European premiere of the Porsche RS Spyder

At the official test of the Le Mans Series (LMS) in Le Castellet (France), the Porsche RS Spyder celebrated its European premiere. Here, the two sports prototypes of the Team Essex (Denmark) and Van Merksteijn Motorsport (Netherlands) met their opponents in the fiercely-contested LMP2 class for the first time. The Swiss Horag Racing team was not present for the test as it is already in Florida where it will contest the Sebring 12 hour race on 15 March.

The main purpose in southern France was for teams and drivers to familiarise themselves with the new sports prototype. For both race teams the RS Spyder represents new territory.

Sharing driving duties in the Porsche RS Spyder of the Dutch team for the 2008 season is a high-profile trio. Joining team-owner Peter van Merksteijn and ex-DTM pilot Jeroen Bleekemolen to contest the LMS is Jos Verstappen. The ex-Formula 1 driver, who recently took a two-year break, is totally enthusiastic about the 476 hp sports prototype. “The Spyder has amazing grip in the fast corners. It’s incredibly stabile under braking and we haven’t experienced one technical problem. This is simply a fantastic car which is great fun to drive.”

The Danish Essex team also takes up the race with a well-known line-up of swift drivers. John Nielsen brings with him successes in sports car racing. He was world sports car champion and won, amongst others, the Le Mans 24 hour race in 1990. Nielsen doubles as team manager and driver. Casper Elgaard, the second Essex driver, is multiple Danish touring car champion. Aside from finding a suitable set-up for the circuit, the team is also practicing its pit stops in preparation for the season. John Nielsen: “Good pit stops can mean the difference between winning and losing a race. For this reason we tested our pit stops here in the narrow pits under stressful conditions. My boys are extremely ambitious. They want to be the best at pit stops.”

 

Also putting the tests to good use are the Porsche teams competing in the near-standard GT2 class with the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR. For the IMSA Performance Matmut team, works driver Richard Lietz (Austria) and his French team mate Raymond Narac travelled to Le Castellet. Competing for the German Felbermayr team are Porsche works driver Marc Lieb, 2007 winner of the 24 hour race on the Nuerburgring-Nordschleife, and Australia’s Alex Davison.