His first participation: "It was in 2011 with a Ferrari 458 Italia fielded by Luxury Racing in LMGTE Pro (with Stéphane Ortelli and Jaime Melo, Ed.). I remember I was tired when I got there at the beginning of the week of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the goings-on and excitement didn't help me out. These days, with experience, I manage things different. During the night, I was doing battle with Gianmaria Bruni (AF Corse's #51 Ferrari, Ed.), I had just gotten second position back and was on my way to victory. Unfortunately, we had some technical problems (retirement at 6:25 a.m., engine, Ed.). I am pretty proud of that first participation because, as a private team, we were up against AF Corse, Team Felbermayr Proton, BMW Motorsport and Corvette Racing." 

His best memory: "I would say the two pole positions I secured, even though it doesn't mean a win, it's always a special moment. Also, I earned them with two different cars (Ferrari 458 Italia in 2012 and Aston Martin Vantage in 2013, Ed.). Now, I'd like to get one with the Porsche 911 RSR. In terms of results, I'd say 2014, my first year with Porsche, when we finished third. We didn't quite have the performance level but Richard Lietz, Marco Holzer and I stuck it out."

His worst memory: "2015 and 2016. I cannot imagine entering a race without the necessary performance level. Lack of reliability you can work with and do something about, but not to have performance level is unacceptable. Those two years, we were nowhere, not competitive."

His favorite teammate: "Richard Lietz! He's extremely fast, has a good approach to motorsport and knows how to manage a race. He hardly ever makes any mistakes. I will join up with him once again at the 24 Hours of Le Mans this year and I'm thrilled (and Gianmaria Bruni, Ed.)."   

His favorite car: "The GTE class have changed a great deal. In 2011, my lap time was 3:56 and now it's 3:50. The new Porsche 911 RSR is a great machine, sometimes even a little too sharp."

His 2017 24 Hours of Le Mans: "We knew we'd be stong at certain moments of the race, especially at night when it's cooler. The car was running very well. But it was quite hot during that edition and it made things difficult for us, we were further back in the pack. Still, we could have won, but during my next-to-last stint, I had a slow flat shortly after leaving the pit. So we had to do another pit stop. Third place was within sight, trailing by 20 seconds, but to make up that time in just an hour, with the level of competition in LMGTE Pro, was impossible!"

His last big race (the win at the 12 Hours of Sebring): "It's one of my greatest victories. Sebring is my favorite race in the U.S. and we knew we had a chance if we, as a team, didn't make any mistakes. We weren't the fastest in terms of pure speed. BMW, Ford and Ferrari had that honor all weekend while we were the slowest with Corvette. We were aware that any error would cost us the win. All three of us (with Patrick Pilet and Nick Tandy, Ed.) took risks on the track but it paid off. It was a difficult race, but that just makes the victory even more special."

The 2018 24 Hours of Le Mans: "Like every year, I can't wait to get started because it's long, drawn out work. As soon as the race is finished on Sunday at 3:00 p.m., we start preparing for the next edition. We want to win. Except for 2013 (#92 Porsche 911 RSR driven by Marc Lieb, Richard Lietz and Romain Dumas, Ed.), Porsche hasn't dominated the 24 Hours of Le Mans in LMGTE Pro for several years!" 

PHOTOS (Copyright - MPS Agency/Pascal Saivet): #59 Ferrari 458 Italia at Le Mans in 2012 (photo 1), #99 Aston Martin Vantage at Le Mans in 2013 (photo 2), the Porsche 911 RSR at the 2018 12 Hours of Sebring (photo 3).