The #93 PEUGEOT 9X8 sets the best time of the FP3
Team Peugeot TotalEnergies qualified 4th and 7th for the 6 Hours of Monza
The two PEUGEOT 9X8 will be back on track tomorrow at 12h30 for 6 hours of racing
Saturday means qualifying day for Team Peugeot TotalEnergies. This weekend at Monza, 5th round of the FIA World Endurance Championship, started with three free practices. Thanks to those sessions the team was able to try several set-ups and ended on top of the last free practice with a lap in 1:35.878 by Jean-Eric Vergne onboard the #93 PEUGEOT 9X8.
After a crowded autograph session, the tifosis took their seats in the grandstands for the qualifying of the 6 Hours of Monza. Jean-Eric Vergne was at the wheel of the #93 PEUGEOT 9X8 and Gustavo Menezes in the #94 for 15 minutes of track action.
This session showed the performance improvements of the PEUGEOT 9X8 on the track it made its debut last season. In the end of the qualifying, the first 7 cars are only separated by 5 tenths and Jean-Eric Vergne (PEUGEOT #93) qualified on 4th position with a lap in 1:35.662, only 3 tenths aways from the pole position, followed by Gustavo Menezes in the #94 with a lap in 1:35.780.
The team is satisfied with this session and is looking forward to the race tomorrow where the goal will be to get as close as possible to the podium. The start of the 6 Hours of Monza will be given at 12h30 (local time) and you can follow the Team Peugeot TotalEnergies live on our social media channels and on the FIA WEC platforms.
WHAT THEY SAID
Jean-Marc Finot – Stellantis Motorsport Senior VP: “During these first days at Monza we saw that the 9X8 is getting closer to the front runners with a good rhythm during the free practices. Our qualifying result is the best we had since the start of the season, and we are very close to the top teams. With the 7 first cars separated by only 5 tenths the race tomorrow will be very competitive. We will have to be in the rhythm but also to take into consideration all the external elements and especially the heat. The aim for the team will be to get as close as possible to the podium and hopefully we will stand on it sooner rather than later.”
Jean-Eric Vergne – #93 PEUGEOT 9X8: “I’m very happy with my session, P4 is our best result so far. The car felt good, three tenths away from the Toyota so I think that we can be quite happy with it. We just have to keep working hard and go step by step. Tomorrow, it will be important to have a clean race with no issues and we will see if a podium is possible. We never know what could happen but if we have a good race, a top 5 will be good.”
Gustavo Menezes – #94 PEUGEOT 9X8: “We are happy to be in the mix, to see the first seven cars in half a second in always nice. I think that I could have extracted a little bit more out of the car. I struggled a little bit with the balance on the push
