Lotterer: IDEC Accomplished “Main Task” Despite DNF

Andre Lotterer feels IDEC Sport accomplished its “main task” of helping Genesis Magma Racing prepare for its future LMDh project in this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans, despite the No. 18 LMP2 Oreca 07 Gibson dropping out of the race with a loose wheel.

Both IDEC cars, the Genesis-backed No. 18 Oreca 07 Gibson and the sister No. 28 car, retired separately when their right-rear wheels became detached on-track.

The No. 18 car retired shortly before 6 a.m. local time when Lotterer came to a stop on the Mulsanne straight, the car having run fourth at halfway, while the No. 28 ran third before getting stuck in the gravel at the Forest Esses with less than four hours left.

Lotterer, a three-time overall winner of the French endurance classic with Audi, joined Le Mans debutants and full-season IDEC European Le Mans Series drivers and Genesis trajectory program participants Jamie Chadwick and Mathys Jaubert in the No. 18 car.

The No. 18 IDEC effort, which leads the ELMS LMP2 standings after two class wins from the opening two races, serves as a pre-LMDh program test bed for Genesis team and crew members get up to speed with ACO-style competition ahead of the arrival of the Korean brand’s GMR-001 Hypercar entry on the WEC grid next year.

“Obviously, it would have been nice to finish,” Lotterer told Sportscar365. “But we were here to come and learn and gain experience for everything, so that was the main task.

“It’s good. We have people that are involved here in the team that will be in the Hypercar team. It’s all part of that big journey we’re embarking [on].

“Also, a shame for Jamie and Mathys, who didn’t get to finish their first Le Mans. We were doing well. We were in the mix for a potential podium. We were in P2, but with the pit stops, we were jumping up and down.

“The rhythm was getting better and better in the race, but it’s like that unfortunately, so we can’t change it.”

The Genesis-backed IDEC car emerged as a solid top-five contender after a troubled qualifying session, as Lotterer was eliminated in the first part of qualifying, leaving the No. 18 car down in 14th on the grid of the 17 LMP2 entries.

Lotterer admitted that he “overdrove” in qualifying but was always confident that the No. 18 car would prove more competitive in race trim, despite a straight line speed deficit in relation to the teams that fought for victory in class.

“In qualifying I didn’t find the way to use the tire correctly, so I think I overdrove it a little bit,” explained the German. “I expected more from the new tire and then I had poor exits, and then the performance didn’t come together, so that was obviously not ideal.

“I was not worried too much about the pace in general. I felt good in the car, so I knew in the race I would be fine. I was having fun in the car. I was able to push. I did a quadruple stint in the night and it felt good.

“Overall, we struggled a bit with straight-line speed. There are quite some differences between a few cars that are very good, and we are kind of middle of the road.

“I tried to optimize the driving a little bit around that, really focused on the exits. So we found a bit of lap time doing that.

“But the car felt good. Everything was solid. Jamie started to find a better rhythm and Mathys as well. I think it was actually only going to get better throughout the race.”

Lotterer also praised Chadwick and Jaubert for their performances in their first outing at the Circuit de la Sarthe, as the two youngsters eye a future spot on the Genesis program that will also encompass the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in 2027.

“They didn’t make any mistakes; that’s quite impressive for their first Le Mans,” said Lotterer. “It’s a different animal here. They build their rhythm step-by-step and you could see in the race there was a good progression with everything.

“I think it was a great way for them to gain experience at Le Mans and now they became a bit more complete with that experience under their belt.”

Jamie Klein contributed to this report