Matteo Cairoli managed to finish in the GTE AM class top 10 at the centenary of the 24h of Le Mans, the most prestigious and anticipated race of the year, which celebrated its 100 years history with its 92nd edition.
The driver from Como made his seventh appearance at the Circuit de La Sarthe, finishing the race seventh in the GTE AM class, and 35th overall, at the wheel of the #56 Project 1 – AO Porsche 911 RSR-19. He shared the car as platinum driver alongside Gunnar Jeannette and PJ Hyett, both silver and bronze driver, and finally managed to break the negative finishes curse at the iconic race, redeeming himself after the last two DNFs in the previous editions.
After a qualifying round that saw every Porsche struggle in comparison to the rivals, Matteo recovered many positions in the first part of the race, leading the whole pack during the night after an incredible race management in the early stages, when the rain arrived and made everything even more challenging. This meticulous race craft led to a one minute and a half gap from the chasing cars, with Cairoli at the wheel at the crack of dawn. Still, with all the neutralizations on Sunday and the AM drivers on track, their gap kept on decreasing also thanks to the other Pro drivers back at the wheel of the other cars.
The next challenge for Matteo Cairoli in the World Endurance Championship will be at home, at the Autodromo Monza, the temple of speed, for the 6h of Monza.
Matteo Cairoli
“I had prepared a lot for this race, and the preparation paid off. Even if the qualifying round didn’t go as I hoped for, during the race we were able to recover some positions and brought us back in the Top 10. Finishing seventh at Le Mans is still a good result, moreover after the qualifying results. I had a lot of fun during the first half of the race and being able to lead the 24h of Le Mans felt like a big recognition. Now we will focus on Monza to try to do even better, the race will be shorter but still very fast. We remain focused to do a good job and continue our progress”.
