For the FIA WEC and Blancpain GT Series it’s been a fascinating offseason across the board. And one of the bigger emerging storylines for both series is the potential and excitement surrounding ex-Manor F1 driver Will Stevens, who has secured drives with both Manor and WRT. The two deals will see him compete across the globe in both an LMP2 and GT3 car this year.
DSC sat down with Stevens at Paul Ricard during the Blancpain GT Series Test Days to get more on the story of his move from Formula One to the sportscar universe, driving for two teams gunning for titles:
“Obviously for me, my whole career, I’ve been chasing Formula One,” Stevens admitted in conversation with DSC. “I had a year of it last year, and everyone knows that F1 nowadays is difficult to stay in for numerous reasons.
“For me, I’ve always wanted longevity for my career, and I think doing what I’m doing this year gives me that. It opens up lots of doors, and gives me options for the future. My main thing is to do the best job I can and see where I end up in the future.”
Driving for the Manor Marussia F1 Team in 2015 wasn’t the easy, especially for a driver in his rookie year in F1. Partnered with Roberto Merhi and Alexander Rossi (who made appearances late in the season) he and his pair of teammates didn’t manage to score any points.
But despite the Marussia MR03B’s lack of performance – which made it hard to really showcase his talents as a driver – Stevens believes he made the most of his first season at the top of motorsport.
“Last year was really good, but I’m not going to lie, it was hard being in an uncompetitive car. In that situation though, you always need to do the best job you can.
“I feel was always pretty good for what we had, over the whole year I was quicker than my teammate 78% of the time and looking back, that means the year was good for me.
“I learnt a lot and I feel more an overall package as a driver from it.
“In F1 it’s not just about being quick, there’s a whole load of other things you have to do and learn. I think it makes you grow a lot as a driver and I’m happy for that experience. Who know’s what can happen in 12 months time, but for now I feel like I’ve got some really good opportunities for this year.
“I look to make the most of it.”
This year Stevens will be driving in the WEC with Manor in one of its Oreca 05s after being confirmed as a driver by the team at the end of February. It’s a career move which will likely see him get his first taste of prototype racing when he makes his public debut with the team at the WEC Prologue.
“I’ve had no running in a P2 car yet, and at the moment I don’t quite know when my first run will be, it depends obviously because I was waiting around for F1, the LMP2 deal came late, and Manor need to get hold of two cars.
“It’s frustrating because Oreca are obviously based just round the corner from here at the Test, but I can’t get to Manor’s cars.
“We are going to be at the prologue, but whether we will get out before that, I’m not sure.”
It will be a year of first for Stevens. He’ll be driving GT cars and prototypes for the first time, at new tracks and will compete in his first 24-hour race too; it will all take a lot of getting used to.
The biggest learning curve of the season will arguably be learning how to drive a GT car quickly, and for long periods of time, because it requires a style different to that of a single-seater driver.
But after a run at Misano, Monza and now Paul Ricard with WRT, Stevens feels he’s almost over that hurdle already.
“The GT3 cars are getting more downforce every year,” he said. “Obviously they want to go more in that direction, but it’s not quite comparable yet, prototypes LMP2 and LMP1, downforce figure-wise are the only other cars in the sport truly similar to the top of single seaters.
“The R8 was good though, I felt like I got to grips very quickly, it moves around a lot more than what I’m used to in single-seaters. But I think as a driver it’s good to drive lots in different cars. You only grow as a driver doing that, so it’s been a good time at the test. I feel good in the car.
“The systems in these GT3 cars are interesting you know, you sit in the cockpit, the steering wheel is a lot more advanced. That’s really good to see, as any pinnacle should always be advanced in technology, and I think alls he GT3 cars are going towards that.”
To many, it was somewhat of a surprise to see him move from F1 to GT and sportscar so quickly. But as it turns out, Stevens has been in contact with WRT for a while, seeing the potential of moving over into GT racing long before a deal with Manor in F1 fell through.
“I’ve been speaking to Vincent (Vosse) and WRT for a while,” he revealed to DSC. “Last year, I spoke to him when I was looking for options, and actually kept a close relationship with him. I always knew that if I wanted to make a step across, that I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else but here at WRT.
“So far like the atmosphere, and everything that’s come with it.”
Stephen Kilbey
