Spyker are hoping for another good weekend with their new car
Spyker
Quifel ASM
Harold Primat
Michelin
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Spyker
SNORAS Spyker Squadron ready for Italian Le Mans Series round
After a thorough shakedown last Saturday, both Spyker C8 Laviolette GT2R's have left the manufacturers workshop in Zeewolde, the Netherlands, and are on their way towards the famous track of Monza, Italy.
This weekend SNORAS Spyker Squadron will again enter two factory backed GT2 cars in the Le Mans Series to compete in the second 1000 km race in the five-round series. Due to its high speed nature Monza is of high importance in the essential preparations for this June's 24 Hours of Le Mans. A well balanced aerodynamics setup plays a key role to finish on the podium in La Sarthe this summer and if a good setup for this weekend’s race has been found and time permits the Dutch team plans to test setups that might work well at Le Mans.
Peter van Erp, Managing Director Spyker Squadron: "I hope that this will be another good weekend for us. Our agenda is packed with three 1000 km Le Mans Series races before the 24 Hours of Le Mans and its official test-day in June but fortunately we managed to clear the list of To-Do's that we brought back from Barcelona after completing our very first race with the two new C8 Laviolette's. Last Saturday we successfully finalized several functional tests at the RDW test track in Lelystad, the Netherlands, and I can confidently say that some of the startup problems we have experienced in Spain are eliminated. Therefore I think we will have much more valuable time to work on the setup for the race and if we have sufficient time left we will test some setups for Le Mans".
The team will bring two Laviolette GT2R's to the start in Milan, both with an upgraded radiator exit duct. The new exit duct results in a more effective radiator air-flow but will also improve the down force on the front axle.
The C8 number 85 will be driven by Russian Alexey Vasiliev, Ralf Kelleners from Germany and Scotsman Peter Dumbreck. Peter Dumbreck will join the team from Saturday morning on due to test obligations in Japan. For the second car, the Swiss dealer car with number 94, it will be their home race. The car will be piloted by Milan born Andrea Chiesa and Swiss Benjamin Leuenberger.
The six-hour race this Sunday can be seen via various media; online via the Eurosport website or via Radio Le Mans and on TV via Eurosport and MotorsTV.
Quifel ASM
QUIFEL-ASM races in Monza 1,000 km
The second event in the 2008 Le Mans Series Championship is scheduled for next weekend, on 25th, 26th and 27th April on the legendary Monza circuit. The Portuguese team will include, along with Miguel Pais do Amaral, French driver Oliver Pla at the wheel of the Lola B05/40 AER, in the LMP2 class.
After the first event in Barcelona, the Quifel-ASM Team is confident ahead of the Italian race. The Lola B05/40 AER will take part in the race with a new aerodynamic rear down-forcer, which is essential for the straights at the Monza autodrome. The car's gear box has also been changed, guaranteeing a considerable improvement in its reliability. The team has thus responded to the increased competition in the LMP2 class.
The team will also attempt to put its only withdrawal from a race in the previous year behind it, which happened on this track while it was in the lead, after starting the race in last place on the starting grid.
The schedule includes three free practice sessions, two on Friday and one on Saturday, with qualification programmed for early Saturday afternoon. On Sunday morning a 20 minute session of free practice will take place before the start 11.50 a.m. (Lisbon time).
The start of the Monza 1,000 km race will be televised live the Eurosport channel and Motors TV and highlights will be broadcast Monday.
Harold Primat
Harold Primat: Le Mans Series, Monza 1000kms preview
After a strong start to the season at the Circuit de Catalunya two weeks ago, Pescarolo Sport's Harold Primat heads to Monza this weekend looking for a repeat performance at round 2 of the 2008 Le Mans Series. Sixth in class, and third best of the petrol-powered LMP1 cars, was reason for encouragement in Barcelona and the Geneva-based driver is now eagerly anticipating racing at the high-speed Italian circuit.
Harold on the last round -- "Overall we were happy with our performance at Barcelona. It was evident from the first day of practice that the level of competition has gone up a notch this year, so to finish second and third of the petrol-powered LMP1 cars was quite satisfying for the team. My team mate, Christophe Tinseau, and I were consistent with our lap times and the car ran without fault so it was a pleasing opening to the season. In terms of the championship it was fantastic to see a healthy crowd on race day. How many of them just came to see their countryman Marc Gene, we don't know, so the real acid test will be in Monza when we see how many spectators turn up. With such a high quality field, the Le Mans Series is a real spectacle this year so hopefully the fans will come out and continue to support it."
on Monza -- "Monza has a unique atmosphere. Obviously it has an incredible motorsport history, but also the fact that it's set in a park makes it extra special. You're surrounded by trees for much of the lap and it gives the impression that you're driving a stage of the World Rally Championship rather than on a circuit!"
