Porsche returns to Le Mans in 2014
#31
07-01-2011, 01:16 PM
Oh okay good, I saw him on one of the Audi Werks sites, and briefly assumed he was there for Audi now. He is my favorite current driver. He's going to dominate Le Mans 2014 with Luhr, Lieb, Dumas, and others. It will be great if they field three cars. Supposedly Toyota is making a Le Mans comeback as well. Prototype racing is about to get really exciting.
#32
07-04-2011, 09:39 AM
If/when Porsche will race on LM it will replace Audi.
I am not seeing two cars from the same group batteling each other..
#35
07-07-2011, 12:29 PM
Porsche wouldn't go as far to do a press release for the public if it were BS. Audi did basically say on their FB "Bring it on!" I don't think two companies going at it under the same umbrella has much of a problem. It's already happened with Porsche in the GT classes.
#36
07-21-2011, 11:48 AM
I was reading through my iPad version of Autoweek, and came across an article that I found very interesting. Apparently The decision to bring Porsche back to Lemans was based on Porsche and Audi utilizing different technologies to accomplish this. I can't find this article online, so here's the text:
Porsche and Audi Set to Square Off in Lemans Competition
- Gary Watkins, Autoweek
Audi looks certain to go head-to-head with Porsche when it's sister marque in 2014mounts a bid for the overall win at Le Mans for the first time in 16 years. In the wake of Porsche's June 30 announcement that it will return to Le Mans, Audi Sport boss Wolfgang Ullrich said that he expects to race in the LMP1 Prototype division through 2014 and beyond. He insisted there will be no conflict between the two Volkswagen Group brands competing against each other.
"This is something we will have to decide, but basically our program is that we are going to continue the route with the 24 hours", he told Autoweek. "Each brand is taking it's own decision, though in consultation with the main VW Group board."
AW understands that VW bosses, including supervisory board chairman Ferdinand Piech, gave Porsche and Audi the clear to race each other, with the proviso that they use different technologies. At likely means Porsche using gasoline power with hybrid systems, while Audi will stick with turbodiesel engines.
Sources say that VW gave Audi an ultimatum for 2011 to build a car that was to match the latest Peugeot LMP1 contender. The pace of the new R18 as much as it's win at Le Mans last month is thought to have secured Audi's long-term future in sports car racing.
That theory is supported by Porsche making it's announcement after Le Mans rather than during this year's event before Audi had proved it's competitiveness. Porsche Motorsport boss Hartmut Kristen revealed that the company decided to return to LMP1 "in the past months," and that the announcement of the FIA World Endurance Championship for 2012 in early June (Competition, July 11) had "no effect" on the process.
- Gary Watkins, Autoweek
Audi looks certain to go head-to-head with Porsche when it's sister marque in 2014mounts a bid for the overall win at Le Mans for the first time in 16 years. In the wake of Porsche's June 30 announcement that it will return to Le Mans, Audi Sport boss Wolfgang Ullrich said that he expects to race in the LMP1 Prototype division through 2014 and beyond. He insisted there will be no conflict between the two Volkswagen Group brands competing against each other.
"This is something we will have to decide, but basically our program is that we are going to continue the route with the 24 hours", he told Autoweek. "Each brand is taking it's own decision, though in consultation with the main VW Group board."
AW understands that VW bosses, including supervisory board chairman Ferdinand Piech, gave Porsche and Audi the clear to race each other, with the proviso that they use different technologies. At likely means Porsche using gasoline power with hybrid systems, while Audi will stick with turbodiesel engines.
Sources say that VW gave Audi an ultimatum for 2011 to build a car that was to match the latest Peugeot LMP1 contender. The pace of the new R18 as much as it's win at Le Mans last month is thought to have secured Audi's long-term future in sports car racing.
That theory is supported by Porsche making it's announcement after Le Mans rather than during this year's event before Audi had proved it's competitiveness. Porsche Motorsport boss Hartmut Kristen revealed that the company decided to return to LMP1 "in the past months," and that the announcement of the FIA World Endurance Championship for 2012 in early June (Competition, July 11) had "no effect" on the process.
#37
07-21-2011, 12:46 PM
Thanks for that info, now it makes much more sense as to why they're competing against each other.
#40
07-24-2011, 03:35 PM
I hear ya but there has been a lot (A LOT) of talk about this and F1 within the group...