Quotes from the Audi Press Conference
Frank Biela (#1): “All of us proved already that we are able to win. We will try to do this again. But also I hope that we will have a race without accidents and we will deliver a good show to the spectators.”
Tom Kristensen (#1): “It would have been nice to have had pole. At Le Mans this means a lot of prestige for two days, but then it is all over. The race is more important.“
Emanuele Pirro (#1): “You have a lot of responsibility in this race. You have to make sure that you are not the one who makes a mistake and is responsible for losing the race.”
Laurent Aiello (#2): “Of course I would have liked to do the DTM race on the Sachsenring as well but Le Mans is very important and difficult. There is no way to do Le Mans and a DTM race on the same weekend.“
Rinaldo Capello (#2): “The ‘feeling’ inside the car before the Mulsanne corner is much better than last year. On that point you have always to be careful if you follow another car.“
Christian Pescatori (#2): “It is fantastic for me to drive for Audi at Le Mans. I was used to small private teams. It is a great experience to work with such a good team. I hope I can do more races with Audi.”
Johnny Herbert (#3): “Le Mans is always a very special and a very tough race. I hope our pace in the race will be good enough. But it is all about the mistakes we should not make and our pit stop strategy.”
Ralf Kelleners (#3): “I am not thinking about the victory. I try to do my job as well as possible and to finish the race in the best possible way.”
Didier Theys (#3): “On my first lap I immediately realised the big difference to the first R8 I drove in 1999. Audi has done a fantastic job in developing this car.”
Tom Coronel (#4): “Once in your life you have bad luck and I had it last year when I lost a wheel and was disqualified. So I hope this will not happen again this year.“
Stefan Johansson (#4): “I don´t think there is any great secret regarding the Audi. It’s just an incredibly well built car.”
Patrick Lemarie (#4): “It is a good opportunity for me to be in a fantastic car like this. I am really enjoying it. I hope I am smart enough to stay on the track.”
Reinhold Joest (Team Director Audi Sport Team Joest): “I hope that we will have a race free of accidents. I am looking forward to finish the race, and of course I hope we will be in front at the end.”
Thierry Boutsen (Project Manager Champion Racing): “The team has never been to Le Mans. I try to help them with my experience as much as possible to be successful.“
Mike Earle (Team Director Johansson Motorsports): “We don´t know exactly what is on the factory Audis and they don´t know exactly what is on our R8. But we believe the cars are very similar.“
Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich (Head of Audi Sport): “It is my aim not to disappoint Michele. He expects us to win and we are working hard for it.”