Photo : - Peugeot Sport

No, the Peugeot Sport driver is not planning a new year diet on the 1st of January... but he said his size (1.85 metres/6ft 1in, 77 kilos/170 pounds) represents a substantial handicap.

Although victorious at Petit Le Mans for the third consecutive time, Franck Montagny is not completely satisfied with his season. Although confident that 2012 will be better, the driver feels handicapped by his weight.

As you might imagine, he is excited about participation in the World Endurance Championship ...

Franck Montagny: "It's been two years since Stéphane (Sarrazin) and I won the drivers' 'title' in ILMC ... but only 'virtual' because the title does not exist! So I am delighted that there is a recognition for drivers in the new WEC. And there is no question that this crown will elude us"!

But competition will be fierce, even among Peugeot. This season, the Montagny-Sarrazin duo seemed slightly down against the Bourdais-Pagenaud / Bourdais-Davidson partnerships. Why is this?
"The working of our car was completely changed after Le Mans. It's super difficult because you have to recreate a synergy and it takes time. When a diver-engineer relationship is well established, everything goes faster because the two people speak the same language. This is the equanimity that allows you to get quickly to the optimum. This season, Steph (Sarrazin) and I have always been competitive, but never dominant, except at Road Atlanta because we had one week prior to testing. This week was enough to erase our relatively slow performance and find the right settings. Recently, we made a seven-hour session with the whole group ... We are on track!"

So everything will be better in 2012?
"Yes, but we will always have a small handicap ... I mean in weight. On a qualifying lap, I start off with a delay of four tenths of a second on Anthony Davidson. Because a great driver, but also because he is ​​twenty pounds lighter than me! This is not negligible. At Le Mans 24 hours, that's more than a lap! In endurance, weight control is based on the car empty: no driver, no fuel. I think it's fair that a ballast, based on the average of two or three drivers in each car is set up. In F1, the weight of cars is adjusted according to the weight of each driver. We could do the same thing."

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Julien Hergault

Photo : VELIZY-VILLACOUBLAY (YVELINES),  PHOTOS SESSION PEUGEOT SPORT, 10 FEB 2010. Franck Montagny : 1,85 metres, 77 kilos.