The Past...

At 30, Côme Ledogar already boasts an impressive track record. We asked him to cite the milestones of his career so far.

• In 2007, he won an ACO award, which set things in motion. Unlike many other drivers, Côme Ledogar has no background in karting, so the opportunity to be an ACO trainee was particularly welcome.
• My championship wins: the French Porsche Cup in 2014, the Italian Porsche Cup and the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup in 2016.
• Becoming a McLaren works driver. “I got my first works contract thanks to our 2015 Supercup season results. We were a new team and I had no experience but we did really well. My managed Philippe Dumas called McLaren and said he knew Kévin Estre was leaving and that they should test me. That’s how I spent three years with McLaren.”
• The pole position in GTE Am at the 2020 24 Hours of Le Mans “because that was the year I founded my racing team. I had spent sleepless nights mounting tyres in the workshop and doing Le Mans was a rest! Not being in the workshop was liberating. I thoroughly enjoyed being at the wheel without the stress of managing a team. It was the first time in nine months that I forgot about the team. It felt good!”

The Present...

Now his team is up and running with “extraordinary, devoted, passionate, hard-working, competent people”, Côme can look forward to his fourth Le Mans, which he will experience at the wheel of one of the two Ferraris. He has tried the Aston Martin, but “Now I only want to drive Ferraris. The 488 is an exceptional drive. It’s superbly well built and once you’re out on track, it goes like a bomb!” He makes no secret of his pleasure at sharing the Ferrari with Alessandro Pier Guidi, his teammate in the GT World Challenge Europe. May capricious cars and stormy seasons be a thing of the past.

Mention his role in the very competitive GTE Pro class and the French driver is surprisingly realist and rational. “I’m there to carry the bags. I’m not here to be a star driver. It’s not for me to take risks with a championship under way. I’m here to do my job: get in the car, enjoy the ride, put the laps in and keep a cool head.”

And The Future...

AF Corse is the driver’s present and he hopes his future too. “I want to stay with them.” What if there is a Hypercar entry? “Motorsport is entering a new era and the Hypercar class is tempting. But in this profession I’m used to doing what I’m told and doing it the best I can.” Ledogar would not say no to a seat in a prototype, but he has conditions: “Of course, I would love it, but only in an AF Corse Ferrari.”