Le Mans, France - Circuit de la Sarthe

--TV Broadcast--

"Well hello, everyone and welcome to the crown jewel of Sports Car Endurance Racing. This is the 92nd Annual 24 Hours of Le Mans. I'm Martin Haven joined by Graham Goodwin and Anthony Davidson."

Mike walked out of the paddock and looked at the MASSIVE crowd that took over the grandstand. Le Mans is a big race, so a huge crowd like this is to be expected. He then took a deep breath. "Well, this is it," he said to himself. He then looked around and saw that his IMSA rival, Pipo Derani was also in the race. He wasn't surprised as Action Express Racing received a Le Mans entry eligibility after winning the 2023 IMSA championship.

"Mike, are you okay?"

Mike looked over and saw Rara. She was looking at him with concern as she had never seen him like this before. Mike just smiled and walked over to her. "Rara, I've never been better."

Rara smiled back at him.

"Ready to go?" asked a voice.

Mike looked over and saw his team owner, Chip Ganassi and his 3 co-drivers who will be taking over at various points during the race. He quickly got serious and nodded at them. "Yes sir," he said in a militaristic manner.

"Good, let's get this show underway."

An hour went by and so did the pre-race ceremonies and the command to start engines. Now they were on the pace laps. Mike steered his car making sure to get heat onto the tires. After a few more pace laps, the safety car finally pulled in and the crowd roared in anticipation.

--TV Broadcast--

Martin Haven: "Were we go! The crown jewel of Sports Car Endurance Racing, the 24 Hours of Le Mans! Hypercars, LMP2 cars, and GT cars, all lining up to take the green!"

The French flag was waved via the flag stand.

Martin Haven: "AND WE GO GREEN IN THE 24 HOURS OF LE MANS!!! SEBASTIEN BUEMI HOLDS THE INSIDE LINE!!! HE LEADS THE HYPERCAR FIELD AS THEY HEAD DOWN TO TURN 1!!!"

Anthony Davidson: "You have to be smart going into Turn 1. It's followed by a bunch of tight 90 degree corners going into the Dunlop Bridge!"

Martin Haven: "OHHHHH!!!! IT'S VERY TIGHT GOING THROUGHT THERE!!! MIKE ROGERS TRYING TO GET BY THE LAMBORGHINI OF EDOARDO MORTARA!!! AS THERE'S MORE MOVEMENT BACK THERE IN LMP2 FIELD!!!"

Graham Goodwin: "They somehow manage to get through those tight first few corners unscathed as they now make they're way down the Mulsanne Straight!"

"Alright, watch your speed. You need to have to brake before chicane 1," Mike's race strategist said on his radio.

"Look, I've done this a thousand times," said Mike.

"Well, not here at Le Mans."

--TV Broadcast--

Martin Haven: "Into the first chicane, around the outside of Alex Lynn! That's a lovely move put on there by Mike Rogers!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Watch those GT cars, you're way faster than them."

Mike saw what his race strategist was talking about. He quickly made up a move to get around the GT car in front of him and cleared it.

"Wow, great job! Keep going!"

Mike smirked to himself.

Hour 4

--TV Broadcast--

Martin Haven: "Well, that was an amazing performance by the number 3 Cadillac as they pull into the pits for their first driver change."

"Come on Sebastien! Let's go."

Mike got out of his car and Sebastien Bourdais got in. Once the pit stop was over, he raced off.

Hour 9

--TV Broadcast--

Martin Haven: "Sebastien Bourdais has been getting tons of fan appreciation for this race as he is from here."

Graham Goodwin: "Exactly, Le Mans is his hometown. So whenever he comes around to race here, the fans always roar for him."

Martin Haven: "Well now, he's wrapped up his stint and is handing over duties to Renger van der Zande."

Hour 12

Martin Haven: "Rain is expected in the forecast. This is something that Le Mans is known for as it gives the drivers the ultimate test of driving through the rain on a racetrack.

Back in the pits, Mike was suited up, ready for his next stint. As soon as Renger van der Zande pulled into the pits and got out, he climbed back in and drove off. He then noticed the rain clouds coming in.

"Some drivers have reported rain on the Mulsanne Straight. We put rain tires on the car so it should be able to handle the wet conditions."

