View the Post on the BlogThis wasn't simply another race. The fifth and final round of RaceDepartment’s Le Mans series saw the teams launch a 24 hour assault on the Circuit de la Sarthe. It encapsulated everything we love about endurance racing; the thrills, the spills, the big moments and the unrivaled skill of the drivers. As a result, we were all lucky enough to witness something very special.
The season reached a crescendo as the teams descended on the Circuit de la Sarthe for the ultimate test in sim racing. While the previous four rounds had produced spectacular racing, the 24 Hours of Le Mans was indisputably the holy grail for all involved in the fourth edition of the series. Furthermore, it wasn't just morale on the line at Le Mans, with double points on offer due to the fact that the teams would race for significantly longer as compared to the previous events this season.
Qualifying took place on Tuesday the 9th of July, three days ahead of the beginning of the grueling 24 hour event. NoLimit Motorsport scored outright pole for the race in their #112 Peugeot 908 HDI. rSeat.fr Racing Team managed to lap the Circuit de la Sarthe in the second fastest time, while Fenix Motorsport landed third on the grid in their LMP1 prototype. In LMP2, DareDevilz Racing Team notched up qualifying honours at the hands of Lars Brugman, while the entries of MRCorse Direita3 and SIMCO Hungarian Team qualified second and third in the class respectively. The fastest of the GT cars was the second NoLimit Motorsport entry ahead of the rSeat.fr Racing Team Corvette and the United X Simracing prepared Saleen S7R respectively. Finally, pre-race honours in GT2 went to the Simracing for Holland Porsche 997 RSR ahead of Black Road Racing and eRacing Propulsion.
As the green flag on Saturday loomed ever closer, nervous anticipation was pronounced within every driver scheduled to take the wheel during the race. The enormity of the task was an elegant yet brutal proposition, and come 12 o’clock on Saturday, competitors were eager to attack the 13 kilometre circuit. Three hundred and eighty three laps later, Jimmy Dion flashed the headlights of his rSeat.fr Racing Team Peugeot 908 as he crossed the finish line to signal a stunning outright victory for his team. Dion, Steph Amiel and Raphael Bohorodycz put in a sterling effort to finish three laps clear of their closest rival, while they also managed to set the fastest lap of the race with a 3.17.81.
The #115 Skype Team Racing entry claimed outright second having completed 380 laps of the Circuit de la Sarthe, while Fenix Motorsport rounded out a commendable podium with their Peugeot 908 completing 379 laps over the course of the event. SimRace Vereniging Nederland and FEEDER Sport Poland put in stellar efforts to complete the top 5, pursued by Satellite Racing and THR in that order at the chequered flag.
The first of the LMP2 entries was the THR prepared Acura ARX 01B piloted by Tommi Ojala, David Jundt, Jesper Taulborg and Robert Wiesenmuller. The combination impressed after managing 363 laps at the finish, the same number as their sister LMP1 car having led that entry for much of the race. Second in the LMP2 class was the Hell Racing Team Hungary entry having completed 361 laps of the circuit, while ME Racing nabbed the final position on the podium for the class after completing 359 rounds of the iconic track.
rSeat.co.uk Racing Team pinched the closely fought GT1 honours, with Alexandre Amelot, Jonathan Dion, Baptiste Quenaudon and Valentin Soleilhac piloting their Corvette C6.R to class victory. The foursome notched up 344 laps, narrowly ahead of their closest rival in NoLimit Motorsport, with both entries ending the race on the same number of laps. The GT1 podium was completed by the SIMCO Hungarian Team, proving consistency is far more important than outright speed after managing only the 9th fastest GT1 time in qualifying.
Finally, GT2 honours were claimed by the #409 SimRacing for Holland Porsche 997RSR with Rudy van Buren, Robin Verdegaal, Dennis Douna and Wilfred van den Brink sharinh the wheel throughout the race. The four drivers steered their entry to a dominant, 7 lap class victory in a stunning result for the team. ORM Corse also achieved a spectacular result, with the team bagging second in class in their very first RDLMS race. The final podium position in GT2 was claimed by the #402 Brigata Orso prepared Porsche 997 RSR, a further two laps off second position in class.
You can relive all of the action at RaceDepartment's YouTube channel.
A vast amount of preparation was aimed at making sure this event and the rest of the series ran smoothly. Enormous credit must go to Marco Bijl, Yoeri Gijsen, Marcel Offermans, Bram Hengeveld, Remco de Wildt and all other contributors who worked extremely hard to facilitate the circumstances which allowed a total of 40 cars to be circulating when the chequered flag dropped. It’s also vitally important to credit all of those involved in commentating on the race including James Kirk, Scott Woodwiss, Ron Squire, Mike Bell, Xavier de Carvalho and others, all of whom kept us entertained and informed even through severe sleep deprivation! We must also appreciate the efforts of Scott Webber and Nero Sehovic in driving the safety car throughout the race. Lastly, thank you to all of the competitors, team managers and spectators, all of whom ensured that the event was truly one of RaceDepartment’s most spectacular.
For those eagerly awaiting news on the next season of RaceDepartment’s Le Mans Series, we can reveal that it will be replaced by the Virtual World Endurance Championship, which will use rFactor 2 as its platform. As was the case in the RDLMS, it will feature multi-class endurance racing with details of the series currently in discussion. Stay tuned for more information in the coming weeks as we prepare another almighty season of endurance racing!
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