The Le Mans 24 hours endurance race will be short of one of its regulars this year and maybe the year after that. Peugeot has announced that it will be pulling out of endurance racing due to lackluster sales in 2011. It has also stated that it will pour its resources on marketing the new Peugeot 208 supermini(above) and its 2012 hybrid models instead. Quite obvious actually.

With the pullout, this would mean that Audi will have no actual rival in the LMP1 category as Peugeot was its only actual rival. Peugeot won the 2009 Le Mans and the first Intercontinental Le Mans cup title in 2011 with its diesel powered Peugeot 908HDi FAP. A monopoly at this year's Le Mans?

Aside from Audi gaining from Peugeot's absence, they will also gain from Toyota's decision to only participate in a few of this year's LMP1 races and the fact that old timers Porsche will only be re-entering the fray in 2014. So expect a very lopsided Le Mans LMP1 category for the next few years people. And furthermore, Le Mans without a proper French manufacturer/team is somehow a sad thing too.

It is actually quite sad to see Peugeot pull out of Le Mans are they have been doing quite well and was the second manufacturer to compete in the Le Mans with a diesel powered car