The 20-year-old Dane is the nephew of nine time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen and Oskar is looking forward to racing on the full Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans for the first time. “I’m incredibly excited to finally race there for real,” he said. “I’ve attended the 24 Hours of Le Mans more times than I can count as a guest and spectator, so to now have the opportunity to drive the circuit under race conditions is truly a dream come true for me.
“Yes, Tom has definitely given me some good advice about where to place your focus around the lap and things like that. Well… he has done a lap or two around the track himself,” he added with a cheeky smile.
When asked about which part of the circuit he was looking forward to the most, Kristensen replied, “I’m especially looking forward to the Porsche Curves. It’s a place where I’ve spent countless hours after dark during previous editions of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. I’ve attended the race almost every year since I was nine years old, apart from a few occasions because of karting races or exams. It’s a section where precision and confidence in the car’s downforce are absolutely crucial, and where you can carry incredibly high speed through the corners.”
This is the three time Danish karting champions’ first season racing Le Mans Prototypes and he and his teammate have already secured one podium finish in Spain (see picture below) and are currently 5th in the LMP3 Pro/Am standings after finishing 6th in Le Castellet.
“From my perspective, we’ve done very well during our first two race weekends,” Kristensen admitted. “Racing Spirit of Léman is already a very established team in the Le Mans Cup, but at the same time we are working with many new things within the team. For me personally, the first time I ever sat in a prototype car, was at the rookie test in Portimão last year, so to then take our first podium with RSL in the opening round of the championship was an incredible feeling — and we are definitely hungry for more.”
“The first two weekends have been positive overall, even if everything hasn’t gone 100% our way,” Kristensen said. “We’ve had a bit of bad luck and some unfortunate penalties that cost us the opportunity for even stronger results. At the same time, that is something positive we can take into Le Mans, because we know we have the pace to fight at the very front. If a few things fall into place, we know we can be right in contention.
“Nevertheless, we’ve had so much fun together as a team. The spirit within the team is fantastic, and with the engineers, mechanics, and everyone involved, we are able to joke around and enjoy ourselves while still being serious and performing when it matters most.”
So how does Oskar Kristensen rate the Ligier JS P325 compared to the GT cars he raced previously? “The car is very different compared to the GT cars I’ve raced before,” he said. “Without ABS under braking, much more is down to the driver’s skill and confidence when braking late. The car is also much stiffer and sits a lot lower to the ground, which means it reacts far quicker to driver inputs through the steering and pedals. Of course, the aerodynamic performance also makes a huge difference, especially in high-speed corners.
“I really enjoy driving the car, and it’s been a completely new challenge for me. Driving a prototype compared to a GT car requires two very different techniques and driving styles in order to be fast. I really enjoy driving the car, and the driving style it requires suits me quite well — it’s a feeling that words can’t quite describe.”
The Road to Le Mans is a three-hour race for the first time, so how will Kristensen approach this race compared to the previous two races? “We will push just as hard as always to achieve the best result possible — that mindset never changes,” he said. “The strategy will naturally be slightly different with an extra hour of racing, another pit stop, and more variables to manage throughout the race. I’m really excited to experience the new format and looking forward to extracting everything possible from the weekend.”
Road To Le Mans is Round 3 of the 2026 Michelin Le Mans Cup and will be held on Friday 12 June, with qualifying the day before.
MLMC Live Streaming on FIAWEC+ App
The endurance ladder starts here. Watch the Michelin Le Mans Cup live for free on FIAWEC+, with official race coverage, replays and highlights from one of Europe’s most competitive LMP3, LMP3 Pro/Am and GT3 championships. Watch the Michelin Le Mans Cup live for free on https://plus.fiawec.com/en/michelin-le-mans-cup
