At 52, Martin Brundle is preparing for his 9th Le Mans 24 hours. The first with his son Alex. The winner of the 1990 24 hours speaks of past present and future.

Since hs first participation in 1987, Martin Brundle has experienced the best in winning (Jaguar, 1990), and the worst in a puncture after starting from pole position (Toyota, 1999). Eleven years after his last attempt (Bentley, 2001), he converted journalism, but he is about to put his helmet on again to join his son Alex, in the Zytek-Nissan #42 (Greaves Motorsport).

What is your best memory of Le Mans ?
Martin Brundle : "My best memory of the Le Mans 24 Hours is standing on the podium having won the race with Jaguar in 1990. Of course there were a lot of Jaguar fans present too and it was good to feel the emotion and support. They were cheering for hours before the end of the race, willing us to victory. 1990 was, I believe, the first year of the new chicanes on the Mulsanne. The old, fast, uninterrupted Mulsanne straight was both scary and exhilarating to drive. " 

Before that, you experienced the 'ligne droite des Hunaudières' (Mulsanne straight) without chicanes…
"At such continuously high speeds risks were inevitable but it was a feeling unique in motorsport. In my experience the Mulsanne has never really been somewhere to relax because there could be debris, damaged cars or marshalls on the track, weather conditions can quickly change, or something like a tyre blowout as Win Percy found in 1987."

Returning to the present, what are your thoughts on Alex's career ?
"Alex’s career is going very well. I am very confident for him in 2012 with Le Mans and ELMS race programme that he has in conjunction with racing in the GP3 series. Now that he has finished his university studies very successfully he has a year or two to focus totally on his racing career. I hope that he will continue in endurance racing because I sense that the next few years will be extremely positive in this category."

Where did the idea come from to race the 24 Hours together ?
"I shared a race car with Alex in the Lamborghini Trofeo in Hockenheim and the Radical SR8 at Ascari and Brands Hatch. I still have the speed and physical fitness to drive in such a race. So it seemed obvious to take this window of opportunity to race together at Le Mans. We are very grateful to Nissan for making this happen."

In what ways can you help Alex ?
"Often you have to learn things the hard way but hopefully I can help Alex fast track his learning process to become a top level endurance driver more quickly. When we are training together and at the race track, we will constantly be discussing the challenges and opportunities ahead of us in 2012, and learning from each other."

How can he be helpful to you ?
"Alex will be helpful to me because he has new knowledge and techniques for driving faster and will unquestionably be very well informed on the data acquisition systems on the car. I am looking forward to studying the lap overlays to see how we compare."

Who is fastest ?
"He is 21 and I am 52. My experience will count throughout the race I expect he will have more raw speed."

What is the objective?
"First and foremost I want to enjoy the Le Mans experience with my son. If we can win the LMP2 class this would be something very special."