One month after his spectacular accident at Le Mans, Mike Rockenfeller has recently done some testing ahead the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, where he will compete on the 30th and 31st of July at the wheel of an Audi R8 LMS entered by Audi Sport Team Phoenix.

From your point of view how did the test for the 24-hour race at Spa go?
Mike Rockenfeller: "Very good. I drove in the morning and concentrated on set-up work. I hadn’t driven at Spa-Francorchamps with the Audi R8 LMS since last year, but had already raced there this year with the R18 TDI. So, I’m already very familiar with the track. We set the best time in the morning. In the afternoon my team mates Andrea Piccini and Christopher Haase took over and completed long-runs. All in all both parts went very well."

Can you compare the 24-hour races at the Nürburgring and Spa with one another?
"Yes and no. To start both races run for the same amount of time and the goal is the same: to get through the traffic as quickly as possible without technical problems and without making mistakes. In this respect things shift quite a lot due to the different pit stop regulations. Refueling and changing tires simultaneously is not allowed. So, for this reason the possibility of running double stints gains importance so as to be able to save a possible tire change. Therefore, in Spa it’ll be more about tactics than at the Nordschleife and about tire management as a result."

What defines the legend of Spa-Francorchamps for you?
"To begin with Spa is one of my favorite race tracks. It was a lot of fun to drive it with the Audi R18 TDI during the ILMS race we used as preparation for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. A 24-hour race here is, however, not just something special here, even though it’s incomparable with an absolute highlight like Le Mans. There as many as 20 cars capable of winning on the grid. This indicated the significance of this event."

Mike Rockenfeller has already won the 24 Hours Nürburgring (2006), and the 24 Hours of Daytona and Le Mans in 2010, and is well positioned to add a fourth great 24 hour race to that record.

(Source: Audi Motorsport press information)

Photo : CIRCUIT DES 24 HEURES (LE MANS, SARTHE), 24 HOURS OF LE MANS, RACE, 11 JUNE 2011. Audi R18 TDI of Mike Rockenfeller before his accident.