The 2010s began with four wins on the trot for Audi, with Marcel Fässler, André Lotterer and Benoît Tréluyer winning three, interrupted only by team-mates Loïc Duval, McNish and Kristensen in 2013. This was the Dane’s ninth win, a record that is unlikely to be beaten.

The 2014 season was pivotal, as it marked a push towards hybrid technology. It had been seen first in the WEC’s top class in 2012, but the ante was raised as twice the hybrid power was now being allowed. Pleasingly, the manufacturers attacked this concept differently. Audi chose to use a flywheel system that fed the front axle. Porsche opted for a lithium ion battery to harness the megajoules produced under acceleration and braking before releasing them to the front axle. Toyota went for storing energy in a super capacitor and then feeding that to both axles. Better still, their different approaches meant that their cars all had performance advantages at different points around a lap, and Audi gained bragging rights by winning this sharpened contest.

Then came a sea change in 2015 as Porsche took its first outright win with a works entry since 1987. Success came thanks to Earl Bamber, Nico Hülkenberg and Nick Tandy. The Hulk was the first current F1 driver to win since Gachot and Herbert won for Mazda in 1991, so there was kudos aplenty when he took the trophy to the following grand prix.