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Le Mans – This and That

Le Mans – This and That

25. October 2011We have received quite a number of emails asking about the report “Le Mans – This and That”, as people are accustomed to finding the obligatory follow-up report on this website shortly after the races, but the current topics – the FIA ceremony and the provisional race time table 2012 with the first-time official confirmation about a round in Turkey – had priority.
In fact the final Sunday in Le Mans could have become a terrific festival. On Saturday the MKR Senior Team at first put on an excellent performance, but later on the day turned out to be rather devastating for them, so that by then the win of the team championship was a sure thing for the MAN Team Cespa / Truck Sport Bernau. And Jochen Hahn had already a 99 percent chance of winning the driver championship. The only remaining rival of the German MAN pilot, Hahn’s Spanish brand colleague Antonio Albacete, had to win the races on all accounts; otherwise he would not have a ghost of a chance to claim the title. However, with his 8th position on the grid in the SuperPole the Cepsa pilot’s hopes were practically dashed.
But yet, after a fantastic start, the Spanish pilot powered ahead and at the first straight almost took the lead – when he had the worst crash of a season which had already seen quite a few spectacular accidents. The statements made about the cause of this crash differed widely and were often also a bit hazy.
Towards the end of the 10-minute video “Meritor Talk Jochen Hahn” on “truckrace.tv” the newly minted European champion comments on this accident, and his opinion is supported by what can be seen on the videos of several onboard cameras. In the “truckrace.tv” summaries featuring Lutz Bernau and Uwe Nittel there are more comments and video recordings which allow the viewers to make up their own opinion about that matter. By the way, the officials in Le Mans did not put the blame for the accident on anybody.
However, on the previous day the FIA authorities took a tough line. When the Renault trucks of Markus Oestreich and Markus Bösiger were measured it was observed that their chassis clearance was below the minimum height by a margin of 5 millimetres. It was indeed a difference of 5 millimetres – according to the responsible FIA delegate Ross Garrett – and not 2.5 or even 5 centimetres, as it was circulated later, and partly on the internet, too. All that and the following disqualification of the Renault trucks did nothing to improve the atmosphere, the more so as by the above decision the winner of the team championship was already determined before the races had even started.
On Sunday evening during the FIA festivities everything was sunshine and roses; Albacete – who, after his accident, had been taken to a hospital just in case – was back at the circuit and was greeted with cheers at the Welcome Centre. The celebration itself and the party in the paddock afterwards, which went on till the early hours, were exceptionally well received by everybody. And it seemed that the crash was considered as over and done with. That’s why it came as quite a surprise that apparently new disputes have recently flared up again – even with explicit finger-pointing.
One of the longest-serving truck racers – who looks back on 12 years of active life as a driver and team boss – had previously announced that he was going to call it quits after the round in Le Mans, but his farewell was rather unspectacular. The Austrian has never made a secret of his opinion with regard to the FIA authorities, and he didn’t attend the obligatory FIA festivities in recent years. And this year he wasn’t present either. Neither has Allgäuer officially commented so far on his plans for the future – also in regard to his team and his equipment.
What will come to mind when we think back to the 2011 event in Le Mans? The weather was better than expected, considering the season of the year. The enthusiasm of the audience was again overwhelming, and they weren’t only rewarded with exciting races, but also with a highly spectacular show an Saturday evening. And the way things are going according to the current plans for next year, the final round in the 2012 FIA European Truck Racing Championship will also take place at the Circuit Bugatti in Le Mans.

Impressions:

Le Mans – This and That
Le Mans – This and That
Le Mans – This and That