In amongst the excitement of the new FIA Formula 1 World Championship, this weekend sees the first round of the FIA World Endurance Championship, the first such series for 20 years.
Unfortunately the series is due to start on rather a damp squib, following Peugeot’s late announcement of their withdrawal from the championship. Toyota are due to bring their new TS030 prototype to six of the eight rounds, and will have two cars at Le Mans, but are not ready for Sebring this weekend, leaving Audi almost certainly in a race of their own for overall victory.
The German manufacturer returns with a largely unchanged driver line-up in its three cars, with only one addition: that of Loic Duval to the Timo Bernhard/Romain Dumas car. If Audi face little or no external opposition, it should at least be interesting to see which of the three driver crews comes out on top.
Later in the season, the conventional turbodiesel R18s will be complemented by two hybrid “quattro” chassis, using flywheel storage technology developed with Williams Hybrid Power to supply recovered energy to the front axle. Toyota’s prototype, also a hybrid, uses super-capacitors rather than batteries or a flywheel.
Elsewhere in LMP1, the new HPD cars of Strakka and Nigel Stepney’s JRM team are likely to fight for best-of-the-rest honours with Rebellion Racing’s Lola-Toyota, who have Nick Heidfeld on the driving strength.
There will be the usual multi-marque battle in the GT class, with the AF Corse and Luxury Racing Ferrari teams taking on Felbermayr Porsche, the newly downsized Prodrive Aston Martin Vantage programme, Rahal-Letterman BMW, and Corvette Racing. BMW and Corvette are present as Sebring is also the opening round of the American Le Mans Series, and sadly these teams will not be competing in the full WEC – at least, not yet.
Sebring is being broadcast in part by Motors TV in the UK, with coverage starting at 14:15 tomorrow.
| Date | Event |
| 17 March | Sebring 12 Hours (USA) |
| 5 May | Spa 6 Hours (Belgium) |
| 16-17 June | Le Mans 24 Hours (France) |
| 25 August | Silverstone 6 Hours (Great Britain) |
| 15 September | Interlagos 6 Hours (Brazil) |
| 29 September | Bahrain 6 Hours (Bahrain) |
| 14 October | Fuji 6 Hours (Japan) |
| 27 October | Shanghai 6 Hours (China) |
Unfortunately the series is due to start on rather a damp squib, following Peugeot’s late announcement of their withdrawal from the championship. Toyota are due to bring their new TS030 prototype to six of the eight rounds, and will have two cars at Le Mans, but are not ready for Sebring this weekend, leaving Audi almost certainly in a race of their own for overall victory.
The German manufacturer returns with a largely unchanged driver line-up in its three cars, with only one addition: that of Loic Duval to the Timo Bernhard/Romain Dumas car. If Audi face little or no external opposition, it should at least be interesting to see which of the three driver crews comes out on top.
Later in the season, the conventional turbodiesel R18s will be complemented by two hybrid “quattro” chassis, using flywheel storage technology developed with Williams Hybrid Power to supply recovered energy to the front axle. Toyota’s prototype, also a hybrid, uses super-capacitors rather than batteries or a flywheel.
Elsewhere in LMP1, the new HPD cars of Strakka and Nigel Stepney’s JRM team are likely to fight for best-of-the-rest honours with Rebellion Racing’s Lola-Toyota, who have Nick Heidfeld on the driving strength.
There will be the usual multi-marque battle in the GT class, with the AF Corse and Luxury Racing Ferrari teams taking on Felbermayr Porsche, the newly downsized Prodrive Aston Martin Vantage programme, Rahal-Letterman BMW, and Corvette Racing. BMW and Corvette are present as Sebring is also the opening round of the American Le Mans Series, and sadly these teams will not be competing in the full WEC – at least, not yet.
Sebring is being broadcast in part by Motors TV in the UK, with coverage starting at 14:15 tomorrow.
