24h Le Mans
Born on February 24, 1981, German driver Timo Bernhard figures in the history of the 24 Hours of Le Mans thanks to his 2010 win. The Porsche 919 Hybrid should serve him well in enhancing an already impressive record.
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After a classic debut in karting and single-seaters (German Formula Ford), Timo Bernhard has built himself a solid reputation at the wheel of the 911, methodically and efficiently climbing the rungs, from Porsche Supercup to endurance, as a Porsche factory driver. In 2002, his debut at the 24 Hours of Le Mans culminated in 16th place overall and a class victory. He then became a top 5 regular in the GT classes (fifth in 2003 and second in 2005), before returning to Le Mans in LM P1 with Audi in 2009. In 2010, the trio he formed with Romain Dumas and Mike Rockenfeller made history at the 24 Hours: their win established a new distance record (5,405 kilometers raced), beating the previous record held by Helmut Marko and Gijs van Lennep (1971).
Bernhard is a valuable talent for the any team and/or manufacturer hoping to win in the big GT or endurance marathons: his record also includes a victory at the Rolex 24 at Daytona (2002) and five at the 24 Hours of Nürburgring (2006-2007-2008-2009-2011) with the 911, and another at the 12 Hours of Sebring (2008) with the LM P2 RS Spyder prototype. Now, he has returned to Porsche with the LM P1 919 Hybrid prototype he shares with Mark Webber and Brendon Hartley, and to which the trio gave its first podium in its first race - at the 2014 6 Hours of Silverstone. In 2015, Bernhard and Porsche are nuturing a mutual ambition: to reach the highest step on the podium at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The 83rd edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans will take place Saturday and Sunday, June 13-14, 2015.
Jean-Philippe Doret / ACO - Translation by Nikki Ehrhardt / ACO
Photo: LE MANS (SARTHE, FRANCE), DOWNTOWN, 24 HOURS OF LE MANS, FRIDAY JUNE 13 2014, DRIVERS' PARADE. In 2015, Timo Bernhard (at left) will once again have as teammates Australian driver Mark Webber (centre) and the New Zealander Brendon Hartley (at right).
