This weekend, the 24-hour version of the Le Mans circuit saw the G-Drive Racing by SIGNATECH-NISSAN team make its debut, during the 80th edition of the Le Mans event. Roman Rusinov, Pierre Ragues and Nelson Panciatici finished the 24 hours of racing in the Top Ten of the overall classification, and a magnificent 4th in the LMP2 category.

After the weather interfered with free practice, the team qualified in 3rd position in the LMP2 category (xxth overall), the crew of Rusinov/Ragues/Panciatici making an impact from the very start and making their ambitions clear.

After being very competitive at the start of the event, the SIGNATECH NISSAN team quickly moved into the top 10 overall after four hours of racing, and was lying 2nd or 3rd in LMP2 for much of the race. However, suffering from a puncture at the end of the morning, on the right rear tyre, all the hopes of a podium evaporated, although the Russian driver Roman Rusinov had defended his position fiercely. The car remained stationary in the pits while the team replaced the rear block and the damaged extractor.

Philippe Sinault : « We had a fabulous result for this brand-new team within our grasp, but at Le Mans, nothing is ever given away, and further to the puncture, all our hopes of a podium faded. »

Pierre Ragues : «I believed in it for a long time, we aimed for reliability rather than for pure performance. To reach the finish line at Le Mans is always an achievement, however, to finish so close to our goal is infuriating ! »

Roman Rusinov : « It is fantastic for G-Drive Racing to finish in the top ten and 4th in LMP2 at their very first participation at Le Mans, and the result augurs well for the future. «

Nelson Panciatici : « This first experience was an incredible moment for me. These were my first 24 Hours of Le Mans. They will remain engraved in my memory. I can’t wait to come back; the team has really done a great job. »

Source : G-Drive by Signatech-Nissan