VdeV Endurance Championship - Circuit Paul Ricard - France

20th - 22nd may 2016

Event report (based on VdeV press releases) Raymond Bonnello, photos Raymond Bonnello & Fréderic Lemaire

Magical Le Castellet to kick off the summer

«With the hottest season of the year fast approaching, the V de V Endurance Series invite you to the location of their next round, deep in the heart of the Var: the magnificent Circuit Paul Ricard. With its attractive, picturesque setting, every year our drivers are eager to make the journey to Provence, where the fabulous track and the circuit’s marvellous infrastructures await. This year, we made the decision to host this round in the spring, and we’re planning to receive a huge gathering of cars. The GT/Touring Car/ LMP3 category is once again on the rise; we now have competitors from all four corners of Europe, of which several teams and drivers are renown in the world of endurance racing. With regards to the GT class, we have the latest generation of Ferrari, Porsche and Mercedes; each round bringing us closer to thirty entrants. The same can be said for Monoplace and Funyo Challenges, whose grids are overflowing with competitors. V de V is evermore present in the press – we’ve had numerous enquiries;

people talking about the future and we’re proud to see the fruits of V de V Sports’ hard work. The atmosphere of our series is unique; at the end of each race we enjoy exchanging ideas… We seem to be satisfying the masses, and if this is the case, then it’s partially down to the prestigious circuits on this year’s calendar in France, Spain, Italy and Portugal.»

Eric Van de Vyver (creator, promoter and organizer)

VdeV Endurance Championship - Circuit Paul Ricard - France (event report (based on VdeV press releases) Raymond Bonnello, photos Raymond Bonnello & Fréderic Lemaire) - picture number 001

Friday, May 21st

The first day of the V de V Endurance Series third meeting in 2016, held at the Circuit ‘Paul Ricard’, met everyone’s expectations under sunny skies. The weekend’s first private practice sessions were thus held in perfect conditions, enabling each competitor to find a good pace for Saturday’s qualifying: the first moment of confrontation!

4 Hours of GT / Touring car / LM P3 Endurance

GT / Touring car: Three-way match

The first outing for competitors entered in the GT/Touring car/LMP3 category reflected the trend seen at other meetings so far: a fierce battle between the #1 Ferrari 488 GT3 of team Visiom, driven by Pagny, Perrier and Bouvet and rivals AF Corse, with their #51 Ferrari 458 GT3, entrusted to Cordoni, Montermini and Zanuttini this weekend. The French team held the advantage for most of practice, yet against all expectations, in the end it was the #70 Dodge Viper GT3-R of ANTeam and drivers Stucky and Yerly who produced the fastest time of the session. In Private Practice 1, the #45 Renault R.S. 01 of team AB Sport Auto was just outside of the top 3 fastest runners, however in the afternoon session, drivers Thybaud, Proust and Jousse seized the moment, making the most of the cooler temperatures, and placed the car at the top of the time sheets. Visiom’s Ferrari set the second fastest time, just two tenths from the French GT car, and rounding up the top 3 in this session was the new Porsche 911 GT3-R (#76) of team IMSA Performance, in the hands of Narac and Cornac. GTV2 was dominated by IDEC Sport Racing’s Porsche 997 Cup car, whose line up this weekend includes Alloin, Enjalbert and Kox, and in the S1 class, GPC Motorsport’s Vortex was the quickest on track in morning practice. The car driven by Forgione and Alexander David was however trumped by Dog Racing’s SF V8 machine in the afternoon.

LM P3 / PFV: Advantage Ligier

Before arriving at the Circuit ‘Paul Ricard’ the Ginetta G57 proved unstoppable over one lap, yet here it seems the Ligier JS P3 is more comfortable on the famous track. The quickest time in morning practice, set by new team Kox Racing - whose driver line-up includes Kox and Pronk this weekend, was beaten by Fontaine, Decultot and Perroy in the latter session, who sit behind the wheel of the N’Race #93 LMP3 car. Nevertheless Ginetta remained competitive throughout the sessions as Simpson and Tomlinson, at the helm of Simpson Motorsport’s #57 car placed the prototype in 2nd position on the timesheets. The third slot was occupied by Graff Racing’s #888 machine in morning practice, with their Ligier JS P3 entrusted to regulars Trouillet, Rosselo and Dagoneau.

Saturday, May 22nd

The Circuit of Le Castellet is seen by many as one of France’s national treasures - due to both its setting and the quality of the race track – and when the sun decides to make an appearance, the level of competition seems to escalate in the V de V Endurance Series. Just take a look at what happened yesterday!

GT / Tourisme : Visiom, polesitters with their new Ferrari 488 GT3

Visiom’s brand new #1 Ferrari has had an absolutely sensational start to the weekend. After producing the quickest time in Friday’s Private Practice sessions, and then finishing at the top of the timesheets in the final Free Practice session, it wasn’t a surprise when Pagny, Perrier and Bouvet crossed the line to take their second pole position in three races. The reigning champions will start ahead of their best enemies; Cordoni, Montermini and Zanuttini, who together with the rest of the AF Corse team will attempt to beat the Frenchmen in their Ferrari 458 GT3 (#51). ANTeam continued to shine in qualifying, securing third place on the grid with their Dodge Viper GT3-R (#70), entrusted to Stucky and Yerly, who sit next to the Mercedes AMG GT3 of team IDEC Sport Racing (#17) and drivers Patrice and Paul Lafargue; another new addition to the V de V GT pack this weekend. Appearing in order are the following cars: AB Sport Auto’s Renault R.S. 01 (#45), whose line-up includes Thybaud, Proust and Jousse; the #76 Porsche 991 GT3-R of team IMSA Performance and drivers Narac and Cornac and finally the #25 Audi R8 LMS Ultra entered by WRT, driven this weekend by Versisch, Soenen and Detavernier. In the GTV2 clan, the advantage is in the hands of IDEC Sport Racing, who start at the head of the pack with their Porsche 991 GT3 Cup car (#15), whose drivers include Alloin, Enjalbert and Kox. In class S1, Boueix, Pourquié and Gasperini set the quickest time in their SF V8 machine.

