McNish excited by R10 challenge.

Allan McNish has admitted he is delighted to have been selected as one of the drivers to debut the new diesel powered Audi R-10 this season after Audi confirmed its six-man line-up for the Sebring 12 Hours and the Le Mans 24 Hours last week.

The 36-year-old joins Frank Biela, Rinaldo Capello, Emanuele Pirro, Marco Werner and Le Mans legend Tom Kristensen in the two-car Joest-run 'works' Audi Sport team and will be looking to try and secure his place in history as the first Briton to win the Le Mans 24 Hours in a diesel-powered car.

"I'm delighted to be driving for Audi again and especially pleased to be heading back to Le Mans as a 'factory' Audi driver," said McNish, who got his first opportunity to drive the new car earlier this month. "The Audi R10 felt comfortable after only a handful of laps. I could immediately feel it had the origins from the ultra-successful R8 in the way it rode the bumps and steered. It has a good balance - first impressions are very favourable."

This season will mark the seventh time that McNish will compete at Le Mans, having won the event back in 1998, and he will be looking to take to the top step of the podium having already finished second and third in his time with Audi.

Before Le Mans, the car will debut in the Sebring 12 Hours and McNish admitted that both races will be tough.

"I debuted Audi's previous sportscar, the Audi R8, in the Sebring 12 Hours in 2000 which went on to win Le Mans five times in the last six years," he said. "Having run for the first time in November, the Audi R10 is now undergoing a concerted development programme. Our aim is to race at Sebring in March which would be an ideal way for us to prepare for Le Mans.

"Both Sebring and Le Mans will be tough for us - a brand new car featuring totally new technology which will require us to adapt our driving style due to the narrow torque band characteristics of a diesel engine and having tested it at Sebring, it does require a different driving style."

Audi is the first car manufacturer to fight for overall victory at Le Mans with a diesel-engined sportscar. The Audi R10 is powered by a new 5.5-litre, V12 twin-turbo TDI engine, producing over 650 hp and 1,100 Newton metres of torque and replaces the ultra successful R8 - which secured 61 wins in 77 races.