6H CotA : The ORECA 03 to discover a new world…
Only a few days after the 3 Hours of Hungaroring, ORECA’s customer racing program heads to an exciting new event at the Circuit of the Americas : the International Sports Car Weekend. In the United States, in addition to the ORECA-FLM 09 chassis competing in the LM PC class in the American Le Mans Series, three ORECA 03 LM P2 will be on track for the fifth round of the FIA World Endurance Championship : one under the Pecom Racing banner and two in G-Drive by Delta-ADR colours. In Texas, the battle for the championship continues, and after winning three of the four previous races in the FIA-WEC and also three successes in ELMS, the ORECA chassis is chasing yet another victory.
Discovering a new world…
The Circuit of the Americas is welcoming the FIA World Endurance Championship for the first time. Therefore, the vast majority of competitors will be discovering this new circuit, measuring 5.5 km in length, made unique by its peaks and valleys. The track, running counter-clockwise, takes after legendary circuits such as the Maggots-Becketts-Chapel complex at Silverstone, or a succession of curves not unlike the four-apexed corner at Istanbul. With a long straight and fast portions, the Circuit of the Americas looks like a real challenge on paper. Competitors will have to compromise on quickness and downforce, as well as assure stable braking in several zones, including the first corner : a hairpin at the top of a massive climb.
« The teams will be discovering a whole new world so everyone is on a level playing field. » explains Hugues de Chaunac. « It’s a good opportunity for the teams to express themselves and show their capacity for adaptation. The ORECA 03 has been competitive on all types of circuits, but teams will still need to find the right set up for this new track. So it will be a step into the unknown that will need to be carefully managed. I have full confidence in G-Drive by Delta-ADR who are coming off a perfect weekend, and Pecom Racing, who have had a string of podium finishes, to be successful. It’s anybody’s race in LM P2 and it will no doubt be very interesting again in Texas. With the ALMS and the FIA-WEC, Austin promises to be a great event and I hope the ORECA entries will once again shine on American soil. »
Pierre Kaffer : « Have to be perfect to win! »
On the heals of two victories and two pole positions in four races, G-Drive by Delta-ADR will be one of the favourites. Victorious at Silverstone, the No.25 ORECA 03 will be driven by Tor Graves, James Walker and Rudy Junco. With a win and a pole at Sao Paulo, the sister car, the No.26, will again be driven by regulars Roman Rusinov, John Martin and Mike Conway.
With a win and a pole at Spa, two podiums and a top five finish at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Pecom Racing is still in the hunt for the LM P2 title. Pierre Kaffer, Nicolas Minassian and Luis Perez Companc will be the drivers on the No.49 ORECA. «We could have been more competitive at Sao Paulo, but we’re still in the fight for the championship and that’s the goal. » underlines Pierre Kaffer. « It’s our third season in LM P2 and we’re obviously aiming for the higher objective. Like many drivers, this will be my first time at Austin. From what I saw when F1 ran there, the circuit looks interesting with fast sections, a long straight and hard braking zones. I’m looking forward to discovering the track. I think the LM P2 class will be hotly contested. It’s a very competitive class where all the cars are close to one another. Expect a very exciting race : there will be no room for error. Each detail will count and we’ll have to be perfect to win. In order to achieve our goal, we can rely on a good car in the ORECA 03, good tyres in Michelin and a good team in Pecom Racing. »
Practice will begin on Friday, before qualifying on September 21 at 1pm (local time). The start of the fifth round of the FIA World Endurance Championship will be given Sunday, Sept 22 at 11am (local time).