Le Mans 24 hour race 2002

Audi R8 with starting number 1; Winning car from Frank Biela , Tom Kristensen and Emanuele Pirro

Cadillac Northstar LMP02

The Chrysler Viper GTS-R of Jean-Luc Chereau, Carl Rosenblad and Jean-Claude Lagniez in the Ford chicane

The 70th 24-hour race of Le Mans , the 70 ^e Grand Prix d'Endurance les 24 Heures du Mans , also 24 Heures du Mans, Le Mans , took place from June 15 to 16, 2002 on the Circuit des 24 Heures instead of.

The race

Before the race, the route was changed, which increased the length of the circuit from 13.605 to 13.650 km. The passage under the Dunlop arch was converted from a straight line to a long left-right curve; above all, this conversion improved the access to the permanent Bugatti circuit .

Again the works Audi R8s used by Joest Racing were the favorites for the overall victory. Audi came to Le Mans with three works cars and demonstrated during practice that modern motorsport technology made it possible to change the gearbox in five minutes. At Bentley , in contrast to the previous year, only one car was used, which ended up in fourth place overall. In the race, surprisingly, the two MG-Lola EX257s from the LMP675 class were Audi's toughest opponents as long as the two cars drove without any problems. The MG's failed in the course of the race. The prototype of Anthony Reid , Warren Hughes and Jonny Kane with the starting number 26 had a gearbox failure after driving 129 laps. The second, faster, vehicle with the number 27, driven by Mark Blundell , Julian Bailey and Kevin McGarrity , crashed after 219 laps due to engine failure.

Audi didn't have the biggest problems with its opponents, but with the too soft Michelin tires. In total, the three cars had 15 punctures, which led to many unscheduled pit stops. The first damage occurred to the car with the number three in the warm-up lap. Nevertheless, the works cars celebrated a clear triple victory, with the trio Frank Biela , Tom Kristensen and Emanuele Pirro winning the 24-hour race for the third time in a row.

Best private team was ORECA in their Dallara SP1 originally for the Formula 1 -designed V10 engine from Judd was used. As in previous years, the Cadillac Northstar LMP had no chance. The best-placed car was 30 laps behind the winning car. Welter Racing was particularly unlucky when the leading WR LM2001 in the LMP675 class, driven by Stéphane Daoudi, broke the rear suspension in the final laps and the team lost the class win.

The race also served as the backdrop for the film Michel Vaillant produced by Luc Besson . Two vehicles of the DAMS team were painted in the colors of the film cars, equipped with cameras and professionally driven in the race. Thanks to a special permit from the Automobile Club de l'Ouest , the original number of participants in the race increased from 48 to 50 starters.

Results

Pilots by nationality

36 French	26 Americans	23 British	9 Japanese	8 Belgians
8 Germans	8 Italians	6 Dutch	5 Swiss	3 Austrians
3 Portuguese	3 Sweden	2 danes	2 Canadians	2 South Africans
1 Australian	1 fin	1 Monegasse	1 Spaniard	1 Czech
1 Venezuelan

