Buemi ahead of 15th Le Mans 24 Hours start: "No victory erases 2016”

AS: Sebastien, you are about to start the Le Mans 24 Hours for the 15th time. Could you have imagined then in 2012 that you would still be here 14 years later?

Buemi: No, not really, because at that time I was Red Bull's reserve driver [in Formula 1], and Toyota was just arriving with a factory programme, but there wasn't a huge amount of support behind it. I was happy to be there, but I had no idea what was going to happen. Whatever you do, you always hope to be successful and that things will grow and improve. You hope for it, but objectively, no, I didn't think I'd still be here 14 years later.

Do you take stock of milestones like that? Does it feel like it's been that long?

Yes and no. I realise I've come here a lot of times, that's for sure! I love what I do, I'm a racer, I don't see it as a job, so I don't have the feeling that it's hard work. The weight of the years is different when you see it more as a passion than a profession.

I also feel that, within the team, there are still quite a few people who have been here since the beginning – fewer and fewer, admittedly, but still. And the level we've reached today isn't something you achieve in two years - it takes experience. I hope it'll pay off this year and that we'll take another step forward. But you can definitely feel that working together all these years helps you achieve results.

How do you stay motivated? We hear more and more about mental fatigue among athletes, and can imagine you also go through difficult phases over such a long period?

Yes, you go through difficult phases. Le Mans works both ways, it can be a killer. If Le Mans goes badly, it can hit you hard because you've put in all this work to get here and then you're not at the front. Sometimes that's tough to take. But when it goes well, it's incredible. The feeling when you win is extraordinary.

So I wouldn't say there's any wear and tear. One of the beautiful things about this race is that you have time to want it again. Usually, on Monday, when it hasn't gone well, you don't even want to hear about it anymore, but a year later you're back and happy to be here. There's no real burnout and the championship isn't Formula 1 with 25 races; it's a nine-race championship. Whatever happened in the previous race, I've never reached a point where I didn't want to go to the next one.

Between 2012 and 2026, what has changed the most here? What feels the most different to you?

The level has increased enormously, and everything has become much more professional. In the early years, everything was fairly approximate, whether it was race control, the ACO and FIA procedures, scrutineering, Slow Zones or Full Course Yellows.

Now absolutely everything is controlled. You have to be on the limit everywhere; you can't afford to leave anything on the table. It wasn't like that before. The guy who won did so because he was a bit faster and didn't make mistakes.

As an example, until last year we always carried a few tools in the car. This year we were a bit tight on weight and space, so we took them out. If we have to pull out a toolbox at the side of the track nowadays, we won't even score a point!

#8 Toyota Racing Toyota TR010 Hybrid: Sebastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley, Ryo Hirakawa

Photo by: Rainier Ehrhardt

Does the level you're describing make everything harder today, or simply different?

It's harder because of the Balance of Performance. Even if you've done a better job or you're better, it gets levelled out. Then there are the Safety Cars, which are very different. You can build up a nice gap and suddenly it's completely wiped away, whereas in the past it would have been preserved.

So it's harder because more people are brought to the same level, even if, on merit, they potentially shouldn't be at that level.

Looking back, is there a Le Mans edition you didn't win but that still makes you particularly proud?

Yes, 2014. We had that accident early on, we were last, 56th at the time, and then we kept coming back, coming back, coming back like crazy, and finished third. We had a great race, a really great race.

Nico [Lapierre] had that accident, there was rain, but I drove really well that day and it didn't necessarily show. Then, of course, there's 2016, the final lap. We had run a fantastic race, we'd taken the lead in the morning, we were strong, and then on the final lap...

Collectively, I'd say we did an incredible job. Anthony [Davidson], Kazuki [Nakajima] and I all drove well.

Have you managed to put 2016 behind you?

No. You know, winning Le Mans is so difficult. You don't get over something like that. You live with it, but it'll annoy you for the rest of your life, no matter how many times you've won since.

You did 99.5% of the job, and at some point you think: I did all that work, and then this stupid part fails with three minutes to go. There was only one lap left. No victory erases 2016. But that's the way it is. Whether you move on or not, it won't give you the win back.

After 14 starts at Le Mans, is there still a moment that gives you a special feeling?

The first time you come back into the paddock and see all the infrastructure, you think: right, it's starting.

There are qualifying sessions and practice, but above all there's Saturday morning. When you arrive, you know it's going to be a long day. Walking into the paddock that morning is a special moment.

And then, when you're on the starting grid during the national anthem, that's also a very powerful moment because you're almost at maximum stress and tension. I often start the race, and that's when you think: here we are, we've worked for this, it's about to begin.

When you've done it several times, you're more aware of all the work that's gone into it, so it creates more pressure and tension. But at the same time, you've experienced it more often, so you know better how to handle it, which takes a bit of that pressure away.

#8 Toyota Racing Toyota TR010 Hybrid: Sebastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley, Ryo Hirakawa

Photo by: Rainier Ehrhardt

Over the years, has your approach to risk and danger changed? Do you feel you've evolved in terms of taking risks, more or less?

Yes, maybe a little. I try to choose my moments more carefully and not get drawn into risks that aren't necessary. At the start of the race especially, you have to be extremely careful.

But more than that, what I've learned is how to manage my energy. Before, I was constantly in the garage, on the radio, watching the screens, talking to engineers, and by midnight I was exhausted, completely spent.

That's probably one area where I've learned something. I get out of the car, talk to the people I need to talk to, do the debrief, and after that I'm not the one driving, so there's nothing more I can do.

If I spend all my time glued to the TV, stressing, sweating and not resting, then when I get back in the car I'll be completely drained. I think I manage that better now.

Is there an aspect of the Le Mans 24 Hours that observers and fans tend to underestimate?

One thing that's become very difficult is all these Slow Zones. They have a huge impact on the race, and it's incredibly hard to avoid penalties. There are countdowns, the radio doesn't work everywhere, it's not easy. That's hugely underestimated, and I'd even say it's underestimated by race control itself.

On paper, I think it's a good system, but it adds enormous complexity. People underestimate how difficult it is for teams and engineers because, let's be honest, race control makes plenty of mistakes too. Messages are sent at the wrong time, the wrong information goes out...because they're human, and it's difficult to get everything right.

Today you have to optimise absolutely everything, and people underestimate just how difficult and draining that is.

To finish on a more fanciful note, if tomorrow you had the chance to race at Le Mans with no regulatory restrictions at all, what car would you choose?

I'd pick a permanent four-wheel-drive car, so basically something close to an LMP1, but without limits. It would be a light LMP1 with lots of downforce, no fuel-consumption restrictions, and perhaps a bit more power from the internal combustion engine.