Sebastien Loeb racing’s move to the Audi customer ranks in GT has already seen René Rast confirmed in the team’s Oreca Nissan LMP2 car for the Le Mans 24 Hours and now he’ll be joined by a second Audi GT star as as Laurens Vanthoor is named as the second driver for the June classic.
22 year old Belgian Vanthoor already has proven pace, he won the ATS Formel 3 Cup in 2009, before finishing second at the Macao Grand Prix the following year and continued to podium winning form in the F3 Euro Series championship.
Since then though he has turned his attention to GT racing and scored three race wins in the GT1 World Championship and victory too at the 24 Hours of Zolder in 2012.
2013 saw him win the FIA GT Series title and be named as an Audi Sport customer racing driver, 2014 is set to see his Le Mans debut.
“Laurens’s performances have not gone unnoticed those last couple of years and we clearly observed them last year when fighting against him in the FIA GT Series,” says Dominique Heintz.
“He is young, talented and ambitious. He has the perfect profile. Just like René, he embodies the team’s values. They know each other quite well, they both have an experience of 24-hour races, and they have been teammates before. That was an important factor for us. We will have a lot to discover at Le Mans and we will do it all together. With young, but particularly motivated, team and drivers.”
Laurens, what does this first participation at the 24 Hours of Le Mans mean to you?
“Le Mans is one of the most important motorsport races in the world. Since I have been a GT driver, I have taken part in several endurance races, like Spa and the Nürburgring, but Le Mans is even bigger than that. Participating in this race has been one of my objectives. I have been working for it for several years and I am happy to now achieve it. It is a very important event for me, and also for my future. Being at the 24 Hours of Le Mans has been always a dream. It is a unique race. I am going to drive a new car and to open a new chapter. That is very exciting ! »
What do you know about Sébastien Loeb Racing?
“I know the team because I saw them in action in the FIA GT. I noticed then how professional the team was. They want to do things seriously. I met Léo Thomas, technical director of the team, during a session in a simulator before the championship’s final in 2013. From that point, we started exchanging and things got set up. The team is very serious and wants to fight for the first places. That suits me well.”
You also already know your future teammate René Rast?
“Yes that’s right, I know him very well. We are colleagues, we have competed together on several occasions, including at the 24 Hours of Spa, and this year at the 12 Hours of Bathurst. It was funny to realise there that we had the same idea in mind about doing Le Mans. We are good friends, we know what the other wants, and we have gained experience together… Those are important things. It’s a very positive news to come together again on this project.”
You are a young driver, just like René, and the team is also quite young. Is that something you appreciate?
“I think it is a good thing. The team, René or I, have all showed what we are capable of in other disciplines. We may not have the experience of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, but we will perhaps have a slightly different vision and that can be interesting. We are young and I think we will work well together. We share the same final ambition at the end of the day : we want to get a good result.”
It will be your first time driving a LM P2?
“I have done four years of F3, so I am familiar with downforce cars. I also did a session with an ORECA-FLM 09 (LM PC) a couple of years ago. Many people have said to me that the F3 is not so different from an LM P2. I am looking forward to discovering the ORECA 03 and I genuinely think that I am going to enjoy it a lot ! I am more excited than worried.”
In 2013 you were the FIA GT Series’ champion with Stéphane Ortelli, who has already won the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Will he have a role to play?
“We have competed together during two years and he is one of my best friends. He is an honest guy, always trying to help. We have already talked about the 24 Hours of Le Mans and I will also be on the starting grid thanks to him. He has much advice to give me. He has been driving in every discipline and I have already learnt a lot from him in GT. He has already won Le Mans and he knows what needs to be done. He is a perfect coach.”