Final ranking

Item	class	No.	team	driver	chassis	engine	tires	Round
1	LMP900	1	Audi Sport Team Joest	Frank Biela Tom Kristensen Emanuele Pirro	Audi R8	Audi 3.6L Turbo V8	M.	375
2	LMP900	2	Audi Sport North America	Johnny Herbert Christian Pescatori Rinaldo Capello	Audi R8	Audi 3.6L Turbo V8	M.	374
3	LMP900	3	Audi Sport Team Joest	Marco Werner Michael Krumm Philipp Peter	Audi R8	Audi 3.6L Turbo V8	M.	372
4th	LMGTP	8th	Team Bentley	Andy Wallace Eric van de Poele Butch Leitzinger	Bentley EXP Speed ​​8	Bentley 4.0L Turbo V8	D.	362
5	LMP900	15th	PlayStation Team Oreca	Olivier Beretta Érik Comas Pedro Lamy	Dallara SP1	Judd GV4 4.0L V10	M.	359
6th	LMP900	14th	PlayStation Team Oreca	Stéphane Sarrazin Franck Montagny Nicolas Minassian	Dallara SP1	Judd GV4 4.0L V10	M.	359
7th	LMP900	5	Audi Sport Japan Team Goh	Hiroki Kato Yannick Dalmas Seiji Ara	Audi R8	Audi 3.6L Turbo V8	M.	358
8th	LMP900	16	Racing for Holland BV	Jan Lammers Tom Coronel Val Hillebrand	Dome S101	Judd GV4 4.0L V10	M.	351
9	LMP900	6th	Team Cadillac	Wayne Taylor Max Angelelli Christophe Tinseau	Cadillac Northstar LMP02	Cadillac GM Premium V Northstar 4.0L Turbo V8	M.	345
10	LMP900	17th	Pescarolo sport	Sébastien Bourdais Jean-Christophe Boullion Franck Lagorce	Courage C60	Peugeot A32 3.2L Turbo V6	M.	343
11	GTS	63	Corvette Racing	Ron Fellows Johnny O'Connell Oliver Gavin	Chevrolet Corvette C5-R	Chevrolet LS7R 7.0L V8	G	335
12	LMP900	7th	Team Cadillac	Eric Bernard Emmanuel Collard JJ Lehto	Cadillac Northstar LMP02	Cadillac GM Premium V Northstar 4.0L Turbo V8	M.	334
13	GTS	64	Corvette Racing	Andy Pilgrim Kelly Collins Franck Fréon	Chevrolet Corvette C5-R	Chevrolet LS7R 7.0L V8	G	331
14th	GTS	52	Equipe de France	Jonathan Cochet Benoît Tréluyer Jean-Philippe Belloc	Chrysler Viper GTS-R	Chrysler 8.0L V10	M.	326
15th	LMP900	13	Courage Compétition	Didier Cottaz Boris Derichebourg Thed Björk	Courage C60	Judd GV4 4.0L V10	M.	322
16	GT	81	The Racer's Group	Kevin Buckler Lucas Luhr Timo Bernhard	Porsche 911 GT3-RS	Porsche 3.6L Flat-6	M.	322
17th	GT	80	Freising Motorsport	Romain Dumas Sascha Maassen Jörg Bergmeister	Porsche 911 GT3-RS	Porsche 3.6L Flat-6	D.	321
18th	GTS	50	Larbre Compétition	Christophe Bouchut Patrice Goueslard Vincent Vosse	Chrysler Viper GTS-R	Chrysler 8.0L V10	M.	319
19th	LMP675	29	Noël del Bello Racing	Jean-Denis Delétraz Christophe Pillon Walter Lechner jr.	Reynard 2KQ-LM	Volkswagen HPT16 2.0L I4	M.	317
20th	LMP675	25th	Gerard Welter	Jean-René de Fournoux Stéphane Daoudi Jean-Bernard Bouvet	WR LM2001	Peugeot 2.0L Turbo I4	M.	317
21st	GT	77	Team Taisan Advan	Atsushi Yogō Akira Iida Kazuyuki Nishizawa	Porsche 911 GT3-RS	Porsche 3.6L Flat-6	Y	316
22nd	GT	82	Seikel Motorsport	Gabrio Rosa Luca Drudi Luca Riccitelli	Porsche 911 GT3-RS	Porsche 3.6L Flat-6	Y	315
23	GTS	68	Ray Mallock Ltd.	Pedro Chaves Miguel Ramos Gavin Pickering	Saleen S7-R	Ford 7.0L V8	D.	312
24	GT	72	Luc Alphand Aventures	Luc Alphand Christian Lavieille Olivier Thévenin	Porsche 911 GT3-RS	Porsche 3.6L Flat-6	D.	299
25th	GTS	51	Larbre Compétition	Jean-Luc Chéreau Carl Rosenblad Jean-Claude Lagniez	Chrysler Viper GTS-R	Chrysler 8.0L V10	M.	278
26th	GTS	66	Konrad Motorsport	Terry Borcheller Toni Seiler Franz Konrad	Saleen S7-R	Ford 7.0L V8	P	266
Not classified
27	LMP900	10	DAMS	Philippe Gache Emmanuel Clérico Michel Neugarten	Lola B98 / 10	Judd GV4 4.0L V10	M.	150
Failed
28	LMP900	19th	MBD Sportscar Team	Didier de Radiguès Milka Duno John Graham	Panoz LMP07	Mugen MF408S 4.0L V8	A.	259
29	LMP900	12	Panoz Motor Sports	Bill Auberlen David Donohue Gunnar Jeannette	Panoz LMP01 Evo	Élan 6L8 6.0L V8	M.	230
30th	LMP675	27	MG Sport & Racing Ltd.	Mark Blundell Julian Bailey Kevin McGarrity	MG-Lola EX257	AER XP20 2.0L Turbo I4	M.	219
31	LMP900	4th	Riley & Scott Racing	Marc Goossens Jim Matthews Didier Theys	Riley & Scott Mk IIIC	Élan 6L8 6.0L V8	G	189
32	LMP900	9	Kondo Racing	Masahiko Kondō Ian McKellar Jr. François Migault	Dome S101	Judd GV4 4.0L V10	M.	182
33	GT	73	DeWALT Racesport Salisbury	Richard Stanton Steve Hyde Richard Hay	Morgan Aero 8R	BMW Mader 4.0L V8	D.	181
34	GTS	58	Prodrive	Rickard Rydell Alain Menu Tomáš Enge	Ferrari 550 GTS Maranello	Ferrari F131 6.0L V12	M.	167
35	GT	75	Orbit Racing	Leo Hindery Jr. Peter Baron Anthony Kester	Porsche 911 GT3-RS	Porsche 3.6L Flat-6	M.	165
36	LMP900	18th	Pescarolo sport	Eric Hélary Stéphane Ortelli Ukyo Katayama	Courage C60	Peugeot A32 3.2L Turbo V6	M.	144
37	GT	85	Spyker Automobielen BV	Peter Kox Norman Simon John Hugenholtz	Spyker C8 Double-12R	BMW 3.4L V8	D.	142
38	LMP675	26th	MG Sport & Racing Ltd.	Anthony Reid Warren Hughes Jonny Kane	MG-Lola EX257	AER XP20 2.0L Turbo I4	M.	129
39	LMP675	28	ROC car	Jordi Gené Mark Smithson Peter Owen	Reynard 2KQ-LM	Volkswagen HPT16 2.0L I4	M.	126
40	GT	74	Auto Palace	Guillaume Gomez Ryō Fukuda Laurent Cazenave	Ferrari 360 Modena GT	Ferrari F133 3.6L V8	P	119
41	LMP675	30th	KnightHawk Racing	Steve Knight Mel Hawkins Duncan Dayton	MG-Lola EX257	AER XP20 2.0L Turbo I4	A.	102
42	LMP900	22nd	DAMS	Jérôme Policand Marc Duez Perry McCarthy	Panoz LMP-1 Roadster-S	Élan 6L8 6.0L V8	M.	98
43	GTS	53	Team Carsport Holland	Mike Hezemans Gabriele Matteuzzi Anthony Kumpen	Chrysler Viper GTS-R	Chrysler 8.0L V10	P	93
44	LMP900	11	Panoz Motor Sports	David Brabham Jan Magnussen Bryan Herta	Panoz LMP01 Evo	Élan 6L8 6.0L V8	M.	90
45	GT	71	JMB Racing	Stephen Earle Chris MacAllister Gary Schultheis	Ferrari 360 Modena GT	Ferrari F133 3.6L V8	P	85
46	GTS	67	Konrad Motorsport	Walter Brun Charles Slater Rodney Mall	Saleen S7-R	Ford 7.0L V8	P	83
47	GT	78	PK Sport Ltd.	Robin Liddell David Warnock Piers Masarati	Porsche 911 GT3-RS	Porsche 3.6L Flat-6	P	83
48	LMP900	21st	Team Ascari	Werner Lupberger Ben Collins Timothy Bell	Ascari KZR-1	Judd GV4 4.0L V10	D.	17th
49	GT	70	JMB Racing	Cort Wagner Sam Hancock Martin Short	Ferrari 360 Modena GT	Ferrari F133 3.6L V8	P	16
50	LMP675	24	Autoexe Motorsport	Yōjirō Terada John Fergus Jim Downing	Autoexe LMP-02	Mazda R26B 2.6L 4- rotor	A.	5

