French endurance racer Pierre Ragues has begun preparations for his 2013 season with a two-day test at Magny-Cours circuit in France.

Pierre got up-to-speed with his Signatech LMP2 car, this season shod with Michelin tyres, completing 38 laps on Monday and 67 laps on Tuesday in generally good weather conditions.

Monday’s focus was on adapting driving style to the Michelin tyres, which he has not raced on since 2009, before extending his work on tyre evaluation and basic race simulation on Tuesday.

It was announced in early February that Pierre would be taking part in his seventh Le Mans 24 Hours this year with the #36 Signatech LMP2 car.

Pierre said: “I have been eager to get back behind the wheel ever since I was confirmed to be competing in my seventh Le Mans 24 Hours with Signatech this year. This week’s two-day test was my first time driving an LMP2 car since we left Shanghai last season and it seems a long time ago! I have spent the winter working hard on my physical training and preparing for the season ahead with the team and my partners Groupe Auto Union. This season will be my first time driving with Michelin tyres since 2009 so we spent Monday re-acclimatising to the French tyres, which was very useful. We then did a lot of laps on Tuesday working on more intense tyre evaluation and race simulation work. It was good to be back in action and I look forward to the season ahead."