KC Motorgroup Ltd. (KCMG), the first Chinese team to compete at the legendary Le Mans 24 Hours, has secured an impressive sixth place on the LMP2 class grid at the Circuit de la Sarthe after three intense qualifying sessions amidst unpredictable weather conditions on Wednesday and Thursday.
Alexandre Imperatori, Ho-Pin Tung and Matt Howson – all of whom are making their Le Mans debuts this year – made a steady start during the initial sessions as the team focused on working on their Morgan-Nissan LMP2’s set-up and reliability prior to the enormous challenge that awaits them this weekend.
All three drivers successfully completed their mandatory night time qualifying laps and were also able to do some runs in wet, dry and mixed conditions. Indeed, such was the tricky nature of the circuit as it evolved that all three two-hour sessions were interrupted by red flag stoppages at some point due to incidents.
While Wednesday’s sole qualifying session allowed Imperatori and Howson to complete their necessary night laps, the dire weather and red flag stoppages prevented the team from completing the critical evening laps that Tung required. Qualifying 1 was ultimately curtailed after a red flag was signalled at the Michelin Chicane.
Due to further wet track conditions the team dedicated the second qualifying session on Thursday evening to improving the car’s set-up and pit-stop practice. There was also an opportunity to try out effective tyre strategies on the ever-changing circuit.
Commencing 30 minutes earlier than scheduled, Qualifying 3 got underway on a damp but drying track. Tung was first behind the wheel in a bid to complete his compulsory night laps before Howson took over for his final qualifying run on wet tyres.
A late red flag saw Imperatori climb aboard with less than half-an-hour remaining, and with the track now dry he was able to demonstrate the team’s true potential by vaulting from 12th to sixth overall thanks to an excellent lap.
Alexandre Imperatori, KCMG driver: “We had difficult conditions for qualifying due to red flags, and the weather was really not on our side. The session had to be interrupted and we had to wait for the last couple of minutes until we could actually put everything together for a quick run. The team did a very good job in giving me a strong car for qualifying and my team-mates also did a perfect job in terms of deciding on the set-up. I’m very happy to have finished third in the session and sixth on the grid for the race on Saturday. We’re proud to qualify in the top six of the LMP2 class on our Le Mans debut and I’d like to especially thank Paul Ip for this great experience. We take great pride in making history by representing China here in Le Mans. We’ll be up there with the other guys and hopefully be in a strong position for the race. We now need to make sure we can complete 24 hours without any troubles. It’s going to be another challenge but I’m sure we are prepared for it and I’m very much looking forward to the race.”
Ho-Pin Tung, KCMG driver: “This is a great result for the team on its Le Mans debut. Bearing in mind that this is arguably the most competitive LMP2 field ever assembled at Le Mans, it’s an amazing result! As usual in qualifying it came down to the final few minutes when the track was at its best. The timing worked out by the team was spot on and Alex was able to bang in a fast lap for P6. Earlier in the session conditions were not in our favour with a wet and drying track, but nevertheless both Matt and myself were able to make the appropriate changes to the car after we found ourselves slightly off the pace in Free Practice and Q1. It shows the flexibility of the team, which is a very positive point to take into the long and challenging race ahead.”
Matt Howson, KCMG driver: “Sixth place amongst the largest and most competitive LMP2 field Le Mans has seen was a superb effort from everybody. The conditions were difficult, there were many red flags and isolated areas of rain, but the team’s strategy in the final few minutes allowed Alex to put in a great lap after Ho-Pin and myself had refined the balance in the earlier mixed conditions. It’s a great feeling to be part of a team effort like this and we’re going to enjoy this moment, even though the biggest challenge is yet to come; the race itself on Saturday! I cannot thank the team enough for their effort so far and we will do the same to deliver them the best result possible.”
Paul Ip, KCMG Team Owner: “The team did an amazing job despite the challenging conditions caused by the changeable weather here at La Sarthe during the three qualifying sessions. Being sixth out of 22 cars is such a great feat for us and I’m proud of what we have achieved so far. We hope to accomplish more this weekend and put China amongst the top positions during the 24-hour race.”
Saturday’s race begins at 15.00 local time.
To find out more about the event, visit www.24h-lemans.com.
Interact with Ho-Pin, Matt and Alex and learn more about the Le Mans 24 Hours by checking out their posts on the KCMG blog: www.kcmg-blog.com.
For more information about KCMG, visit www.kcmg.com.hk. To keep track of latest updates, please like KCMG’s Facebook page or follow @KCMotorgroup on Twitter.
Photo Credit: Frits van Eldik
