MEDIA INFORMATION July 24, 2016

2016 FIA World Endurance Championship (FIA WEC) Round 4: 6 Hours of Nürburgring

Porsche and Audi put on thrilling show on home soil as claims one-two finish in LM GTE Pro

The 2016 6 Hours of Nürburgring lived up every bit to the pre-start promise in front of a crowd of 58,000 over the weekend. Spectators were first entertained on Saturday by the qualifying shootout which took place initially in wet, then in drying conditions which saw Michelin’s partners fit rain tyres to begin with before switching to slicks. The LM P1 grid saw the two Audi Sport cars outpace their Team and Gazoo Racing rivals.

Sunday’s dramatic race was marked by an early battle between Audi Sport and Porsche Team who traded first place several times. Porsche then stole the advantage with its two cars helped by some smart strategic thinking during a Full Course Yellow period. The situation remained that way until (N°2 ), while leading, collided with the N°88 Porsche 911 RSR (Abu Dhabi-Proton Racing) during a passing attempt on Lap 137. The incident sparked a series of negative consequences for Porsche Team…

Neel Jani, now in the N°2 prototype, was called in for a drive-through penalty and re-joined in third place, just behind the N°8 Audi R18 of Loïc Duval. After trying to get past the Frenchman several times, he found himself under pressure from André Lotterer who had his eye on third place. Their intense battle saw the two cars collide and the N°7 Audi R18 took advantage of the situation to gain a footing on the podium which it defended to the finish.

The final top three overall at the Nürburgring were the N°1 Porsche 919 Hybrid (Bernhard/Webber/Hartley), the N°8 Audi R18 (Di Grassi/Duval/Jarvis) and the N°7 Audi R18 (Fässler/Lotterer).

“Well done and a big ‘thank you’ to Porsche and Audi for providing us with such an exciting race,” says Michelin Motorsport Director Pascal Couasnon. “We were treated to perfect weather for the race which suited the MICHELIN Soft Hot Weather and Hot Weather Plus options and allowed our partners to push all the way to the flag.”

The French firm bagged a podium finish in LM P2, too, thanks to the N°31 Ligier JS P2-Nissan (Dalziel/Derani/Cumming) of Extreme Speed Motorsports which was competing on its rubber for the first time this season. “We are back in LM P2 in FIA WEC, humble but determined to do our very best,” added Pascal Couasnon. “This association will allow us to target some strong results this year while preparing for 2017.”

Alessandro Barlozzi – [email protected] – Phone: +33.6.42.23.55.93

A one-two for Ferrari/AF Corse in LM GTE Pro

“Our rivals were handed a BoP [Balance of Performance] for this race which meant we were forced to push hard from lights-out to the chequered flag. Today’s win confirms the competitiveness and reliability of the GTE and also the performance and consistency of Michelin’s tyres,” declared after the race.

The Italian and his team-mate took the class lead on Lap 96, almost three- and-a-half hours into the race, thanks to a virile passing manoeuvre.

The N°51 Ferrari 488 GTE was joined on the podium by the second-placed N°71 car of Rigon/Bird who staged a thrilling fightback after a poor qualifying result due to lapping on wet weather tyres when the track was dry.

Michelin’s tyres for the 2016 6 Hours of Nürburgring

LM P1 (size: 31/71-18)

Dry conditions:

- SOFT Hot Weather + - SOFT Hot Weather

Damp/drying conditions:

- MICHELIN Hybrid

The slick MICHELIN Hybrid tyre was first used instead of the traditional intermediate in 2012. Its revolutionary compound allows it to be used in damp and/or drying conditions despite not having a tread pattern.

Rain:

- WET - Full WET

The difference between Wet and Full Wet tyres concerns their respective compounds. They feature the same tread pattern.

Number of tyres authorised for the 6 Hours of Nürburgring: 6 sets for the race

Alessandro Barlozzi – [email protected] – Phone: +33.6.42.23.55.93

LM P2 (size: 30/65-18 front / 31/71-18 rear)

Dry weather:

- MEDIUM Plus - MEDIUM

Wet conditions:

- WET - Full WET

Number of tyres authorised for the 6 Hours of Nürburgring: 4 sets for the race

LM GTE Pro and Am (size: 30/68-18 front / 31/71-18 rear)

Dry weather:

- MEDIUM - MEDIUM Cold Weather

Wet conditions:

- WET - Full WET

Number of tyres authorised for the 6 Hours of Nürburgring: 6 sets for the race

Total number of tyres available for Michelin’s 18 partners: 1,800

Alessandro Barlozzi – [email protected] – Phone: +33.6.42.23.55.93