Robert Kubica reflects on 'special' victory with #83 AF Corse Ferrari at 24 hours of Le Mans - 'Everything worked perfectly'
Updated 15/06/2025 at 18:42 GMT+1
Former Formula 1 driver Robert Kubica said "everything worked perfectly" after he steered home the #83 AF Corse Ferrari to victory in the 93rd edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans on Sunday. The privately-run team, also including China’s Yifei Ye and Britain’s Phil Hanson, came out on top after 387 laps on the Circuit de la Sarthe as Ferrari won the endurance race for the third year on the spin.
'One of the toughest races' - Kubica on 'special' Le Mans victory with Ferrari
Video credit: TNT Sports
Robert Kubica said "everything worked perfectly" after Ferrari won the 24 Hours of Le Mans for a third year in a row.Â
The former Formula 1 driver claimed a "special" victory alongside China’s Yifei Ye and Britain’s Phil Hanson in the privately-run AF Corse team ahead of the red factory cars.
The 40-year-old crossed the line in the yellow #83 car, which had completed 387 laps on the Circuit de la Sarthe, to win at Le Mans for the first time in his career.
Speaking to TNT Sport afterwards, Kubica said: "Winning Le Mans is special, it is one of the biggest races. I was close a few years ago in the LMP2 category in my first Le Mans, where we lost the race on the last lap.
"This time everything worked perfectly. Winning overall is even better than LMP2, it has, as always, been a demanding week, but fortunately, we made everything possible and kept our heads down.
"We kept our heads down when we had to push, we took care of our car and tyres, and I am happy for myself and my teammates and AF Corse and for Ferrari, who have won three times in a row with three different crews. A better scenario, we could not have."
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'What a drive it's been' - Kubica steers Ferrari to victory at Le Mans
Video credit: TNT Sports
The victory for Kubica comes 14 years after he suffered life-changing injuries in a rallying crash, which led to a potential move to Ferrari's F1 team collapsing.
The Polish driver had once been considered one of the most promising in F1, having won the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix for BMW-Sauber.
Kubica’s team-mate Yifei described Sunday's victory as a "perfect ending" for the 40-year-old, who produced a three-and-a-half hour stint to guide his team home.
The Chinese driver told TNT Sports: "It’s a great story that we finally put a perfect ending with Robert that we started four years ago.
"[I’m] super happy, super thankful to the whole team for these three wonderful wins in a row for Ferrari. I’m super proud and thanks to everyone in the team.
He added: "It looks easier from the outside than it is in the car. It’s just unbelievable, I feel I’m still dreaming right now."
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Ferrari AF Corse #83 celebrate on podium after historic Le Mans triumph
Video credit: TNT Sports
It was a dominant race for Ferrari, with #83 Ferrari AF Corse, #51 Ferrari AF Corse and #50 Ferrari AF Corse occupying the podium spots for much of the race.
Having taken and lost the lead at points throughout the night, #83 was able to regain top spot after Alessandro Pier Guidi spun into the gravel on #51 just after 10am.
A late comeback from the #6 Porsche Penske Motorsport car saw it snatch second place, but Kubica was able to steer his team to a victory of more than 14 seconds.Â
'It's a dream come true' - Britain's Yelloly on LMP2 victory
In the lower prototype LMP2 class, the #43 of Inter Europol Competition claimed victory after Jamie Chadwick retired the Idec Sport #18 car earlier on.
Britain’s Nick Yelloly described it as a "dream come true" to be a part of the winning team.Â
He told TNT Sports: "I've been fortunate enough to be in a couple of winning cars in some big 24-hour races, before I won both Spa and the Nurburgring Nordschleife.
"Now, adding Le Mans to the list is a pretty awesome feeling, and what better place to do it? What better team-mates? I’m really happy for everyone who has worked tirelessly to get this result as a team."
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Meanwhile, the Manthey 1st Phorm Porsche 911 GT3 took victory in the LMGT3 class, with Richard Leitz crossing the line for the team.
Speaking afterwards, the Austrian told TNT Sports: "I think it can’t get any better apart from me being younger. I think from a race perspective, it was on our side. We didn’t have many safety cars and our car was really good over three stints with one tyre set.
"I’m happy that Ryan [Hardwick] and Riccardo [Pera] will celebrate our first victory in Le Mans and their first victory, and I think it’s going to be a nice party.
"Every win feels a bit different, every year Le Mans is special, so I’m always happy to come back, but to do it back from back after last year is special."
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