Q&A with Tom Kristensen - 24h of Le Mans 2018

"Teamwork is a key factor across speed and endurance racing"

By

16 June 2018 - 16:41
Q&A with Tom Kristensen - 24h (...)

In your role as a Rolex Testimonee, do you see yourself as a spokesperson for Le Mans and for motor sport in general?

I see myself as a someone who was brought up with a passion for motor sport – and of course I have a responsibility to the sport that I love. I see myself as an ambassador of motor sport, something that I do with great pleasure – it’s never something that I have to do, it’s something that I enjoy doing. I’m very fortunate to be a Rolex Testimonee and represent the brand at some of the finest events around the world.

Do you see many similarities between WEC and F1?

They both have very important places within the motor sport calendar – Le Mans is the jewel in the crown of endurance racing and is considered by many to be the greatest race in the world, while Formula 1 demonstrates an intriguing balance between speed, business and technology in sport.

Teamwork is a key factor across speed and endurance racing. There is a huge amount of teamwork required by the mechanics, engineers and each member of the team, which is echoed in Rolex’s watchmaking facility. Within the worlds of Rolex and motor sport, good teamwork equates to success on the wrist and track.

Ultimately in Formula 1 or endurance racing you need to be performing at the very highest level to triumph and win.

Do you find that your experience in Formula 3000 was valuable for racing at Le Mans? What would you say were the most significant differences with your driving style between single seater cars and Le Mans prototypes?

It’s all about versatility – driving different kind of cars is very important. I can’t say that there is one single type of experience that is more valuable than another – they all count. I have driven all sorts of cars, in different countries, at many race tracks and in diverse situations – it is a real privilege for me to have done that. All of those experiences, and the different mind sets, helped me throughout my career. They gave me the opportunity to step back and reflect or encourage me to be a bit more proactive. So in general everything – from Formula 1 testing, to sports cars, to single seaters – I think it all certainly helps.

Having had all of these experiences before my debut at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – which was relatively late, comparatively – probably helped manage the impact of that first race on me.

But it’s true that when something goes a little bit wrong at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – because of the nature of the track, the layout and the high speeds – things tend to go wrong on a bigger scale.

Do you think that the two Toyotas are absolutely invincible this year?

The Toyota team has the fastest cars and are no doubt the favourites. They can drive the longest and they take the shortest time to refuel. Saying that, I don’t envy them - it is very brave. We will see!

Alexandre Combralier for Nextgen-Auto.com

Search

Formula 1 news

Pics

Videos