Jaxon Evans hopes he will have the opportunity to return to Le Mans soon, saying now he has ticked off his debut start that his next aim is to win.
Evans finished a commendable fifth in the GTE-Am class last weekend.
He and co-driver Matt Campbell and Christian Reid fought back from a difficult race start to be the lead Porsche car home.
For Evans, the New Zealander fulfilled a boyhood dream when he finally made his first Le Mans start.
He says the entire build-up to the race felt similar to every other race weekend, “only a little bit bigger.”
Though that mindset soon changed during the race.
“It was during my second stint; it was at night and I had time to think about here I am doing something I have always dreamt about,” Evans told Velocity News.
After achieving a career ambition of racing at Le Mans, Evans’ has big plans for his return to the race.
“I’ve ticked something off the bucket list, but you don’t go there to finish fifth.
“It is something I want to win, for sure.”
Evans was fortunate enough to compete in the race alongside his best friend Campbell.
The two have lived together as housemates, followed comparable career pathways through the Porsche Junior programme and were co-drivers for the biggest endurance race of the year.
“Something we said about five years ago was that it was a goal to race together at Le Mans,” Evans said.
“It is nice to jump out of the car and your best mate is there, ready to get in.
“I enjoyed racing with him. Matty is one of the best drivers in the RSR and I learnt a lot off him.”
Le Mans was Evans’ first time racing under the blanket of night.
“Everything feels faster at night.
“It takes a little bit to adjust to…but it is a cool challenge.
“All the corners are the same, so it was like going on a country road you know quite well but at night.”
Surprisingly, Evans roughly had only an hour of sleep over the race. Instead, he let the excitement of the race prevail over exhaustion.
“I was a bit nervous about how I will go in terms of being tired.
“But from when I woke up on Saturday morning, I didn’t sleep until the next morning.
“In the car, there is so much adrenaline running.
“But it definitely hit me a bit on the drive home.”
Evans is at Spa-Francorchamps this weekend for the next round of the Porsche Supercup, where he is second in the championship.
