AO’s Cameron Aiming to Repeat “Once-in-a-Lifetime” Win

Photo: Drew Gibson/AO Racing

Dane Cameron said he’as hoping AO by TF can repeat as LMP2 Pro-Am winners of the 24 Hours of Le Mans after what he described as a “once-in-a-lifetime” situation last year.

Cameron, Louis Deletraz and team owner PJ Hyett came out on top in the French endurance classic, in a race that kickstarted their runs to both the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and European Le Mans Series class championships.

For the five-time WeatherTech Championship champion, who only made his Le Mans debut in 2022 ahead of what ended up being a two-year stint with Porsche Penske Motorsport, the opportunity to return for his fourth Le Mans, on the back of last year’s class win, makes it even more special.

“It’s amazing to be back as a winner,” Cameron told Sportscar365. “It’s such a special race; it’s somewhere that was really hard for me just to even get that first race start at.

“You always feel so, so fortunate to be here, especially now that it’s not a part of what we’re doing full time in LMP2, it’s such a privilege to take part in this special race.

“For sure the goal is to try and win again. We had a really amazing, once-in-a-lifetime deal last year where we had no troubles and such good speed.

“PJ drove incredibly well. All the stars aligned for us last year.

“You know in the back of your mind that it could be difficult to have that sort of run again but we have a lot of the same pieces in place.”

The only major difference in the team, operated by TF Sport but featuring AO’s engineering squad, is the late addition of James Allen to the lineup, who replaces Deletraz after the Cadillac factory driver was called up to the No. 12 Hertz Team JOTA lineup in Hypercar.

“We feel that James is a really good addition, a twice winner of this race and always runs very well in a P2 car at Le Mans,” said Cameron.

“He’s been a good plug-and-play addition for us. We’ll try to have another trouble-free day and see what happens.

“I think we have everything that we need to win again. It’s just whether or not it’s all going to line up.”

Last year’s Le Mans class win was remarkably Hyett’s first-ever victory at the wheel of a race car.

“It plays a special place for him in his racing history,” said Cameron. “It formed a lot of his early time in the car and his partnership with Gunnar, a lot of that was based around this event and coming here.

“For him it’s a very special race in particular and to have his very first [sports car] win here is a little bit of a ridiculous thing.

“It kicked off a really good run and transformed him into ‘When’s it going to be my turn? How come everything always seems to go wrong? Why me?’ to going on this run in the summer and dominating.

“That turned into having a lot of pressure trying to close the deal and win the championships and that sort of thing, like we did.

“It was a bit of development for him, for sure, to go from not knowing what that feeling is to then knowing what the winning feeling is, to then feeling the pressure of maintaining the success.

“That was a lot for him to go through in one year, last year.

“I think for him, there’s a little bit weight off his shoulders knowing that he has achieved these things but also your mind can play some tricks when you come back thinking that you should win and this and that.

“It’s a really fine balance between, ‘Can I actually do this? Or do I expect to do it every single time?’ Which we know can be a challenge in motorsport.

“I think we’re all happy to be back here and re-live some of the memories from last year and hopefully do over it again.”

Cameron Applauds AO in New Corporate Branding Strategy

While AO’s original trio of characters, ‘Rexy’, ‘Roxy’ and ‘Spike’ were created in-house, ‘Rockie the Pegasus’ that forms the livery of the No. 99 Oreca 07 Gibson this weekend, came as a collaborative effort between the Chicago-based team and Mobil 1.

“It’s a little bit of a different deal,” said Cameron. “I think it’s cool to see the team showcase the branding abilities in a corporate setting, not just, ‘This is our idea, our own fun characters.’

“This is showcasing the ability to tailor-fit it to corporations is exciting. Hopefully this one with Mobil 1 can carry forward into the future.”

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John