Allan McNish has today announced that he won't race for Audi's LMP team in 2014. His retirement from endurance racing comes after a hugely successful 12 seasons with Audi (they would rather we gloss over the two terms spent with Toyota's F1 team, understandably) and karting experience that began 32 years ago.
This year's Le Mans win was McNish's third
Since 2000, McNish has won 29 races in the World Endurance Championship (including three Le Mans victories) as well as taking 18 pole positions, 17 fastest laps and four drivers' titles. He has also become the only driver to have raced all of Audi's sports racers, beginning with the R8 in 2000 and including the R10, R15 and R18 diesels, plus the recent R18 hybrids. McNish had a DTM stint with Audi in 2005 also.
However, this doesn't herald McNish's departure from motorsport. He said "I'm going to continue to be part of motorsport in various roles, albeit no longer as an Audi race driver." Of his LMP success, McNish commented: "I can look back at on a fantastic career that has left no aims unfinished ... having also won the Le Mans 24 Hours, I can't wish for more than what we've achieved this year."
Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich added "this is a parting that is particularly difficult for us... we should not forget, though, how valuable he has always been... we are happy that he will continue to be associated with the Audi brand."
And as it's in out Time For Tea? slot catch McNish talk through a lap of Le Mans
here
![](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 4 3"%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 1 1"%3E%3C/svg%3E)