WEC WORLD. 6 HOURS OF IMOLA: NEW PEUGEOT 9X8 2024 READY FOR ITS RACE DEBUT

The two new Peugeot 9X8s, entered in the 6 Hours of Imola, the second round of the 2024 WEC World Endurance Championship, will start with a new version that is now equipped with this wing that has been sorely missed since its debut in Monza in July 2022.

After a year of development and some 8,000 kilometers of development, the Peugeot 9X8 2024 was launched on March 25… it was completely redesigned under its “Lion Heads” event, keeping its DNA with a more refined and aggressive line highlighted by its spoiler new back.

After a crazy event highlighted by an intense final in Qatar, Team Peugeot is determined to respond this weekend in Italy.

WEC 2022-The start of PEUGE T-9X8s IN WEC WORLD IN MONZA

Italy has a special taste of Peugeot in Endurance. It was in Monza that Team Peugeot began its journey in the FIA ​​WEC World Endurance Championship, in the summer of 2022.

A year later, it was on the same track that the Peugeot 9X8 won its first world podium. And it is at the event of the 6 Hours of Imola, where Peugeot Sport achieved a memorable double in 2011, that the Peugeot 9X8, the 2024 version, will debut in the race.

WORLD WEC-OLIVIER-JANSONNIE – Team PEUGEOT

Olivier Jansonnie, Technical Director of the Peugeot Sport program in the World WEC, points out:

“My feelings? First of all, it is a great honor to be able to carry out this double project for more than a year. Our design and operations teams have worked very hard to respect our sports program with the 2023 version and to develop the Peugeot 9X8 2024, whose specifications have evolved over the course of the year to incorporate all of this learning in terms of reliability, aerodynamic development and knowledge of the new tires that we rolled in mid-2023 on the “mule” car.

WEC 2024- PAUL-RICARD – TEST OF THE NEW PEUGEOT 9X8 – VERSION2024-Photos-ENDURANCE-24

The 2024 Peugeot 9X8 was revealed on March 25, after an endurance session at the Motorland Aragon circuit in Alcaniz, Spain. Since its first orbit in early December 2023, it has traveled nearly 8,000 km. Test benches also make it possible to increase tolerances to make certain technical components such as the power train more reliable.

Olivier Jansonnie, continues and admits:

“I think the car is ready for Imola. It’s a circuit that has never been used in the WEC Championship and that we don’t know very well. We didn’t try there, but that’s what happened in Qatar and we did well, so I’m not too worried. We worked on the simulation and we could see that Imola was a typical high power circuit. »

The Peugeot team certainly arrives in the unknown in Emilia-Romagna, but with a strong intention to bounce back after the defeat in Qatar where a bad combination of poorly controlled conditions unfortunately caused the N°93 to stop on track. Despite this, the Peugeot 9X8 proved its level of competitiveness, with second place in Losail.

“Unlike the Peugeot 9X8 2023 which we had time to improve and which we gave the quintessence, we still have a lot to learn from the Peugeot 9X8 2024. We know that it is more efficient, even if it is difficult to judge because we still do not know with what mass and with what power it will be driven. We are sure that we have reset our car in relation to the competition, but to what extent? The first race will tell us.

The 2024 Peugeot 9X8 will make its racing debut with its new “lion’s head” styling during this Italian round of the WEC. On this occasion, Peugeot designers created a similar version of the Peugeot 508 PSE.

Since the beginning of the WEC program, Peugeot has created an aesthetic link between the Hypercar and production cars. Other stylistic elements such as the signature of the lights, the presence of the logo on the front or the main color. (Selenium Gray in 2022, Okenite White in 2024)representing a clear link between the Hypercar and production Peugeots.

To maintain this close link between the 9X8 design and the production cars, Peugeot Design wanted to adapt this version of the 508 PSE. The latter will be presented, in the FanZone, during this first European Championship race in Imola, over the weekend, from April 19 to 21.

WORDS OF PILOTS

Mikkel Jensen, Peugeot 9X8 N°93

“I drove in Imola in Formula 3 before, then in ELMS in 2021. It’s a good track, “old school”, narrow with big obstacles to negotiate. With traffic, it will be a real challenge in Hypercar. We arrive at Imola with the car around Its development has been exciting in recent months, but we don’t know where we are because we still have a lot to learn from the PEUGEOT 9X8 in the race.

Paul di Resta, Peugeot 9X8 N°94

“I discovered this track recently. Imola is a narrow, bumpy circuit with high curbs, very different from Qatar. Between Hypercars and GT3s, it will be busy and intense on the track. The tire parameter will also be important, even more so if the conditions of air will be involved. It is never easy to get to the second round with a new car. We will learn and develop step by step with this PEUGEOT 9X8, which is our main goal.

Gilles GAIGNAULT

Photo : Thierry COULIBALY – ENDURANCE 24