OAK Racing return to LMP1
OAK Racing this weekend will feature in both the LMP1 and LMP2 classes of the FIA World Endurance Championship, with the No.15 OAK Pescarolo HPD making a welcome return for the first time since the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
As well as now being powered by the proven Honda Performance Development engine, the car will be in the capable hands of none other than Takuma Sato, one of Japan’s most successful drivers, alongside Bertrand Baguette and Dominik Kraihamer. Sato had his first laps in the prototype during a test at Magny Cours in France towards the end of September, and will be using today’s test at Fuji Speedway to get his team mates up to speed with the track and himself fully attuned to the car.
Meanwhile OAK Racing’s No.24 Morgan 2012 will once again be crewed by the all-French line up of Jacques Nicolet, Matthieu Lahaye and Olivier Pla. Their speed this season has never been in doubt, and they will be chasing a third podium finish of the season in the LMP2 category in this weekend’s 6 Hours of Fuji.
Sébastien Philippe, Team Principal: “The 6 Hours of Fuji sees the return of our OAK-HPD LM P1 to the World Endurance Championship and also marks the sports-prototype debut for Taku who we are extremely proud to be welcoming.
“The team will also discover a circuit I know very well and have much experience of from my own racing career. I have no doubt that its characteristics, especially the long 1.5-kilometre straight, will favour our Morgan-Nissan 2012 LM P2, which has good top-end speed.
“Naturally we are all anxious to see how the OAK-HPD LM P1 stacks up against Strakka, JRM and Rebellion who are tackling their final two races of the year while we essentially enter our first two. However, testing at Magny-Cours went well and allowed us to address some issues. While that hasn’t fully put my mind at ease, it does at least ensure there shouldn’t be too much stress!”
Takuma Sato, No.15 OAK-HPD LMP1: “After the successful shakedown and test day at Magny Cours, I am now even more excited to be competing in Japan with OAK Racing. I believe the team has made the best possible preparations in the limited time available and feel very positive and comfortable about the whole team's operation. The car demonstrated good performance at the test according to the engineers and they were satisfied with that, so I am confident we will be competitive at Fuji Speedway.
“It will be a very exciting and interesting weekend for both fans and the FIA WEC series. The track has unique characteristics with one of the longest straights at a permanent circuit in the world, but also has quite a complex technical section so the set-up needs to be a good compromise. Hopefully the aero package we tested at Magny Cours will give us good speed. I am ready to take on a new challenge and really looking forward to be working with the team, as well as to see all the enthusiastic fans in Japan.”
Matthieu Lahaye, No.24 Morgan-Nissan 2012 LMP2: “I have fond memories of my Japanese experience with OAK Racing from Okayama in 2009 where we won! In addition, it is difficult for Europeans to imagine just how passionate the Japanese public is about motorsport, the Le Mans 24 Hours and endurance racing in general. I take a lot of enjoyment from the special atmosphere and enthusiasm of so many fans.
“Also, it is always interesting to discover a new circuit. I have practiced a little bit on a computer game and simulator and the track seems more suited to the qualities of our car than either Bahrain or Sao Paulo. We will have a day of running to familiarise ourselves with the layout before first free practice. Several times this year we have missed out on the sort of results that the car’s performance has warranted, so we will be doing our best to challenge for victory.”
Fiona Miller (quotes from team press release)
PHOTO: SAKHIR (BAHRAIN), BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT, 6 HOURS OF BAHRAIN, SATURDAY, 29TH SEPTEMBER 2012, RACE. The No.24 OAK Morgan-Nissan LMP2.
