McNISH OPTIMISTIC AFTER FIRST TEST WITH AUDI

Allan McNish arrived back in England at the weekend confident he can score a top result in this year's Le Mans 24 Hour race after driving an Audi sportscar for the first time in tests. The 30-year-old Beaconsfield-based Scot spent three days at Sebring in Florida last week, acclimatising himself to the German manufacturer's 3.6-litre, twin-turbo V8 engined 1999 R8R sportscar and getting to know his new Audi Sport Team Joest team-mates.

"The test went very well and I was extremely pleased with the performance of both the old car and also the potential shown by the new model," confirmed 1998 Le Mans winner McNish. "The weather was kind to us which allowed the team to accumulate some useful mileage."

McNish, who has driven at Le Mans on three previous occasions, was joined by fellow Audi newcomer Tom Kristensen while Emanuele Pirro and 1996 British Touring Car Champion Frank Biela, who both finished third on Audi's Le Mans début in 1999, were also present driving the new open-top Audi R8 sportscar.

Allan added: "I was also hugely encouraged by the welcome I received from team personnel at Sebring - they all made me feel most welcome and I immediately felt at home. The main reason that I chose to drive for Audi was that they approached their Le Mans début in the correct way last year. The combined experience of Joest Racing, a legend in their own right in the endurance sportscar category, and Audi, a manufacturer that has already achieved so much in motorsport having dominated world rallying in the early 1980s and Touring Cars in the '90s, made it a simple decision for me."

The new Audi R8 sportscar is scheduled to make its race début in the Sebring 12-Hour race next month (18 March). The Le Mans 24-Hour race is staged on 17-18 June.