Misfortune ends Blomqvist's chances at Le Mans

Whilst leading the race, Tom Blomqvist's 24 Hours of Le Mans took a cruel twist with a run into the gravel at Mulsanne, which was the suspected cause of brake failure at the next corner, leading to a heavy impact for Tom and the loss of three laps for the repairs for the damages. Despite the incident, Tom and his #23 United Autosports team battled back to finish 8th.

‍Starting the centenary edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans from 14th place, Tom made a solid start for the team as he made up several positions during the first hour and put the #23 firmly in contention for race victory.

After the first seven hours, the #23 lead the pack on three separate occasions, making fantastic progress up the field from their starting position of P14. However, with Tom in the car, a run into the gravel at Mulsanne, which is the suspected cause of brake failure at the next corner, lead to a heavy impact for Blomqvist.

Further investigation is required to determine the exact chain of events. However, after getting the all-clear at the medical centre, Blomqvist re-joined the fight, working night and day with Pierson and Jarvis to claim back lost positions. Progress was hampered further by a puncture but the team never gave up, working their way from P17 after the Mulsanne incident to P8 at the finish.

The next stop on the FIA WEC calendar is the 6 Hours of Monza for round five of the championship on 8-9th July.

‍“This race can be brutal and the last 24 hours have definitely been that for us! It’s a shame. Sometimes you need someone looking over you to make everything works round here. We were unfortunate to have a couple of ‘events’ in the race which ruined our chances of victory. I went wide at Mulsanne through the gravel on slicks but it was still wet there. When I got to Porsche I had no brakes and it was wet off line. The car spun and hit the barrier. The boys have worked so hard. Josh and Olly drove flawlessly so it’s a shame not to get rewarded with a result. We are all incredibly disappointed. We just have to crack on now and focus on the championship.”‍

‍- Tom Blomqvist