Audi crew ready to go for hat-trick

The German manufacturer is on course to take its own hat-trick of victories at the enduro classic. Alongside the winning crew from the past two years, Johnny Herbert, Rinaldo Capello and Christian Pescatori willing be aiming to deliver, along with an all-German speaking crew in a third R8 and a Japanese-run version from Team Goh.

Biela said: "Winning the Le Mans 24 Hours three times in a row would be a dream come true. I would rather not talk or think about it - however, it crosses my mind from time to time. Probably, I will never get a chance like this again.

"In the last two years, our performance was good and we also had a bit of luck, which is necessary. Maybe that will stick for a third time."

Audi heads into the race as the strong favourite once again. Biela added: "For me, as an Audi man, the important thing is that an Audi wins. It's almost incidental which one."

Kristensen said: "I have won Le Mans twice in a row, but I don't want to think about that at all. Our goal is doing a good job. Of course, expectations are high, both from the team and myself."

Pirro added the no one from Audi is taking anything for granted. "All preparations have been made to achieve a good result," he said. "But the fact that it worked so well for us in the past two years doesn't mean that this will be the case again this year."