Top-Six Le Mans Finish For Nielsen After Early Lost Wheel - Speedway Digest

Christina Nielsen and her Formula Racing teammates Johnny Laursen and Mikkel Mac took a sixth-place finish in the GTE Am class at the 2016 24 Hours of Le Mans in the No. 60 Ferrari 458.

The race started with some challenges for the all-Danish crew, as the Ferrari lost a wheel inside a first hour that saw heavy rain and more than 50 minutes under Safety Car conditions.

That left the team in comeback mode, almost at the very back of the 60-car field with 23 hours remaining; and fight they did!

With a blend of speed, consistency and near-total reliability for almost all the remainder of the race, the No. 60 rose up the order. The car was soon catching and passing rivals, while others had their own dramas and fell behind the Formula Racing effort.

Nielsen was back aboard the car in the late morning, taking the car through to midday with fast and consistent pace that grabbed an additional place – up to sixth in class by the time a broken damper intervened.

Nielsen nursed the car home to complete her required driving hours The crew then conducted a rapid repair, allowing the Ferrari to rejoin the race and retain Christina’s hard-fought sixth position in the 13-car class.

“I certainly got the full Le Mans experience,” Nielsen said. “It has certainly cemented a drive to come back here.

“I completely understand now why so many who have raced here talk of a finish being an achievement in itself, but like any professional racing driver, I’m hungry for a better result.

“I’ll be back!”

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Adam Sinclair

NHRA, IHRA, Motocross and other forms of motorsports Staff writer
About Me: Adam has been a race fan since the first time he went through the tunnel under the Daytona International Speedway almost 30 years ago. He has had the privilege of travelling to races all across the state of Florida (as well as one race in Ohio), watching nearly everything with a motor compete for fame and glory, as well as participating in various racing schools to get the feel of what racecar drivers go through every week. Adam has spent the last three years covering motorsports for Examiner.com., where he had the opportunity to see the racing world from behind the scenes as well as the grandstands. He invites everyone to follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus, and looks forward to sharing his enthusiasm for all things racing with the readers of SpeedwayDigest.com.Be sure to tune in for his weekly sports talk program, Thursday Night Thunder, where he discusses the latest in motorsports news with drivers, crew members, and fans. The show takes place every Thursday at 8:00 pm EST on the Speedway Digest Radio Network.