Le Mans 2020 | PH Preview
We talk to Mike Conway about the unique challenge presented by the world's most famous endurance race
This weekend sees the 24 Hours of Le Mans take place just over three months after its originally scheduled date because of you know what. While the sidelines and grandstands of the Circuit de la Sarthe will be lacking around 250,000 enthusiastic spectators, we're just happy that the 2020 event is going ahead. Don't forget, at one point it looked like the whole World Endurance Championship calendar might have to be postponed.
But here we are, with 59 cars and 178 drivers now back on track, among them the number seven Toyota TS050 Hybrid of Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and Jose Maria Lopez. The trio have had a strong running in 2020's shortened calendar (they lead the championship going into the weekend), but as Conway told PH during a Zoom call in the run up to this weekend's race, if there's a circuit out there to provide unexpected results, it's this one. Still, here are five reasons why he's excited.
It's an autumnal race
Normally, Le Mans runs in the final week of spring, when the days are getting longer but the night temperatures can cool off quite substantially. You only need to see the misty breathe and bobble hats of team personnel to know it. For 2020's rescheduled race, however, the event takes place over the first weekend of autumn, which could in itself make for a few differences. The day-night temperature differences, Conway explains, might actually be advantageous.
"With it being quite hot at the moment, it's been a hot week and the night doesn't look too cold," he says optimistically. "It means the weather should be good for us, as it'll keep the tyres in a better operating range when it's a bit warmer through the night. But we're still well aware of how the car balance tends to shift around from the daytime to the evening, and then back into the next day. There's probably still going to be a bit of natural degradation from race start to finish because of this."
You can't test
Unlike other tracks, where teams may have access to test days or be able to gather data from other categories that compete on them throughout the year, la Sarthe is largely inactive beyond Le Mans weekend. The Mulsanne Straight is a public road, after all. This means that while the grid of racers have had (a lot) more time through 2020 to prepare for the event - Toyota's even bringing an aero update - it's still a real guessing game as to how things will pan out for real.
"It's not a track you can just come to and test at in the year," confirms Conway, "it's only here for one time of the year. The only other time we get to use it is on the simulator. Which makes predicting how our new parts will do very difficult. And whole 13.5km track provides a unique challenge in itself; you've particular corners like Indianapolis and the Porsche Curves that are probably the most fun parts parts, as they're high speed and you're attacking the entries pretty fast. But it's all a big challenge that you have to live up to on the weekend."
Consistency is key...
While a team's race plan might not appear much different to the other much shorter races on the WEC's calendar, Le Mans takes the whole consistency thing to a new level. Having strong pace here is vital, but as so many races have shown time and time again - and as Toyota knows from recent history - consistency in your car and drivers is at least as important. But 37-year-old Conway is an old hand, having driven in the WEC for seven years and been a star of IndyCar before that. He knows the drill.
"The main goal around here is to be consistent from start to finish," he says "We're looking for a good clean race, and a good battle between us and the Rebellion on pace alone. But it's also a place you have to be especially smart with traffic. You can come up to a corner and lose a lot of time because of it; take a fast section like the Porsche Curves, if you get there and you see a few cars in your way, you're like 'ah no, I'm not going to get a clear run this time'. It can ruin your whole lap - and that's what it's about at this place, you're battling your laptimes all the time."
...but it's genuinely a 24-hour sprint race
It might be hard to believe that drivers and cars are at their maximum for the entire race stint, but it's not just true, it's essential. Aside from the occasional lift-and-coast fuel save (which, thanks to the significance of the aero, still see cars slow at a rate comparable to many hard stopping road car), modern day Le Mans prototype and GT racers are at full chat day and night, start, middle and end of stints.
"If you back off, you lose some tyre temperature, especially in the night, so you've really got to keep pushing to keep everything in the right window. There are moments, maybe if you had a huge lead, you could take fewer risks with traffic, but really you are pushing hard all the way through. It doesn't take much for the safety car to come out, to bunch you right up. Or slow zones, you can get hit with one and the car behind doesn't if it lifts by the time they're there, you can lose like 40 seconds just like that. You have to keep pushing to cover all of that, the margins are so small so it's hard to relax.
Expect surprises
This year's closest racing probably will come from the GTE category, with the main battle at the front of the field likely between the Toyota entrants. But, if we're lucky, Rebellion Racing might just throw up a few surprises in its hunt for glory; the V8-powered R13 has proven itself at Le Mans with numerous LMP1 wins, so expect the team to be pushing Toyota and its LMP1-H machines along all the way. Conway would welcome it, that's for sure.
"Only a few years ago, I have fond memories of just getting in the car and coming out of the pits, and as I got into turn one there's got a Porsche behind, flashing its lights. In those moments, you've got no time to warm up, you're just straight into it, but that's what this race brings. It raises your level as a driver and the level of the team even higher - and gets the heartrate straight up there!"
The race starts at 14:30 CEST, 13:30 BST
La Sarthe
Le Mans
But my French is, 'ow you say, s
t.From reading last night about Spa which was wetter than an otters pocket, Toyota will be praying for rain I think, as the only 4WD entrants. Rebellion stand a chance if it stays bone dry.
Gutted that we're not all queuing for a freezing cold or scalding hot shower in a muddy field with a stonking hangover this year, roll on next (hopefully!)
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