Frenchman Romain Dumas had the fullest diary. On the Tuesday after Le Mans, he was at Pikes Peak, Colorado to test the Norma M20 RD Limited Spec-2016. It was the beginning of a long week of preparations for the world-famous hill race. Each day was spent testing the car on different sections of the 19.9-kilometre course. Unfortunately, an engine problem cast a shadow over the tests, but on the big day, all went well. So well in fact, that Dumas won the race. “It’s incredible. Winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans and Pikes Peak within the space of a week is something you don’t even dream of! It hasn’t sunk in yet,” said Dumas. With hardly time to catch his breath, he was off again, this time to Germany, for the launch of the new generation Porsche Panamera with teammates Walter Röhrl and Hans-Joachim Stuck. Then Dumas headed to his hometown of Alès where a party was held to celebrate his success. On the way, he stopped off in Le Mans to compete in the Le Mans Classic with a Porsche 962. Then he went to Barcelona for a four-day test session in the 919 Hybrid.

Neel Jani had no time to rest after winning Le Mans either. The Swiss driver was spotted doing laps in a Porsche Mission E concept, then in several other Porsches, including a GT3 Cup in Leipzig. Then he too attended the launch of the Porsche Panamera. On 2 July he took part in a Porsche event in Mollis, Switzerland, spent a while relaxing with his family and then, on 16 July, he entered Zurich Red Bull Flugtag, a creative, rather crazy, event involving the construction of flying machines that take off from a giant trampoline and end up in the water. On 18 July, Jani was back down to earth in Spa-Francorchamps for a coaching day.

Once Le Mans was over, Marc Lieb headed to Germany, to Weissach to be precise, to present the trophy to Porsche staff. On Wednesday 22 June Lieb, Team Principal Andreas Seidl and LM P1 department vice-president Fritz Enzinger gave a talk about the Le Mans experience. Next, Lieb went to England for the Festival of Speed at Goodwood where the 919 with a Le Mans winner at the wheel was a real crowd-pleaser. Lieb joined his teammates at the Porsche Panamera launch and then also went to Spain for the tests. He is now eagerly awaiting the chance to defend Porsche’s title in his “home” race, the 6 Hours of Nürburgring.

Dumas, Jani and Lieb made history at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and they have hardly slowed down since! 

Photo: the joy of an unexpected victory.