Follow an Amateur Driver’s Journey to the Most Prestigious Endurance Race
A friend suggested that I check out Road to Le Mans and I was instantly addicted.
RLM follows the journey of Michael Fassbender, an Irish actor who has a passion for motorsport and decides to sign on to be a Porsche factory driver. The long term goal: to race in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in a Porsche GT3 RSR.
The first season introduces Fassbender as he cuts his teeth racing in the Porsche Sports Cup, getting a full season’s worth of sprint races. Though the docuseries makes minor mention of it, though this feels like Fassbender’s first foray into racing at this level, some research shows he has competed in the Ferrari Challenge, beginning around 2017.
In seasons two and three, Fassbender moves on to the European Le Mans Series (sans 24h race). This is where things really kick off as Fassbender gains experience in endurance racing on a team, and preparing for the grueling endeavor that is his ultimate goal. Ultimately, Fassbender progresses to the faster GT3 RSR, which will be used in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The fourth and (to-date) final season covers the brief ramp-up to Le Mans and the race itself. It is the culmination of four years’ work and… well, I can’t trust myself to say much more without spoiling the outcome.
Why I Love this Series & Why I Think You Will Too
The episodes are right to-the-point and have no ads or commercials. The camera work and production was superb in making me feel like I’m a fly on the wall, watching Fassbender work through the highs and lows that are what make car racing so enamoring to me.
As a club racer myself, I feel like I can relate to Fassbender. Though I could only dream of being able to purchase a seat on racing team anywhere near the caliber of Proton Competition, watching Fassbender’s experience of transitioning from an enthusiast and track-day driver to becoming a real race car driver triggered many memories of my own journey… right up to the penultimate challenges in Season 4 and Le Mans itself.
This series speaks to the drivers. We’ve been there — in the pits and in the car… struggling to find speed and rise to meet the challenges of the weekend. Working towards a season-long goal — be it a critical race, a lap record, or a season placement. Mistakes are made, friendships are forged, and at the end of it all there is a sense of both accomplishment and hunger for more.
The fact that endurance racing has so much space for chaos, opportunity, and strategy makes it exhilarating to watch. The team is fantastic and it feels like everyone is rowing in the same direction. If you’ve never raced an enduro… this may be the thing that pushes you to try it out.
Finally, I enjoyed this series far more than my journey through Drive to Survive (though I loved the first season and liked most of the subsequent ones) because it is far more approachable. If you or I had the money, we could work up to racing in ELMS. With it’s driver ranking system that pairs Amateurs with Pros, you or I could actually be there! Though money talks in F1, too… the skill level is just too high a bar to reach.
Check out Road to Le Mans on YouTube
I’ve bookmarked each season that has been published to-date. There are hints of future seasons… but no confirmations at the time of this writing.
Enjoy.