Only in the entry list

Here you can find teams, drivers and vehicles that were originally registered for the race, but did not take part for various reasons.

Item	class	No.	team	driver	chassis	engine	tires
51	GT	76	Orbit Racing	Gary Schultheis John Lloyd Grady Willingham	Porsche 911 GT3-RS	Porsche 3.6L Flat-6
52	GT	79	PK Sport Ltd.	Don Freeman Milan Maderyc Philip Ma	Porsche 911 GT3-RS	Porsche 3.6L Flat-6	P
53	GT	83	Seikel Motorsport	Tony Burgess Andrew Bagnall David Shep	Porsche 911 GT3-RS	Porsche 3.6L Flat-6	Y
54	LMP900	20th	MBD Sportscar Team	Milka Duno Scott Maxwell John Graham	Panoz LMP07	Mugen MF408S 4.0L V8	A.
55	GTS	57	Team Rafanelli Srl.		Ferrari 550 GTS Maranello	Ferrari F131 6.0L V12
56	GTS	59	Prodrive		Ferrari 550 GTS Maranello	Ferrari F131 6.0L V12	M.

Class winner

class	driver	driver	driver	vehicle	Placement in the overall ranking
LMP900	Frank Biela	Tom Kristensen	Emanuele Pirro	Audi R8	Overall victory
LMP675	Christophe Pillon	Jean-Denis Delétraz	Walter Lechner Jr.	Reynard 2KQ-LM	Rank 19
LMGTP	Andy Wallace	Butch Leitzinger	Eric van de Poele	Bentley EXP Speed ​​8	Rank 4
GTS	Ron Fellows	Johnny O'Connell	Oliver Gavin	Chevrolet Corvette C5-R	Rank 11
GT	Kevin Buckler	Lucas Luhr	Timo Bernhard	Porsche 911 GT3-RS	Rank 16

Racing data

• Registered: 56
• Started: 50
• Valued: 26
• Race classes: 5
• Spectators: 220,000
• Honorary starter of the race: Luc Besson , French director and producer
• Weather on the race weekend: sunny and hot, light rain at night
• Route length: 13,650 km
• Driving time of the winning team: 24: 01: 26.651 hours
• Rounds of the winning team: 375
• Distance of the winning team: 5118.750 km
• Winner's average: 213.281 km / h
• Pole position: Rinaldo Capello - Audi R8 (# 2) - 3: 29.905 = 234.106 km / h
• Fastest race lap: Tom Kristensen - Audi R8 (# 1) - 3: 33,483 = 230.182 km / h
• Racing series: did not belong to any racing series

literature

• Paul Frère , Christian Moity, Jean-Marc Teissèdre: Les 24 heures du Mans 2002 . Chronosports, Saint-Sulpice 2002, ISBN 2-8470-7007-9 .

Web links

Commons : Le Mans 24 Hours 2002  - Collection of images, videos and audio files