[13-05-2013]
PIERRE RAGUES AND SIGNATECH-ALPINE TARGET THE PODIUM AT IMOLA
Pierre Ragues and the Signatech-Alpine LMP2 team will be hoping to make a breakthrough onto the podium at Imola this weekend having finished in a close fourth place at the last round of the European Le Mans Series at Silverstone.
Pierre battled valiantly in the tough wet conditions at Silverstone to claim fourth place in the shortened race but at Imola, where conditions are set to be much warmer, the team will be looking to maximise the performance of the Signatech-Alpine A450, equipped with Michelin tyres and to reinforce its competitiveness in this year’s ELMS campaign.
The French racer heads to Imola with prior experience of the popular track having competed on the revised circuit layout back in 2011 in the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup. The 4.909km circuit was revised in 2007 and incorporates nine right-hand turns and 13 left-handers in a technically challenging anti-clockwise lap.
The 3 Hours of Imola will act as the prelude to the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans and will have an increased grid of 28 cars across four classes. Pierre will be hoping to shine in the LMP2 category and avoid the rain that influenced the outcome of Silverstone last month.
Quick Q+A with Pierre Ragues
What are your realistic objectives from this race weekend?
“We had a tough start to the season at Silverstone with the weather conditions playing such a key role in the race so it was reasonably satisfying to come away with fourth place. We know that we are capable of more so the podium will be our main target at Imola where the weather should be much warmer than it was at Silverstone. The Signatech-Alpine A450 and Michelin tyres seems to be a potent combination so we will do everything we can, as a team, to extract full performance from the car and from ourselves.”
Do you enjoy racing at Imola?
“I raced at the new-look Imola back in 2011 as part of the ILMC championship so I will rely on the experience of that weekend, even if the result back then wasn’t to my liking! It’s a complex circuit and anti-clockwise but it is fun to drive and I think it require us drivers to keep focussed at all times. Hopefully the technical make-up of the track suits our car but we will use free practice to make sure that we find the best set-up possible to fight for the podium in Saturday’s race. I will do everything I can for the Signatech-Alpine team and my sponsors Group Auto to secure our first podium of the season.”
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