Audi Hoping for 12th Le Mans Victory

We are just five weeks away from the 90th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and if the rest of the WEC season has been any indication, AudiAudiGermany, 1909 > present83 models
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will be aiming to dominate the race. Since 1999, Audi has won the race 11 times and now ranks in second place in overall victories behind Porsche with 16 wins. 

Audi's dominance of endurance racing has been growing since the turn of the century. It has scored 27 podium places since 1999 and took all three steps on the podium five times. It also raced the longest Le Mans race ever in 2010 by completing 5,410.713km, which beat the previous record by 75.4km.

Fuel economy has been of growing importance at Le Mans over the past decade and will have prominent importance next year when the series is based on a given amount of fuel depending on engine power. Audi says that its cars have improved their fuel economy by over 10% since 2000 but average speeds are up from 208.6km/h to 225.2km/h.

“No other automobile manufacturer has a track record of Le Mans technology and sporting successes that has been compressed into as short a time span as Audi has. Le Mans has been pointing the way to the future for a long time. The regulations promote innovations and the most efficient solutions like no other racing series does," said Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich, Head of Audi Motorsport.

Audi has three cars ready for the 24 Hours of Le Mans this year, and this might be the R18sAudi R18 e-tron quattroGermany, 2012 > present8 photos
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best chance to take another 1-2-3 victory. ToyotaToyota TS030 HYBRIDJapan, 2012 > present5 photos
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has struggled so far this season, and PorschePorscheGermany, 1931 > present43 models
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is entering the series next year.