Jan Magnussen doesn’t need an introduction here at Le Mans. Over 20 starts in a row since his debut in 1999 with the Panoz LMP1, the sympathetic Dane has become a respected association with Corvette Racing for over a year with the R8 of Audi Team Goh, with four wins, five podiums and a place in history of endurance racing. The 48-year-old is still eager and certainly doesn’t lack pace. With his eldest son Kevin, whose seven-year career in Formula 1 started 120 Grand Prix with McLaren, Renault and Haas F1, the 48-year-old has an additional proud focus.
With a factory Peugeot Le Mans hypercar drive in his pocket, the 28-year-old sees a great future in sports cars and is currently promoting Chip Ganassi’s Cadillac DPi in the WeatherTech Sportscar Championship, a win in Detroit and consistently solid results that he currently has bring fourth in the current ranking. Aside from the excitement of a highly anticipated father-son pairing here, Kevin earns valuable miles on the major sports car courses.
Together with Anders Fjordbach in the # 49 High Class Racing Oreca 07 – Gibson for this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans in a large and highly competitive field of LMP2 machines, DSC won after a challenging couple of sessions:
How do you feel before your first Le Mans? Does that feel “new”?
Kevin: “It’s hard to wonder about Le Mans as a track because I’ve been down here so often and watched the race on TV so often that I felt really familiar with the track even before I drove it. However, there are always differences in real life and the story, especially my father who has been driving here for 22 years, still feels special.
“Sometimes when I’m driving it still feels like I’m watching an onboard video. It’s a legendary place; so much history, especially when you drive straight ahead. “
January: “… and we need straight-ahead speed!”
How do you intend to find this additional benefit?
Kevin: “Since the day of the test we have consistently been half a second behind our pace. The obvious decision is to change the engine, but there are so many other things that you need to check and select before actually doing that. “
January: “We’re not going to change engines in today’s first practice (FP3), but there is enough time between this and late FP4 to do it.”
Kevin: “You have to go through an exclusion process first. Plus, there are plenty of places here where you can really win or lose time. You have the long straights, so a bad exit can really mean a lot. There is always a lot of pressure; It’s not like in places where you have many corners and here and there something is missing that can be made up for.
“There is a big consequence here if you don’t get it right. Especially the Porsche Curves and the Ford Chicane, where you drive a lot over curbs. It’s a phenomenal route to drive.
“I’ve had some experience in Daytona so I’m not new to running at night, but it’s certainly different. Getting into the Porsche Curves is super gritty, but that’s another part of what makes this place so special. Le Mans is the actual night race of all races. “
Did a second car help you diagnose the problem?
January: “Last night we drove the two cars identically: rakes, ground clearance, springs, everything … and we were still down. We can’t really explain it, we’re missing 6 km / h on all straights. “
“That was the main thing we worked on. It’s frustrating because it would be so nice just to work on balance and do laps, but we spent a lot of time identifying the problem. It’ll be great if we change the engine to get that speed and focus elsewhere, but let’s see.
“Overall, however, I am really enjoying being back in the WEC with a prototype. This year the High Class Racing P2 car is, I have to say, very similar to driving the last prototype I drove, the Audi R8: very similar feelings, level of performance … downforce is wonderful. “
There is still a lot to be set up, how are you going to approach the remaining sessions and the race?
Kevin: “A 24-hour race is about looking ahead, sometimes way ahead. In a Formula 1 race, you have to take chances early to make the most of the field, but in long-distance races you always plan ahead. It’s the same throughout the race, you take it in stages.
“You can fight hard for the position six hours before the end and still think ahead because there is still so much to do and anything can happen. The big difference besides traffic management is assessing when you should really take a risk against other cars. I find that really interesting. In F1 you get into a rhythm and often stay there for the rest of the race, while here you are always mentally up to date and trying to assess when and where to overtake, whether there are alternative lines to explore in traffic can.
“And since the GT cars also have the same challenges, racing from an attacking or defending position is very different. It’s a lot more intense than an F1 race, so it’s pretty cool. “
And finally, Jan, how special does that feel, now you are actually here with Kevin as your passenger? We know you were hoping to race together here for a while …
January: “I have the season drive with High Class Racing, but there was an additional entry here and the place became available in the second car, so I switched and there was an opportunity for Kevin and me to put together what we wanted.” Years to do.
“We see the whole father-son thing professionally as racing drivers.
“When we’re in, we race and rely on each other to do the best possible job. In that respect, it’s no different for me than any other year. I’m still making it difficult for him! “
Images courtesy of High Class Racing
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