This concerned Mike. "There are areas where there's no rain. That's gonna overheat the tires," he said.

"Don't worry. There's no cause for concern."

Mike just sighed and continued driving.

Truth to the commentators words, the rain gave the drivers an ultimate test. Some were caught off guard by the rain as several drivers crashed during the rainy part of the race. Mike continued through the rain until it eventually stopped, but because the Mulsanne Straight was still damp, he had to keep the wet weather tires on. It wasn't until the Mulsanne Straight was deemed dry enough when he came into the pits to put slick tires back on.

"Your doing great out there," said Mike's race strategist. "Just 2 more hours before you can turn in for the night."

Mike knew just how much of a tough business Endurance Racing was, but he pushed forward.

Hour 14

At last, Mike's night stint was up. He pulled into the pits and Sebastien Bourdais took over. Once he drove off, Mike walked back into the pit box before meeting up with Rara.

"So, how did it go out there?" She asked.

"I'm just looking forward to some sleep," Mike smiled.

Rara smiled back before the two headed over to a silent room. It was very similar to the one in Daytona as it had noise reinforcement material to allow people inside to rest. Mike and Rara laid down on the bed before hugging each other and finally dozing off.

Hour 21

--TV Broadcast--

Martin Haven: "First light here at the Circuit de la Sarthe. We are just 4 hours to go in the 24 Hours of Le Mans."

Rara walked back to the pits. She was feeling well rested after a good night's sleep. She saw that Mike was suiting up, getting ready for one last stint.

"Renger's coming in!" Shouted one of the pit crew members.

Wasting no time, Mike quickly put on his helmet and ran towards the pit box. Ranger van der Zande pulled into the pits and climbed out, looking very exhausted. Mike quickly climbed in and accelerated off.

Final Lap

--TV Broadcast--

Martin Haven: "We have reached the final lap in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and it appears that for the first time since the 1965, Ferrari have returned to form."

Anthony Davidson: "Yeah, they were humiliatingly defeated by Ford in 1966 and never raced in the top class at Le Mans since until last year when they took victory. Now, it appears they are back on top!"

Martin Haven: "AND THE CHECKERED FLAG IS WAVING AND THE NUMBER 50 FERRARI HAS WON THE 24 HOURS OF LE MANS WITH ANTONIO FUOCO, MIGUEL MOLINA, AND NICKLAS NEILSEN!!! Toyota will have to settle for 2nd on the podium with the number 51 Ferrari finishing in 3rd! Meanwhile in LMP2, it's the number 183 AF Corse car with Ben Barnicoat, Francois Perrodo, and Nicolas Varrone who take victory! And finally, in LMGT3, it's the number 91 Porsche 911 from Manthey Racing with Richard Leitz, Morris Schuring, and Yasser Shahin taking victory!"

"P6 at Le Mans, P6."

Mike sighed. "Not the finish we wanted but it was still a great race for us. Well done, guys," he said.

--TV Broadcast--

"Well, it has been a fantastic 24 Hours of Le Mans. We want to thank you all for watching. From all of our TV crew members, I'm Martin Haven we'll see you all next time at the 6 Hours of Sao Paulo."

As Mike and Rara were walking out of the track, they couldn't help but think on everything that has happened over the past 8 months.

"Our fist concert is in 2 weeks, Mike," said Rara.

"I know," said Mike. "And you know what?"

"What?"

"I'm more excited about our tour than any of my upcoming races."

Rara was surprised. "Really?"

"Yeah, becoming a music artist was my dream and now it's finally coming true. With your help, everyone and everypony will finally see just how talented I am," Mike proclaimed.

Rara smiled. "Well, maybe we should head home and make some final preparations."

"You know what? I agree on that," said Mike. "We gotta make sure that everything is in order."

Rara nodded in agreement before the two walked away from the track to the train station to head back to Paris.

To Be Continued.

Author's Note

This is a fictionalized version of the 2024 24 Hours of Le Mans. If you want to see what happened in the actual race, you can do so by watching this video here.

This will be the final racing chapter as I REALLY want to get on to the tour and concerts. Not helping is the fact that these chapters are VERY tiring to write. So yeah, no more racing chapters. All of the other races will be done through montages and mentions.