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24 Hours of Le Mans: Tom Kristensen says Ferrari drivers 'proved they were winners' after 'fantastic' triumph
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Updated 16/06/2024 at 18:04 GMT+1
Ferrari's No. 50 team won the manufacturer's second consecutive 24 Hours of Le Mans race in their 499P car, staffed by a trio of Nicklas Nielsen, Antonio Fuoco and Miguel Molina. Le Mans legend Tom Kristensen was full of praise for the team, and celebrated a tussle between Ferrari, Porsche, Toyota and Cadillac, with the latter described as the "dark horse" of the grid.
'Deserved winners' - Kristensen hails Ferrari for winning 'fantastic race'
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Tom Kristensen said Ferrari’s winning No. 50 team of Nicklas Nielsen, Antonio Fuoco and Miguel Molina "proved they were winners" after a “fantastic” 24 Hours of Le Mans victory.
The Ferrari 499P team made it two consecutive victories at Le Mans for the Italian manufacturer, after last year’s title was won by the No. 51 car of Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado and Antonio Giovinazzi.
This year, No. 51 managed third place, with second spot going to the No. 7 Toyota GR010 HYBRID, crewed by Nyck de Vries, Kamui Kobayashi and Jose Maria Lopez.
Kristensen, who holds a record nine 24 Hours of Le Mans titles, six won consecutively, praised his Danish compatriot Nielsen for his achievement, and noted they overcame the disappointment of failing to win last year.
He told Eurosport: “It was a fantastic race. It was open right to the very end and it was the last key, maybe the key to that door, because they were able to extend that to make the pit window for the No. 50 Ferrari to have enough fuel to do what Nicklas Nielsen needed.
“On behalf of my country, I’m extremely proud of the way Nicklas drove, and of course his team-mates. They were a little unlucky last year, but of course it’s always the winners who are the deserved winners.
"They proved they were winners this year, it was open, there were so many good fights with Porsche, with Toyota. The problem with the power of the No, 7 car, it could have been others, but a fantastic race, simply fantastic.
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Watch Ferrari team passionately sing Italian national anthem on podium after Le Mans win
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“They’re a little bit calm now, but we saw them completely wild at the podium. Deserved victory, we talk about the three big ones: Ferrari, Porsche and Toyota, and the dark horse Cadillac, they made everyone work hard for the money.”
Alex Brundle, the 2016 European Le Mans Series champion, added: “Now [Ferrari have] managed to achieve it back-to-back. Last year they were clearly the fastest car.
“This year it was a brilliantly delivered race from Ferrari. Nicklas delivered at the end. They made every single call right and then at the end, managing the fuel through to the end of the race was so technically impressive.
“To take the car in those conditions, to make an estimate of how far it can go, to deliver it with two percent of energy at the line - such an impressive victory.”
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