French race star Pierre Ragues made a big impression in last weekend’s 4 Hours of Paul Ricard, the penultimate round of the 2014 European Le Mans Series. 

 

Ragues re-joined the NewBlood by Morand Racing squad for the event alongside Christian Klien and Gary Hirsch, taking to the cockpit of the competitive #43 BMW powered Morgan Judd. 

 

He was on the pace throughout the weekend and put in a sublime double stint at the start of the race, perfectly executing the team’s masterful strategy to help secure his and the team’s first endurance win of the season. 

 

The team now lies third in the championship with the potential to fight for the title at the final round of the season. Pierre, partnered by Group Auto and Sparco, reflects on a successful weekend.

 

It was a very memorable weekend and I was over the moon with the outcome. I have been fortunate to take part in rallying and endurance this season, and to contest the final two ELMS rounds with NewBlood by Morand Racing, following our solid run in Austria, was a dream. We were on the pace from the start of the weekend and were able to translate that into a victory – our first of the year, which now allows us to potentially fight for the title in Estoril.

 

I have built up a lot of experience this year moving from rally cars to endurance and I am very used to it now. The #43 Morgan Judd is great to drive and very quick to get used to. I felt comfortable with the car from the first session and demonstrated in the race our full performance potential. We knew we could do well at Paul Ricard and it was great to reward the effort and hard work of the team with that result! It was particularly special for me because I took the ELMS title with Signatech-Alpine last season at Paul Ricard. The whole weekend brought back fantastic memories, and helped us make some new ones.

 

The team has made me feel very welcome and I get on well with everyone, as well as with Christian and Gary who are great team-mates. I have had fantastic support from my partners Group Auto and also from Sparco, for whom I act as an ambassador. Their state of the art EXTREMA RS-10 overall has offered me a real advantage, particularly in the hot conditions in the south of France, and it is a pleasure to work with them. I am very fortunate for the support I receive, which is why it is nice to repay that faith with victories. I am looking forward to more of the same at Estoril next month.