LM P3 / PFV: Simpson Motorsport are invincible

It’s a third consecutive pole position for the #57 Ginetta G57 of team Simpson Motorsport, handled by Lawrence Tomlinson, owner of Ginetta Cars, and teammate Mike Simpson, factory driver. The British manufacturer’s success is completed by a second Ginetta on the front row, that of Italian team Nova Race (#59), driven by Magnoni and Lequeux this weekend. The first Ligier JS P3 to appear on the grid is the #13 prototype of team Inter Europol Competition, entrusted to regular drivers Smiechowski and Hippe, who start in 3rd, in front of another Ligier, the #93 machine of team N’Race and its driver line-up Fontaine, Decultot and Perroy. The top five is completed by trio Watt, Rattenbury and Perrin, at the controls of the #50 Simpson Motorsport Ginetta, who will start ahead of Graff Racing’s Ligier (#888), driven by Trouillet, Rosselo and Dagoneau. Finally, Kox Racing’s prototype, entrusted to Kox and Pronck, and Be Motorsport’s machine, driven by Prado, Bakker and Castillo, both sporting Ligier, finished in 7th and 8th position respectively in the overall PFV/LMP3 classification.

Sunday, May 23rd

The third and final day of the V de V Endurance Series meeting at the Circuit ‘Paul Ricard’ reflected the quality of racing on track - stunning.

4 Hours of GT / Touring cars / LM P3 Endurance

GT / Touring cars: A victorious maiden voyage for IDEC Sport Racing’s Mercedes

Patrice and Paul Lafargue set out to test and familiarise themselves with their brand new Mercedes AMG GT3 this weekend in V de V. Instead, they ended up earning themselves a victory, the first of the season for IDEC Sport Racing’s duo - who were still in second place with only three minutes remaining on the clock.

Despite appearing at the top of the standings one hour into the race, the primary stages were dominated by #1 Ferrari 488 GT3 of team Visiom, entrusted to regulars Pagny, Perrier and Bouvet and the #76 Porsche 991 GT3-R of IMSA Performance and drivers Narac and Cornac. All the while the #51 Ferrari 458 GT3 of AF Corse, handled by Cordoni and Montermini and the #45 Renault R.S. 01 of team AB Auto Sport, with drivers Thybaud, Proust and Jousse on board both battled among the frontrunners, influencing many position changes.

Following driver changes, pit stops and handicap drive-throughs, the final countdown began, with, in order, the #17 leading the class, ahead of #51, #76, #45 and #1. The Italian machine unfortunately picked up a puncture out on track, damaging the rear right corner of the car, pushing it down the standings, while the top trio were separated by a mere 15 seconds with only 10 minutes left to go. IDEC Sport Racing believed they were out of the race though, when they pitted for fuel in the final stages and discovered all the pumps were occupied. However, thanks to a drive-through dished out to AF Corse right at the last minute, due to non-respect of the track limits, the Mercedes crossed the line to take first in front of the Porsche and Ferrari 458.

AB Sport Auto just missed out on a podium finish, in front of the second Renault, sister car #11 driven by Van de Vyver, Carugati and Wegelin, who also earned themselves the crown of the Prestige category. Second in this race was the Porsche 991 Cup car of Mallegol, Bachelier and Blank, and third the SF V8 of team Dog Racing (drivers Boueix, Pourquié and Gasperini). The two beforementioned GTs finished second in their respective classes: GTV2 and S1 - which were dominated throughout the weekend by the #16 Porsche 991 Cup car of Racing Technology (Leherpeur/Mechaly) and the SF V8 of Solution F (Charriol/Rayneri/Silva)

LM P3 / PFV: Ligier and Inter Europol Competition without objection

The Ginettas once again demonstrated their pace - first in qualifying, with the display of G57 prototypes on the front row: Simpson Motorsport’s #57 machine, driven by Tomlinson and Simpson and Nova Race’s #59 car entrusted to Magnoni and Lequeux, before once again showing the car’s capabilities in the race. A few mechanical faults however opened up an opportunity for the Ligier prototypes - in particular that of Inter Europol Competition (#13) and its drivers Jakub Smiechowski and Martin Hippe.

Finally over the threat posed by the G57s, the duo managed to put a comfortable distance between themselves and the next Ligier in line - the #888 prototype of team Graff - crossing the finish line to take the victory. Second place finishers Trouillet, Rosselo and Dagoneau had to remain cautious however of rivals Fontaine, Decultot and Perroy in the #93 N’Race car, third in LMP3. Fifth overall, Kox Racing’s Ligier (#48) climbed back up the standings after a difficult start to the race, to finish in a satisfying position in what was their first outing in V de V. The team finished behind the winning G57 (fourth overall): #55 of CWS Racing and Colin White, assisted by Charlie Robertson - who together take home a victory for the PFV category.

Behind the wheel of Simpson Motorsport’s #50 G57: Watt, Ratenbury and Perrin finish on the second step of the PFV podium, in front of polesitters Tomlinson and Simpson who unfortunately experienced a few issues with their #57 car in the early stages.