Historic win in Bahrain

A fairytale ending not only the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC), but to Audi’s impressive sports car racing program has seen a classic 1–2 finish for the brand in the 6 Hours of Bahrain.

Looking to make this final race one to remember, Audi was on fire all weekend, taking pole position and setting a new track record during practice. Every member of the Audi Sport team stepped up to a new level to see that the brand with the four rings went out in style, and the result couldn’t have been more impressive.

“There’s no sweeter way to end such a project than with a one-two victory. It was a very emotional race and the entire FIA WEC made it very difficult for us to quit,” said a proud Dr Wolfgang Ullrich, Audi’s Head of Motorsport.

“Today, you could tell that we’ve grown into a big family over many years. Now, we’re going to look ahead, giving our all in our new projects, just like we’ve come to be known. What happened in the WEC will not repeat itself. These 18 years of the sports car project have been a very important part of my professional life that I tremendously enjoyed. And I was fortunate enough to have always worked together with fantastic people.”

Not only did the Audi R18 e-tron quattros stamp their authority on practice and qualifying, but they led from start to finish in the six hour race. Lucas di Grassi, Loïc Duval and Oliver Jarvis always looked in control, leading the field in their #8 car and holding out all challengers. Di Grassi added to impressive performance in practice to record the fastest race lap – icing on an already sweet cake.

Their sister car, driven by Marcel Fässler, André Lotterer and Benoît Tréluyer, started the race in fourth position on the grid, but fought its way through the field to finish in second.

The result alone was reason to celebrate, but that it closed out an extraordinary period in world motorsport made it all the more special.

Since 1999, the Audi LMP race cars have won 107 of 187 races in America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. In the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) since 2012, Audi has built an enviable record. On 16 occasions, the brand’s sports cars were on pole position, winning 17 of 41 races with 23 fastest race laps. No other manufacturer has been more successful in even just one of these categories. In addition, Audi clinched two drivers’ and two manufacturers’ world championship titles. 

“Our intention had been to achieve the maximum today in Bahrain, and that’s exactly what we did,” said Stefan Dreyer, Head of LMP at Audi Sport. “A huge thank you goes to this top team, to Audi Sport Team Joest, to our drivers, and to all the people who made this possible behind the scenes in Neuburg, Neckarsulm and Ingolstadt. As emotional and touching this farewell may seem it is matched by the joy we feel about this top sporting performance with our one-two result and the two vice-championship titles. Sincere congratulations to everyone.”