Loïc Duval and his Audi Sport Team Joest crew-mates Lucas di Grassi and Oliver Jarvis enter round two of this year’s FIA World Endurance Championship – the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps (April 30 – May 2) – with two goals in mind: to challenge for victory at the Belgian Grand Prix venue and prepare for the iconic Le Mans 24 Hours.
With classic corners like Eau Rouge, Pouhon and Stavelot, Spa-Francorchamps has always been a favourite amongst drivers, including Loïc. “It’s a long, winding track (7.003km) with fast, sweeping corners as well as a fascinating history,” explained the Frenchman. “I really like the circuit and have been pretty successful on it over the past three seasons with a win in 2012 and consecutive second-place finishes in the last two years. I have fond memories from the event and will definitely do my best to keep the momentum up. As ever, we’ll have to keep an eye on the weather, which is always a tricky factor at Spa.”
After finishing fifth at Silverstone’s WEC opener, Loïc hopes to claim a fourth successive podium at the Belgian Grand Prix venue, but his top priority is further ahead.
“Spa is something of a dress rehearsal for the Le Mans 24 Hours,” said Loïc. “So our primary goal is to fine-tune everything for that. Le Mans is definitely on everyone’s mind and some cars are already sporting low downforce in preparation for Circuit de la Sarthe. At Silverstone, Lucas, Olly and I didn’t secure the ideal result, but we still got 10 points, which is easier to recover from than no score at all.
“What really matters is that the Audi was very competitive [the #7 R18 e-tron quattro of Marcel Fässler, André Lotterer and Benoît Tréluyer won the opening round]. The race just goes to show how much work the team has done over the winter to give us a great car, and that the potential is definitely there. That said Silverstone is a circuit that usually suits us so we shouldn’t assume that we’d be stronger than Porsche and Toyota everywhere else. Spa should give us a good idea of how everyone fares using their Le Mans configuration, which is a bit of a question mark at the moment.”
Duval will fly to Belgium in a Pilatus aircraft provided by his new partner, air operator Fly 7. What’s more, fellow Swiss residents and WEC stars Sébastien Buemi, Lucas di Grassi, Romain Dumas and Nicolas Lapierre will join him on the flight.
On April 21, Duval’s Pilatus PC-12 was officially unveiled at Lausanne-Blecherette airport in Switzerland with several media and partners in attendance. Among them was reigning World Touring Car Champion José-Maria Lopez, who also lives in the area.
Loïc and Fly 7 would like to extend their warmest thanks to all those who came to the event as well as those who made it a success, starting with Lausanne-Blecherette airport, Champagnes Drappier, Finstoy Group, Gaspard Yachts, Mauro Traiteur, Ouranos and Vin Vaudois.