D. Vanthoor: BMW wanted the race to be stopped.

Dries Vanthoor, the fastest driver in the qualifying session for the 2024 24 Hours of Le Mans, expressed his desire for a red flag before Kamui Kobayashi’s premature round ended the session. Vanthoor, representing the BMW Team WRT, stated that they were waiting for a red flag to improve their position on the grid. However, their wish did not come true. Kobayashi’s spin at the Porsche curves caused several cars and drivers to miss the opportunity to set final flying laps. Despite this setback, Vanthoor acknowledged that track conditions had improved and he was satisfied with his performance. His lap time of 3:24.465 was faster than the previous session leader, Sebastien Bourdais. However, Vanthoor emphasized that this was not the pole position for the race and that they still needed to perform well in the Hyperpole to secure it. Vincent Vosse, the Team WRT director, praised Vanthoor’s qualifying lap and highlighted the impressive time in the third sector. He also acknowledged that the red flag in the final minutes of the session helped their cause. However, Vosse recognized the team’s hard work and expressed his satisfaction with the provisional pole position.