Franck Mailleux and the Signatech-Nissan team have been forced to retire from the 12 Hours of Sebring race after a collision in the third hour of the event caused irreparable damage to the Oreca 03 chassis during Olivier Lombard’s second stint. 

The team had enjoyed a solid start to the opening round of this year’s new World Endurance Championship with Franck qualifying in fourth place on Friday and completing a strong double stint as the race got underway at 10.30 local time on Saturday morning.

Franck made a good start from his fourth place in LMP2 and made his way up into the podium positions with relative ease. A delay at his first scheduled pit stop moved him back into fourth place in the combined LMP2 standings, but a strong second of those cars in the WEC LMP2 classification as he handed over to Olivier Lombard. Unfortunately, Lombard was unable to complete his competitive double stint as a result of an unexpected accident on lap 85 of the race.

The driver was caught out by a patch of oil left on the track by another car which caused him to spin. This alone would not have been much of a problem but, at the same time, a GT car running behind him did exactly the same thing and ended up crashing into the #23 Signatech-Nissan.

The car was transported back to the garage in the hope that the team could rejoin the race but the damage to the front of the car, caused by the GT car collision, was irreparable and there was no alternative but to retire from the race.

The pace and reliability of the Nissan-powered Oreca 03 chassis and Dunlop tyres gave the team cause for encouragement right from the first laps in the pre-event test earlier in the week. Their competitiveness was underlined by the speed of the car during both Franck’s and Olivier’s stints so there is natural disappointment that they will be returning empty handed from Sebring, a race in which they scored a podium finish in 2011.

Franck Mailleux commented: “We are all very disappointed to have retired from Sebring, especially at such an early stage of the race. After a solid qualifying yesterday, I felt I had a really good double stint at the start of the race and we were quickly establishing a podium rhythm. The car felt quick, the Nissan engine was responsive, as always, and the Dunlop tyres were giving me confidence, so all in all I think we would have fought hard for a podium finish. It is a long race and anything can happen but it is very frustrating to be heading back to Europe with no points from this opening race of the new WEC after our initial promise. I have had a great week at this fantastic circuit with the Signatech-Nissan team and my new team-mates, Olivier and Jordan. We have all had a very good working relationship and this gives us a good foundation for the rest of the season. It’s great to be back in the full swing of the racing season and we will look to rectify this disappointment at the next race at Spa-Francorchamps in May. Thanks also to my sponsors, Sojasun, who have, as always, shown their unwavering support.”