Hankook Team Farnbacher upbeat about 24h-race at the Nurburgring

June 16, 2011

The Team took the starting line from a promising 5th position as the best placed private team in the LM-GTE-Pro-class after a successfully completed qualifying. This gives proof that the Hankook Farnbacher Ferrari was prepared to compete in Le Mans for a top position again after finishing second in 2010.

During 10 hours of training and qualifying both car and tyres performed equally well and allowed for Leh Keen (USA), Allan Simonsen (DK) und Dominik Farnbacher (GER) to focus on the set-up of the Ferrari and Hankook slicks. The set-up is especially difficult in Le Mans as the 13.6 km racing circuit is a regular highway for the most part and therefore doesn’t allow for comparison with other tracks.

Just as during the pre-test the Ferrari was running trouble-free over the course of six hours and Hankook’s tyres performed reliably as expected, enabling the Hankook Team Farnbacher to stay in close touch with the leading Corvette. “Our tyres showed the constantly high performance-level that they are known for during the first six hours of the race. Despite the difficult circumstances in Le Mans our tires guaranteed fast lap times and gave the drivers the necessary confidence at all times.” says Manfred Sandbichler, Director Motorsports Hankook Tire Europe. “We would like to thank the whole Team for their outstanding dedication and especially our drivers, who did a fantastic job in this highly demanding race until our unfortunate early drop out.”

The team were very unlucky after having faced two vehicle damages in a row, head of team Horst Farnbacher decided to retire the Ferrari: “With the considerable loss of time that we were facing due to the necessary repair work achieving a top placement was simply not possible any more. We would have risked serious engine damage had we continued, so dropping out at this point was the only reasonable thing to do although it was a very painful decision.” says Farnbacher. “We gave proof that we have the potential to compete for a podium placement in Le Mans – with this certainty we are looking at what’s ahead and focus on the next highlight of this season, the 24-hour-race at the German Nurburgring.”