Motor racing-Peugeot to start Le Mans 24 Hours on pole position

PARIS, June 11 (Reuters) - Peugeot stunned rivals Audi to snatch pole position on Thursday for the weekend's Le Mans 24 Hours sportscar race.

Stephane Sarrazin, who partners with fellow Frenchmen Sebastien Bourdais and Franck Montagny, clocked a fastest lap of three minutes and 22.888 seconds in the dying minutes of a night qualifying session raced in dry and mild conditions.

Champions Audi, with eight wins in the last nine years, had to be content with second place after Scotland's Allan McNish was 0.762 second slower than Sarrazin, who has yet to win at Le Mans.

McNish shares his car with Dane Tom Kristensen, who has won a record eight times, and Italy's Rinaldo Capello.

"It is a very close fight between us and Audi. Starting from pole is not essential but it makes things easier," Sarrazin told Eurosport television after taking his third successive pole on the La Sarthe circuit.

The race is due to start at 1300 GMT on Saturday and end 24 hours later but the winner may have to wait until July to be officially crowned after Peugeot said they would appeal a decision by the organisers.

An International Automobile Federation (FIA) panel have a month to say whether Audi's cars conform to the regulations, as organisers stated despite Peugeot's complaints. (Writing by Bertrand Boucey; Editing by Alan Baldwin; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)