Second exit in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Peugeot and there were some steps forward, as well as some problems.
However, it cannot be said that the Fuji 6h has such positive implications for the 9X8 Hybrid in terms of results and performance, even if from the House of the Lion they are once again confident that they have taken the right path.
In Monza it had gone badly, in Japan it might not have gone well; however, it always depends on which point of view you look at the glass, to see it as half full or half empty.
If, as we said, the results were not there and the podium faded also due to lower performance than the rivals, on the other hand the number of problems dropped despite something going wrong.
On both # 93 and # 94 during the race there was a failure in the oil system and the leak forced the French cars to return to the pits, where the technicians fixed everything without wasting too much time and postponing both prototypes in action to then see the checkered flag.
# 93 Peugeot Totalenergies Peugeot 9X8: Paul Di Resta, Mikkel Jensen, Jean-Eric Vergne
Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images
“The race showed remarkable progress made by the team, mechanics and engineers after Monza – says Olivier Jansonnie, Peugeot Sport Technical Director – We have solved all the reliability problems we encountered at our first race and the two days of testing at Fuji. , together with the first two hours of the race, they went off without any problems “.
“We encountered a similar problem on both cars, it had never happened before. Even if it was not a serious thing, it made us lose a lot. We will also have to deal with the behavior and use of our tires. Every circuit we visit it’s an opportunity to keep learning “.
“If we continue to progress at this pace ahead of Bahrain, it will be extremely positive. During the first two stints of Sunday’s race, we showed good pace and the intention now is to focus on improving performance.”
# 93 Peugeot Totalenergies Peugeot 9X8: Paul Di Resta, Mikkel Jensen, Jean-Eric Vergne
Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images
The 9X8 # 93 of Paul Di Resta, Jean-Eric Vergne and Mikkel Jensen finished fourth overall and among the Hypercars, followed by the # 94 of James Rossiter, Loïc Duval and Gustavo Menezes, 20th overall.
“I did my first double stint on the 9X8, which I couldn’t do at Monza. Overall, the Fuji weekend was a good one. The two cars were affected by the same problem and we will have to work on performance,” says Jensen. .
Di Resta, also the protagonist of a spin, adds: “Both 9X8s have reached the finish line and this is an already better result than Monza. There are still areas in which we have to grow, but we are in the scrum of the top”.
# 94 Peugeot Totalenergies Peugeot 9X8: Loic Duval, Gustavo Menezes, James Rossiter
Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images
Rossiter with the # 94 was hoping for something more: “Without the problem I am convinced that we could get on the podium, or in any case fight to reach it. When the Alpine had caught up with me I could push again using the tires, the balance was perfect”.
“Apart from a moment when I went off the track to avoid a GT, I have to say that it was all very positive. A big thank you to all the members of the team, because the car has really evolved from Monza!”.
Duval comments: “It was a bit frustrating because I think we could have fought for the podium if we hadn’t had the problem that hit both cars and that was quickly resolved.”
“It would have been a close race. I was a little surprised by our pace compared to qualifying. We have closed the gap with our rivals and now we have a better understanding of our tire temperature window, although we still have a lot to learn.” .
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