Ferrari driver Miguel Molina has described the #50 Ferrari AF Corse
car's victory as the "best day" of his motorsport career, following
a gruelling Le Mans 24 Hours. The #50 car started the 92nd running
of the race in fourth place and always remained within touching
distance of the lead cars. Rain caused chaos throughout the night
in particular, with a four-hour safety car period having taken
place in the early hours. In the closing stages, the #50 looked
like it was suddenly out of contention for the win after an
unscheduled pit-stop for the right door to be closed, having come
loose. A late spin for the #7 Toyota put the #50 back in the lead
though, with Nicklas Nielsen having managed his fuel and energy to
absolute perfection to secure Ferrari back-to-back Le Mans
victories. Nielsen was very emotional as he crossed the finish
line, whilst Molina was in tears whilst shouting in celebration
from the pit wall having completed his stints, as was team-mate
Antonio Fuoco. "This is the best day of my career," an incredibly
emotional Molina told Eurosport. "Thanks to everyone, thanks to all
the people that support me since I was young, to my family, to my
my parents, to my wife, my kinds to everyone. Thank you very much."
'We did it' Nielsen had an incredibly difficult job in the closing
stages to bring the car home, as he was forced to drive slower to
ensure that it made the finish without a further pit-stop. Had an
additional pit-stop been completed, then a podium would have likely
not even been claimed. It was also Nielsen who had to deal with
the chaos of pitting for the #50 car's door to be shut closed.
"Yeah actually the worst part for me was when they asked me to go
slower because that's when the mistakes happen, and then honestly
the last lap was so long," Nielsen told Eurosport . "They
[Ferrari] kept me updated on the gap, basically all the stint. So
it was just about managing the gap to the car in P2. "But then
obviously it was a very long stint and a very long last lap for me,
but we did it."
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