Photo : Pierre BARRAU - ACO/Nikon
#6 – Oreca 01 AIM / Team Oreca Matmut / Ayari-André-Meyrick (4th)
Oreca came to win with a Peugeot 908, and finished the race with a 4th position overall scored by a car of its own. Hugues de Chaunac could be proud of this result, since the presence of 9 diesel-powered LMP1s left very few opportunities for a good result. The early part of the race was marked by a runoff by Meyrick at Arnage, and contacts with other cars for Ayari and André.
The last contact forced the team to replace the rear suspension and assembly, with a 20-minute pit stop. Once back on the track, Soheil Ayari set a time of 3:28.818, and improved his qualifying time. On Sunday, the retirements of the Peugeots and Aston Martin brought the car to an unexpected 4th position. After finishing 5th in 2009, Hugues de Chaunac and his team once again proved that their cars deserve support they will get from Peugeot next year.
Julien Hergault