McNish delighted with commanding win

Date published : 11 Apr 2010 - 22:25:07

Allan McNish scored a superb victory for Audi with their latest diesel car in the opening round of the Le Mans Series in France.

Starting from the front row of the 40-car grid in the Audi R15 TDi 'Plus' at the Paul Ricard circuit, McNish stormed into the lead on the third lap and was never headed.

The 40-year-old Scotsman, along with co-driver Dindo Capello, eventually finished five laps and some 18 miles clear of their nearest rivals at the end of the eight-hour race.

It was the perfect start to the team's preparations ahead of the Le Mans 24 Hours in June, albeit without nearest rivals Peugeot in attendance.

McNish said: "I'm highly delighted, if somewhat surprised considering the newness of the Audi.

"But with the factory Peugeots not being here we'll not know exactly how competitive we really are until next month's race at Spa."

The two marques will go head to head in a 1,000km race at Spa in the second round of the LMS, a race being viewed as a dress rehearsal for Le Mans.

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