on the circuit - "I'd never raced at Monza before until last year so this weekend I won't have to learn the circuit like last time, which is always an advantage. It goes without saying that this is a very fast track, but even though there aren't that many corners, they still provide a genuine challenge. There are so many long straights, we run very little downforce, so that makes the turns much more of a challenge. The Parabolica is my favourite, a legendary corner and very quick, and I also like the Ascari chicane which is fast and quite technical. The circuit suits the Le Mans Series because it is 3.6 miles long and the track is quite wide, so the traffic isn't as much of a problem as it is at some other tracks."
on Pescarolo Sport's chances -- "The Pescarolo 01-Judd is usually fast on the straights so hopefully that will be an advantage for us at Monza. However we can't ignore the Courage-Orecas and Creations who will expect to bounce back after suffering some reliability problems in Barcelona. I don't think the overall order will change too much. I expect the Audis and the Peugeots, as well as the Lola Aston Martin to be at the front. Then there will be a big pack of LMP1 cars fighting each other and it's our aim to finish at the head of that group."
The Monza 1000kms will be screened LIVE on Motors TV and Eurosport on Sunday 27 April. For further listings information, please visit www.motorstv.com and www.eurosport.com.
Michelin
Double stints at Monza?
The 2008 Le Mans Series celebrates its second round of the season on Sunday at Monza, having got off to a great start three weeks ago at the Catalunya 1000 kilometres on the well- known Barcelona circuit. The same favourites will be fighting over the podium places for the super-fast Monza 1000 kilometres this weekend, with yet another tightly-fought duel in store between Peugeot and Audi on the legendary Italian circuit near Milan.
Having won LMP1, LMP2 and GT1 at the last 1000 kilometre race in Catalunya, Michelin is aiming to repeat this triumph on the occasion of the Monza 1000 kilometres, which will take place this weekend at the famous track to the north of Milan.
Even so, the French tyre manufacturer is taking nothing for granted - as the Monza circuit has a number of particular characteristics that are notoriously demanding on tyres. Matthieu Bonardel, in charge of four-wheeled motorsport at Michelin commented: " Monza actually has quite a lot in common with the full Le Mans circuit, including chicanes, heavy braking and some fast corners. But that's really where the similarity ends. The surface at Monza is much more abrasive and there are fewer corners in total, which also mean there are fewer cycles of acceleration and braking. The secret lies in finding the ideal balance between the reactivity of the front tyres in the chicanes and decent traction coming out of them. At the same time, you also need good lateral grip in fast corners such as the famous Parabolica. "
It's not surprising then that the Italian circuit poses a real challenge for Michelin's engineers. " It's an extremely complex circuit for us, " adds Matthieu Bonardel. " This is especially the case for the rear tyres, or to be even more specific, the left-rear tyres on the prototypes. There's never a huge amount of wear at Monza but the sustained high speeds mean that durable tyres are needed, while corners like the Parabolica require a perfect balance. At the same time, drivers also need a sharp response from the front tyres in order to avoid getting understeer through the chicanes. The drivers' requirements tend to change a bit from testing to racing: during tests they want a very responsive front tyre but that can compromise the rears - which the teams usually favour when it comes to actually racing. "
At Barcelona, during the first event of the season, the prototype teams changed tyres at every pit stop, even though the 2008 Michelin tyre range was designed to cope with two or even three stints during a race. " Last year, the teams just got into the habit of changing tyres at every pit stop, " explained Matthieu Bonardel. " So when they got to Barcelona at the start of this year, they didn't even bother to question it. The process of tyre changing has developed so rapidly now that the teams don't lose a chunk of time at every pit stop any more. Nonetheless, they will have to get used to double stints later on in the season at the Le Mans 24 Hours. There, doing double stints will gain them quite a lot of precious time - simply because of the number of stints that make up the whole race. I suppose though that after seeing how well our 2008 tyres lasted in Spain, some of the teams will consider double-stinting when planning their strategies already. So in conclusion I think we will see some teams doing double stints on the same set of tyres in Monza. It's also an excellent place to try out this type of tactic in preparation for the Le Mans 24 Hours. "
The 1000 km of Monza on Eurosport : Follow the start of the race on Eurosport UK from 11h45 to 12h15 (English time), and then a 26 minutes resume of hte best moments, at 22h00.
Michelin Energy Endurance Challenge The Prize Ceremony for the 1000 km of Barcelona will be organize Friday April 25, 2007, at 7 pm at the Michelin Hospitality in the paddock, Monza Racetrack,
Results for the 1000 km of Barcelona :
Cat No Team Total
LM GT2 96 Virgo Motorsport 40
LM P2 34 Van Merksteijn Motorsport 39
LM GT2 95 James Watt Automotive 38