Gene tips Alonso to claim Le Mans crown

Former Formula 1 driver Marc Gene has tipped two-time world champion Fernando Alonso to win Le Mans.

Gene told Spain's AS newspaper that Alonso could even manage to clinch the iconic endurance race at his first attempt.

"Of course," he said. "If it is next year, there is only Toyota as it is very difficult to win Le Mans as a private team."

Alonso completed 113 laps in Sunday's rookie test in a Toyota LMP1 at Bahrain International Circuit.

"I think if Fernando only did this test, with the level he drives at he would already be in a position to win," Gene insisted.

The 43-year-old Spanish driver competed for Minardi in 1999 and 2000. He subsequently made three further starts with Williams subbing for an injured Ralf Schumacher.

After a spell as a Ferrari test driver, Gene moved to sportscar racing and took part in eight Le Mans races. He won the race in 2009 with Peugeot team mates David Brabham and Alexander Wurz.

Gene said he admired Alonso's pursuit of motorsport's Triple Crown, consisting of Le Mans, the Indianapolis 500 and the Monaco Grand Prix.

"I think what he is doing is incredible and admirable," said Gene. "Fernando really is one of the few drivers who really loves driving and competing."

Gallery: Alonso's day with Toyota in Bahrain

And Gene insisted that venturing into sportscars wasn't merely Alonso's way of winding down his Formula 1 career.

"No, I don't think so. It's good that he can do both," he said. "Let's see how McLaren-Renault is going to go next season."

Alonso said last week's Bahrain rookie test had been "a great day". However, he wouldn't be drawn about whether he would be back in the TS050 Hybrid anytime soon.

"One day it would be nice," he said. "I don’t know when ... At the moment it was just a fantastic opportunity."

Alonso will make his World Endurance Championship début in January in the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona in January. He'll be completing in the LMP2 class for Zak Brown's United Autosports squad with team mate Lando Norris.

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.