without the theatrics other than what’s delivered in terms of the drama out on track. 

I'd be lying if I said I don't miss working with Andre.

And when a few years ago a driver that I had come to know and adore by virtue of working closely with him in a popular Japanese race car series told me that he was going back to Europe to commit to a certain German automobile marquee to compete at LeMans and then subsequently in the then newly formed WEC, I had mixed emotions. At one end of the emotive spectrum I was sad, partly because my selfish self would no longer get to work and hang out with him, and at the other end I was elated with what was and is an incredible opportunity. Bravo André! 

I can never forget the look on André Lotterer’s face when he told me the news when we met up in Tokyo some years back. The twinkle in his eye was unmistakable. When he made his debut at the 24Hours of Le Mans in 2009 as practically one half of a duo* in a private team, his impressive 7th place had caught the attention of the Audi works team. The following year, André, along with another fellow gaijin driver from their time in Japan, Benoît Treluyer and Swiss driver Marcel Fässler took on the Audi works colours at Le Mans and finished 2nd. 

When the trio returned to compete at the 2011 edition of the race, their car would be the sole car flying the Audi flag in the race after the works team lost two of their other cars in spectacular fashion. It was to be one of the most sensationally extraordinary races I have ever watched. My heart was in my throat as I watched the final 30 minutes of the race with André at the wheel keeping Peugeot behind them. 

The gap couldn’t have been any closer - 13 seconds! When I saw an exhausted, emotionally and physically spent André climb out of the car with tears in his eyes at parc ferme, the waterworks turned on in my eyes as well. It was the one and only time I have ever cried (for joy!) for any of the drivers and/or riders I have ever worked with. 

The fight for the throne 

Anyway, it is hard to explain the fascination of Le Mans, suffice to say if you are a petrol head and a racing fan, it is a MUST watch. And when you now have the World Endurance Championship on tap, one really is spoilt for choice.. Well, at least I am. And when each race is described as embodying the spirit of LeMans, I get goosebumps. 

Though I will openly admit that I am not the best-schooled person in the intricacies of the FIA WEC, the complexities of its rules and regulations or the mind-bending technical information, I cannot deny the heightened sense of emotions that the racing aspect of the WEC gives me. And it was evident with the opening round of the championship at the 6 Hours of Silverstone. 

Prior to the weekend I was already drawing the rather obscure comparison to the protagonists in A Song of Fire and Ice (to those who have not read the books - Game of Thrones) to each of the different marques vying to rule over the WEC kingdom. 

In my warped sense of imagination House Audi were like the smarter, stronger, savvier and more together version of the Starks of Winterfell and the Porsches the precociously savvy and cunning version of House Tyrell. Then there’s the outsider, House Toyota akin to the Targaryens, resourceful, forceful, kinda cool and just waiting to pounce. 

Not forgetting the still work-in-progress Nissan whom I’ve decided to liken to House Martell of Dorne. They will join the cast along with the other three houses at Le Mans. And, you can't ignore the other players like the iron-born Rebellion Racing, a rather impressively strong-willed House Greyjoy. Like Nissan, Rebellion will be there at LeMans. 

And finally imagine if House Peugeot aka WEC's House Lannister were to return? They would probably say, "HERE ME ROAR!" I swear, one more and you would have seven players in the battle of the seven kingdoms.... 

It’s the epicness of it all, I tell you. 

A Fight to the end

OK.. OK... putting aside George R R Martin’s epic saga, the 6Hours of Silverstone was a real treat. To a large extent, it really did seem that the Starks.. I mean, Audi would be a strong contender this season having dominated the endurance racing programme for a good chunk of this millennia. As Giles Richards of the Guardian puts it, “after a difficult run in 2014, that [Audi] should come out of the blocks with a win was proof again, were any needed, that they remain the benchmark against which all other marques must test themselves."

And the Silverstone race was proof that 2015 is going to be an epic WEC season, with the trio of Lotterer, Fässler and Tréluyer putting the four rings back on the top step of the podium after a really closely-fought tooth and nail battle with Porsche and Toyota. 

Left to Right: Tréluyer, Fässler and Lotterer - Photo: Audi Sport Team Joest

Deep deep down I do have a bit of a soft spot for the four rings, bias perhaps but also because every time I watch them race, they always seem to have to work so damned hard to get it (cue the epic orchestral music). The fact that the gap to the chasing Porsche was so close at the end, it really was a tale of how Lotterer, Tréluyer and Fässler had to fight really hard especially after a poor start. Brilliant. 

What makes it even more exciting is that we know how strong Porsche is with their pace in testing sending rival engineers, drivers and team bosses scratching their heads as to how to beat them. 

The thing is, WEC is nothing like F1 with the contrast in the technical regulation being an obvious differentiator. The fact that there is considerably more room for regulation interpretation, the manufacturers take on different approaches. What that means is that each different manufacturer has different aces up their sleeves, enabling them to capitalise on their complicated systems to maximum effect where they need it. For instance, where Porsche may have the advantage on the straights, Audi is better able to make their tyres work for longer. 

Then there was the drama near the end with Audi holding on to a very slim lead, knowing full well that Porsche had managed to gain an advantage on fuel. That already slim lead was shaved even further when Fässler had to dive into the pits to refuel. 

That gap nearly became non-existent when the lead Audi was then slapped with a drive-through penalty for using more tarmac than was allowed while overtaking an Aston Martin. In my twisted imagination I could actually hear the evil queen Ravenna from Snow White laughing wildly. 

It was a thrilling run to the finish line with the Audi holding on to the lead with all their might. Congratulations Audi, the team that #welcomeschallenges. It’s frustrating that I had to “listen” to the race and rely on the youtube highlights only because it’s not broadcasted on the networks available to me. Perhaps that’s why my imagination goes a bit bonkers. 

The Forest beckons 

Now that the opening test of arms is done and dusted, the WEC Game of Thrones turns it attention to the next 6 hour battle that will take place through the Ardennes Forest at Spa Francorchamps, Belgium. Audi will definitely want to carry the momentum and fighting spirit from Silverstone, a difficult ask but one I think for a team that welcomes challenges, they may be happy to rise to the occasion. 

Porsche will want to tighten up their offensive strategy taking full advantage of the long, fast, flowing 7km Spa circuit and have already recruited the likes of current Force India Formula 1 driver Nico Hulkenberg in the No. 19 Porsche 919 to beef up their offensive. 

Then there’s Toyota, who will want to reignite the form that led them to victory in Belgium en route to claiming the Iron Throne.. damned.. I mean the WEC world title last year. 

With the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps touted as the 24 Hours of Le Mans rehearsal, the round is already expecting a bumper grid, which is always exciting to watch. It's perhaps a shame that we wont see Nissan or Rebellion until Le Mans. Regardless, if Silverstone is anything to go by in terms of what's on offer by the main championship contenders, the 2015 FIA WEC season is turning out to be quite a tantalising and tasty affair. 

Guess what, after Spa, it's the big one - the 24 Hours of Le Mans

I say: Bring it! And I will be watching with John William's Duel of the Fates playing in the background:

*there were 3 drivers signed up for the race but one was injured in a non-racing accident just prior to the race.