He’s made four appearances at Le Mans, with a best result of fourth in 2008, and in the same year he won the Le Mans Series driving an Audi R10 TDI. However, after parting with the German manufacturer at the end of 2010, one-time single-seater hotshot Alexandre Prémat has been off the European radar somewhat. The Frenchman’s last sportscar drives were for OAK and Oreca in the 2011 Intercontinental Le Mans Cup, but for the last two years he’s been plying his trade in Australia at the wheel of a Garry Rogers Motorsport-run Holden Commodore in the fiercely competitive V8 Supercars series.
Many were keen to see Prémat make a return to Europe, though, and those hopes were realised last week when his name appeared on the entry list for the opening round of the Blancpain Endurance Series, driving a McLaren 12C GT3 alongside Alvaro Parente and Gregoire Demoustier for his old F3 and GP2 team ART Grand Prix. DSC spoke with the 32-year-old in between free practice and qualifying at Monza to find out more about life Down Under, and where he thinks his career is headed right now.
So what’s it like being back in Europe?
Well, I’m still living in Melbourne, because I still have some projects there. I’m doing all the V8 Supercars endurance races for Volvo, but Frederic Vasseur called me two weeks ago asking me to be part of the McLaren GT project with Parente and Demoustier. I’ve had a pretty good welcome back from the team, I’m used to them, as I worked with them for six years – two in Formula Renault, two in F3 and two in GP2 – so I know them very well. Frederic is more a friend than a team boss to me. It’s pretty cool to come back, though. I have many connections in Europe, so it was good to have everyone chatting with me, asking how V8 Supercars is, and so on. The racing culture is very different in Australia, but I’m pleased to be back in Europe in a GT3 car. It’s very different to the V8s, DTMs and prototypes that I’ve driven to date – especially with the ABS brakes. I need to do more work to get used to them, but overall I’m very happy with how things are going so far.
How is the Australian racing culture different exactly?
It’s different because the tracks are so different. We visit very tough circuits like Perth, Barbagallo, Darwin, Ipswich and Queensland. Some of them are almost like go-kart tracks – everything is very tight and narrow. You sometimes have to take a lot of risks, because the tyre walls are really close to the track. It’s very busy, too: every weekend we do three qualifying sessions and three races. There’s a much more dynamic atmosphere with the fans as well – they’re very welcome to the paddock and can get very close to us. It’s just amazing: we jump out of the car and then sign autographs for an hour, then we can be doing paddock hospitality for the bigger sponsors, then it’s straight from there back to the car, so we’re very much working on the racing and marketing side equally. A European race meeting is pretty relaxed in comparison – maybe too relaxing!
Can you compare a V8 Supercar to DTM machinery?
The concepts are very different. V8s don’t have as much downforce as a DTM. We have steel brakes, 650bhp and narrower tyres than DTM, so the car is very pointy. There’s no traction control or ABS and the gearlever is on the left. When it came to racing one, I had to start from zero compared to what I learned in Europe. It’s a pretty cool car and it really lets you attack the kerbs hard – it takes off and lands really well! You can be very hard and aggressive with those cars, especially with the front end. The racing is incredibly tight and you’re always at ten-tenths. Last year there were 25 or 28 cars within six or seven tenths of a second – it’s like go-karts. The drivers are all very fair and professional too. It’s a very good series.
How have you found the McLaren 12C GT3?
The weight balance and distribution is completely different to what I’ve driven before. We have the engine in the back, more or less like a prototype. The handling is great, I just have a bit of an issue with the ABS brakes at the moment. I find it strange – professional and gentlemen drivers can both brake 100m before a corner, which is pretty weird! Otherwise, the car is very pointy and reactive.
The power is pretty good, and the overall performance is somewhere between a DTM and a V8 Supercar, because the tyres are very wide. I really enjoy driving the car – you have to be very smooth and very linear if you want to be fast.
Are you doing every round of the Blancpain Endurance Series?
I’m just doing Monza, Silverstone and the Nürburgring for now. I’m splitting the seat with another driver who’ll do Paul Ricard and the Spa 24 Hours, but if he can’t do those, I will. I don’t want to do too much in Europe this year, because I’m still doing the Australian endurance races, and as I said the cars require a very different driving style, so I don’t want to mix things up too much. At the same time, if these three races go well, maybe at the end of the year there could be the possibility of a contract with McLaren or any of the other GT3 manufacturers. That would be great – I’m open to any opportunities.
Would you be keen to get back in prototype?
That would be cool, yeah, but I think the top LMP1 line-ups are pretty much confirmed for the next two seasons, so I don’t see an opportunity coming up. I’m more working on the GT programme. LMP2 is good, too, of course, but there’s no direct manufacturer involvement. I would prefer to switch to GTs with a manufacturer.
Prémat’s 2014 campaign subsequently got off to the best possible start, with a commanding lights-to-flag victory for him and his co-drivers in the three-hour race around Monza. It looks like this season could well mark a European career renaissance for the talented Frenchman.
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