22.06.09 Wolfgang Kaufmann at the 24 Hours of Le Mans

Wolfgang Kaufmann and Luca Moro shared an LMP Sportscar in the Formula Le Mans support race on the prestigious circuit in Western France. Before this, the professional sportscar driver from Molsberg had last raced at Le Mans in 2000 when he drove the Freisinger Motorsport Porsche 993 GT2.

24h Le Mans 2009

24h Le Mans 2009

This time around, the track was completely new to his team mate Luca Moro, and for Kaufmann himself it was the first race in a prototype at Le Mans: "Luca did most of the driving in free practice to familiarise himself with the circuit. Unfortunately there was rain throughout the only free practice session so setting good times and doing setup work was impossible during those 60 minutes."

Therefore the qualifying was also used to give the Italian additional track time, and then Kaufmann went out to set the qualifying time: "and it all went well; Luca kept improving, then I went out. On my second lap I was up to qualifying speed when the red flags were shown and the session was stopped."

In the race Wolfgang Kaufmann felt right at home in the Formula Le Mans prototype. Within eleven laps, he worked himself up to P3 from his 11th starting position. He then launched an attack on second place, but this car spun at the Dunlop chicane and his front splitter touched the right rear wheel of the Kaufmann/Moro car: "Everything was fine when I went through “Tertre Rouge” but on the way to the first chicane the rear tyre exploded without any warning. I was lucky not to hit anything."

Kaufmann and the team came to the decision not to try and bring the car back to the pits; the damage caused by the flailing tyre carcass would have been too significant.

"The race was magnificent up to the moment the tyre went. It is a shame especially for Luca who did not get to drive the car in front of 200 000 spectators."