Self-Critical Jakobsen “Will Definitely Learn From” Spa Crash

Malthe Jakobsen says he “will definitely learn from” his crash with Matteo Cressoni’s Mercedes-AMG that put the Spa FIA World Endurance Championship polesitter’s Peugeot 9X8 out of the race, despite acknowledging that “I know I’m hard on myself.”

The Dane made history on Friday by bouncing back from a Raidillon spin to take Peugeot’s first Hypercar-era WEC pole but Loic Duval lost the lead to the No. 12 Hertz Team JOTA Cadillac V-Series.R of Will Stevens on the opening lap.

The No. 94 Peugeot gradually began to slip down the order as several crews adopted alternate strategies and was running third when Jakobsen took over in the fourth hour.

However, any hopes of a strong finish were denied when Cressoni spun the No. 79 Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo at Les Combes as he was being lapped by a Toyota.

Jakobsen was on cold tires on his out lap and was completely unsighted as the Mercedes-AMG looped across the middle of the track with the two cars making heavy contact that ended the Peugeot’s race.

“I just left the pits, did Eau Rouge, was warming my tires and, all of a sudden at Turn 5, the car had spun in front of me,” he explained.

“It was definitely not expected and it caught me out, unfortunately.

“In the end, it’s endurance racing and the most important thing for us drivers is to bring a car past the checkered flag at the end of the races.

“In a situation like this, it’s something we just have to be able to avoid.

“If [it happened] at Le Mans after only three or four hours, the race is over and this is not acceptable.

“Even though it’s hard, and I know I’m hard on myself, I will definitely learn from it and it’s something I will keep in mind for next time.”

Jakobsen had been relishing the chance to drive the Spa track in the race and when asked what was possible without the crash, he said “definitely a top-five.”

“A podium would’ve been more difficult but something good I’m sure,” he added.

Despite it being “frustrating” to watch the chaotic final stages of the race on TV, Jakobsen acknowledged there were still plenty of positives from the weekend and it was a useful learning experience.

“If you keep winning, you don’t learn anything,” he concluded. “Even though it’s tough and you have some big downsides, that’s where if you’re a good team and you stand together, you learn stuff and you improve for next time.”

Deletraz: Safety Car Timing “Screwed” Cadillac’s Race

Jakobsen’s Peugeot was not the only one of the early contenders to endure a frustrating conclusion to the race.

The No. 12 Cadillac had spent much of the first half of the contest leading, around the No. 20 BMW’s offset strategy, but ultimately finished ninth.

A combination of the timing of some of the late-race cautions and opting for the Soft tires in the fifth hour, along with a penalty for Louis Deletraz passing GT3 backmarkers off the track at Raidillon, contributed to its fall down the order.

“The timing was unfortunate, the VSC shuffled us to the back, it’s so hard to follow and you’re on Softs, which overheat,” WEC Hypercar debutant Deletraz told Sportscar365.

“It was unlucky, bad timing, however you want to call it but it screwed the race for sure.”

Even without the differing strategies, Deletraz said he was “not sure” whether the Cadillac would have still been in contention at the front in the closing stages.

“We were strong the first three hours but that’s always when people are hiding a bit and you could see the Alpine was all over us for those first three hours,” he added.

“As soon as they cleared us in the pit stop [in the fourth hour], they pulled away massive gaps and we were trying, trust me.

“I don’t know if we had the ultimate pace at the end but we operated well and I don’t think we would change anything today if we had to do it again unless you know the lottery and when the safety car comes.”

Deletraz nevertheless enjoyed the Hypercar with JOTA in the WEC for the first time, deputizing for Alex Lynn as he recovers from neck treatment.

“Cadillac and JOTA have been very strong, very organized and it’s an impressive team,” he said.

“For my first time with them in WEC, I really enjoyed working with them. The result wasn’t what we wanted but we learned a lot.”