| | Associated Press
Results
LE MANS, France -- Audi swept to its first victory in the Le Mans 24-Hour race Sunday, taking the top three places after leading almost from beginning to end.
This was the first 1-2-3 finish in the endurance classic since
Peugeot's victory in 1993.
|  | | Emanuele Pirro celebrates as he crosses the finish line in his team's Audi to win the 68th Le Mans 24 hour race in western France. |
On a second day of searing heat, Italy's Emmanuele Pirro
completed the victory, sharing the 368-lap drive with Germany's
Frank Biela and Denmark's Tom Kristensen.
"I would enjoy to be here next year," Audi team director
Reinhold Joest said.
Audi was competing in only its second Le Mans race, following a
third-place finish last year. It benefited from the absences of
last year's winner, BMW, as well as Mercedes and Toyota.
The same Audi team won the 12 Hours of Sebring sports car race
in Florida in March.
One lap back was the team of France's Laurent Aiello, Britain's
Allan McNish and Monaco's Stephane Ortelli.
Two laps further back came Italy's Michele Alboreto and Rinaldo
Capello and Germany's Christian Abt in the third Audi.
Audis led for all but a few laps in Saturday's opening two
hours.
The three cars cruised to the checkered flag in formation, but
the drivers said they were not under team orders in the final hours
of the race.
"We all relied on the good sense of each other," Pirro said.
"There were no real team orders."
The fourth-place team, the Courage of Sebastien Bourdais,
Olivier Grouillard and Emmanuel Clerico, finished 24 laps behind
Pirro.
Mario Andretti's attempt to win Le Mans in his eighth attempt
was thwarted when his Panoz had overnight mechanical problems. The
Indy-car and Formula One racer, sharing driving duties with David
Brabham and Jan Magnussen, finished 16th.
Cadillac's return to Le Mans after a 50-year absence was marred
by the retirement of Christophe Tinseau's car within four laps in a
fire caused by a suspected oil leak.
Another Cadillac with a French crew ran smoothly in fourth
behind the Audis for much of Sunday before its rear suspension
broke. The car lost an hour in the pits and limped home in 20th
place. Two other Cadillacs finished 22nd and 23rd.
Audi is the fourth German constructor to win Le Mans, following
Porsche, Mercedes and BMW.
McNish set the fastest lap of the race -- 3 minutes, 37.359. He
drew within two minutes of the leaders in the closing phases.
"It was pretty apparent that I wasn't going to make up two
minutes," he said.
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