French endurance racer Pierre Ragues was recently confirmed to join Signatech-Nissan for selected events of this year’s new-look World Endurance Championship. Pierre will form an integral part of the team’s second car line-up at the six hours of Spa-Francorchamps and Silverstone, as well as the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans, an event at which he has accrued important experience over the years.  

Pierre was part of the Signature line-up in the Le Mans Series in 2009 and 2010 when the team were crowned vice champions in the LMP1 championship, so this new appointment is something of reunion. Signatech-Nissan has already proven the competitiveness of its LMP2 car with the ILMC title last season and encouraging pace in the 12 Hours of Sebring event.

Quick Q+A with Pierre Ragues

How pleased are you with your role at Signatech-Nissan this season?

“I am extremely pleased to be part of the Signatech-Nissan squad for 2012 and it is a great pleasure for me personally to be coming back into a team with whom I shared many good results in the past. The entire team is fantastic to work with and with the technical support of Nissan, a great manufacturer; it is a very competitive package. I am currently scheduled to be joining the team for Spa, Silverstone and of course Le Mans, as part of a second car which the team will be running for those events, and I am really looking forward to it.”

What are your objectives for these events?

“I know what my capabilities are and even though I was in LMP1 last year, I was still following Signatech-Nissan’s excellent results in LMP2, so I know what we will be capable of achieving. The car looked competitive at the Sebring 12 hours in what is a very challenging event so I have no reason that we cannot be amongst the fight for the podium, or at least the high points scoring positions in each event we are taking part in.”

The off-season has been long, how have you kept busy?

“Even when we are not racing, I am always keeping active, either by training or taking part in karting events. In fact, the French karting championship gets underway this weekend and I will be taking part in the KZ2 category at Varennes. It’s great to be taking part in karting and to use it as part of my training and preparation for the WEC events later in the year. It has been a long winter but my management has been working hard to secure me the best possible role for this season and I am over the moon to be part of Signatech-Nissan, who I know have complete faith in my abilities and appreciate the experience I can bring to the team. I am also thankful to have the support of Group Auto Union. I can’t wait to go racing!"