Club
Dutchman Dane Arendsen took part in feeder series Road to Le Mans for the first time this year. The 18-year-old finished 46th in the first race and 34th in the second. It wasn’t easy, but the experience is a major step towards attaining his goal: the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
How did your Road to Le Mans races go?
"The first was a good run. We did a good stint. I went from P15 to P5 I think. Then there was a glitch during a pit stop and we dropped back to 8th. We ended up with a hefty penalty for a pit stop infringement.
Race 2 wasn’t as pleasant. There were several safety car periods and as it turned out we only did one lap. I didn’t really enjoy Race 2, but Race 1 was great.
How does it feel to race on the dream-filled Le Mans circuit?
"It’s incredible. I love it. It was so good to overtake so many cars and have a green flag almost all the time in Race 1. I loved racing on the circuit here!"
How did you get to be here?
"Last year I did half a season in Ultimate Cup and prior to that I did two years in the BMW M240i championship in the Netherlands. Before that, I just started on racing simulators."
So, where next?
"The 24 Hours of Le Mans, one day."
Road to Le Mans is the highlight of the 2025 Michelin Le Mans Cup. The championship is open to LMP3 and GT3 cars. Introduced by the ACO in 2016, Road to Le Mans paves the way to the world’s greatest endurance race, providing drivers and teams with precious experience as they work their way through the feeder series. The 58-car field completed two 55-minute races at Le Mans. Race 1 was on Thursday evening and Race 2 on Saturday morning, as crowds gathered for the start of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.