Ask most motor sport fans about Allan McNish and they’re likely to enthuse about his extraordinary success in endurance cars, wonder out loud about his short-lived journey in F1, and hail his passionate insights as a racing commentator.
The Scot is rarely mentioned in the same breath as Jim Clark, Stirling Moss, James Hunt, Colin McRae and Sir Jackie Stewart.
At Le Mans, however, it’s a different story. Here, McNish is hailed as a legend by fans of the eponymous 24-hour race.
The 55-year-old is the holder of three Le Mans titles, 14 starts and place in the Hall of Fame. It’s in his blood. And the blood of the host nation.
‘It’s not just a motor sport fixture,’ says McNish. ‘It’s ingrained in French culture.
‘You’ve got the Tour de France. You’ve got the French Open tennis, and then you’ve got Le Mans.
Allan McNish celebrates after winning the Le Mans 24 hour race back in 2013
McNish is a legend of Le Mans, which remains one of the crown jewels of French sport
Allan McNish speaks with Mail Sport’s Heather Dewar at this year’s race
‘The three biggest sporting events are within a month of each other and that’s where it sits. So, from that point of view, it’s unfortunate that the date clashes with Formula One. But that’s the reality of 24 races as well in the modern world.’
Ah, Formula One. McNish raced for Toyota in 2002 for one season. Now, 23 years later, it appears to be drawing him back in. But more of that later. First, let’s talk Le Mans. And what makes it so challenging. Including, believe it or not, the scourge of midges which are usually more likely to be making a nuisance of themselves back home in McNish’s native land.
‘There’s actually one key element which is very different here to anywhere else – the evening time,’ says McNish whose triumphs came in 1998, 2008, and 2013. He also emerged virtually unscathed from a horror 120mph crash in 2011.
‘Think about when you’re driving at night, then think of driving that 40 miles an hour faster. Your eyes are processing things so much quicker in the dark. That’s what your body is having to train for.
‘The first time I raced here, I think it was 33 degrees outside. A stinking hot race. Inside, the car would be another 15 degrees. So it’s now 48 degrees inside the car. You’ve got a suit, you’ve got a helmet – the heat was a major factor.
‘When you sweat that volume of water, you lose your mental capacity very quickly. There are a lot more driver mistakes, fatigue, because of that.
‘There are certainly a few things that stand out about this race. When you have the sun dropping down, and it’s about 9.30 to 10.15, it’s kind of dropped to the point where it doesn’t affect you. But, in that period, there are a couple of things that happen.
‘One is when you go down to the second chicane, there’s a house on the right-hand side that’s got a wee lake out the front. So, at the lake, there’s millions of midges.
‘They come out, and boom! You get these midges all over your windscreen.
‘Then there’s the sun, when you come down into Indianapolis, because the trees are still quite low at that point, it’s right in your eyeline. By the time you get to 5.30am, the sun’s rising. It’s bloody stunning. When you come out of Tertre Rouge, it’s dark. Then suddenly, the sun starts coming up here, and it’s orange.
‘Three and a half minutes later, you come past, because that’s how long it takes to get round the lake, and it’s a little bit more, and more. And it feels like a sunflower just waking up. It’s absolutely stunning.’
One race ultimately stands out for McNish; his first win, in 1998
‘I arrived home to an answer phone message from Sir Jackie Stewart, who had been so pivotal in pushing me forward in my early career.
‘He’d instantly called me and said: “Bloody hell, you’ve won Le Mans!” I knew then that this victory would go on to be significant.’
McNish is now heavily involved with Audi’s entry into F1 next year, having seen significant success with the manufacturer at Le Mans, and having run Audi Group motor sport and Formula E racing team.
‘I’ve been involved since the beginning in the F1 project which comes live next year, hence the reason I’ll go to probably half of the F1 races this year.’
When I meet McNish at the track in France, the air is abuzz with the news McLaren are also to join, in 2027.
‘It proves the success of Le Mans and what they’ve done with the regulations here, their vision for the future.
‘Since the late 90s, for a number of manufacturers, this is the best it’s ever been. It’s got real depth and it’s exactly what everybody wants. It’s a very good balance between traditional sport and entertainment if you want to call it that.
‘It’s a festival. And, with McLaren coming in, it’s just proof of the success of the place. Because, you know, does Le Mans need McLaren? Does it need Ferrari? It doesn’t really need any of them.
McNish says that driving at night poses unique challenges to the contenders at Le Mans
‘You’ve got to remember that driving this race is just something quite special.
‘Nicol Hulkenburg raced here and won. It accelerated his career in F1 and he still wants to do it again. He talks so fondly about it.
‘Jacques Villeneuve was another one. David Coulthard did it in the Jag with Tom Kristensen in 1993.’
So what about the current crop of talented young drivers? Can McNish see the likes of McLaren’s Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri ever taking part?
‘I think Lando will,’ insists McNish. ‘Oscar Piastri? I think he’s got his eyes on another prize at the moment. I could see probably some of the other ones that are maybe at a different point in their careers, coming through.’
McNish is in buoyant mood, having just met a couple of legends in Roger Federer and Sir Chris Hoy. He adores his fellow Scot for continuing to ‘push himself to the limit’, despite suffering from stage 4 cancer.
Hoy has been taking part in the Dark Horse Stars class of the Mustang Challenge, returning to the track for the first time in nine years.
‘He came here to Le Mans quite a few years ago,’ says McNish. ‘That was like a full Mount Everest, and he was taking it head on. The thing I really respect is that he’s got his challenges and he goes for it, he doesn’t back off. That’s not his personality.
‘The other side of his personality, of course, is that he is a lovely, lovely person – but there’s a ruthlessness in there, in the person that sits down opposite you. He is obviously now in this situation, but like he has done with everything else, he has just gone straight at it. He will fight it all the way. That’s just what he knows. It’s all he knows.’
It’s easy to see why Hoy might feel at home within the fast-paced world of motorsport. Risk – and the thrill of the chase – are all an important part of the dynamic. As is the sense of history.
‘It’s steeped in history, where you’ve got all of these slightly archaic things that go on,’ says McNish. ‘You know, the grandstand there has been the grandstand since the 1950s, the parade through the town. The cars, the race, it pushes you to the limits of everything.
‘If you take Mario Andretti, for example, Mario won the Indy 500, he won the F1 World Championship. He never won here. So I’ve done something that he’s never done, which is pretty cool.
‘There are a lot of people where the sand just slipped through the fingers with this one because it’s like 17 Grands Prix back-to-back, hence the reason it’s just got this sort of mythical status about it. There are corners that are still exactly 100 per cent the same as they were many years ago.’
The sense of history continues as McNish prepares for another night of Le Mans.
‘It’s just special,’ he smiles. ‘It’s something you don’t appreciate until you come here.’
