07 Nov 2021Endurance, WEC, 8H of Bahrain

Quotes from the protagonists after the 8 Hours of Bahrain

Sakhir 07 November 2021

At the end of a very long day, with no lack of thrills and spills, we gathered the thoughts of the winning drivers from LMGTE Pro and LMGTE Am classes.

Antonello Coletta: “It has been a very intense and hard-fought season from all points of view, and this race sums it up. At the end of the day, we feel we deserved this achievement thanks to three wins out of six races. These results round off an extraordinary season, already one to remember after the triumphs in the Spa 24 Hours and Le Mans, as well as in the main endurance championships.”

James Calado: “The race was really spectacular, I imagine also for the fans, with very close battles between us and Porsche, alternating at the front of the race. It’s an incredible result for Ferrari and AF Corse, who did an extraordinary job, especially from the point of view of strategy, which was different from that of our rivals.”

Alessandro Pier Guidi: “In the build-up to the race it was difficult to imagine achieving a result like this, but when the race got underway we managed to stay close to the Porsches, managing the tyres well. This allowed us to have fresher tyres at the end and to be able to fight for the win. I know this is not the best way to finish a race, but after the collision, which was unintentional, I waited to let them overtake me but they decided to pit so it ended the way we’ve seen. We won after going through two very tough weekends, but we managed to do it and have shown how strong Ferrari is.”

Nicklas Nielsen: “A fantastic race that completes an extraordinary season and a great championship. I wish to say a big thank you to AF Corse and Ferrari, all the mechanics and engineers as well as my team-mates who have done an excellent job throughout the season. Winning the Le Mans 24 Hours and the title in the same year is special, as is winning the WEC title two years in a row.”

Francois Perrodo: “I am over the moon. This is my third title with AF Corse and Ferrari, and it’s a dream come true. The season has been incredible with the win at the Le Mans and the championship with four wins out of six races. We knew it would be tough, especially after last week where we had less power. The title chase should have been with Aston Martin, but unfortunately that was short-lived as they had an accident at the start of the race. However, we wanted to finish as well as possible and we were aiming for a podium finish, but we never thought we would win the race and it’s incredible to finish almost half a lap ahead of the nearest second-placed rival. Our track engineer Leo came up with a formidable strategy with the right calls at the right time. It's one of those races you dream about, so we’ll cherish the memory of every single moment because a new adventure in the LMP2 class will start soon.”

Alessio Rovera: “It has been a fantastic season and to win like this is incredible, the thrills are fantastic, difficult to express in words. Throughout the season we were competitive and fast. We are very pleased and ready to tackle a new goal next year.”

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