Shortly after the 2008 Le Mans 24 Hours; Group ORECA began concentrating their efforts on the 2009 event with one objective: move up to the next level in the “Le Mans Endurance Challenge”. In order to compete with the top manufacturers – they developed the ORECA-01, the first prototype ever to be entirely developed in Signes !
Barcelona and Spa proved to be perfect testing grounds for the new car with the implementation of mechanical evolutions, and then a new aerodynamics package. After these two “preparation” races which resulted in a podium finish, TEAM ORECA-
Matmut-AIM organised a successful test at Magny-Cours with two cars and their six Le Mans drivers: Bruno Senna, Stéphane Ortelli and Tiago Monteiro in n°10, and Olivier Panis, Nicolas Lapierre and Soheil Ayari in n°11. “We had numerous objectives during these tests and we have achieved them,” declared David Floury, Technical Director. “We wanted to allow our trios to really familiarise themselves with the new car especially during night conditions. We were able to fine tune the car’s set – up, better understand the new aerodynamics and confirm the evolutions. In addition, we carried out 2008/2009 tyre comparisons, as well as some pit stop training. We spent a great deal of time together and the testing was very positive which puts us in good position for the upcoming race.”
Hugues de Chaunac’s team is motivated and extremely determined with a healthy mixture of humility and ambition and more than ready to take on the Le Mans challenge: “This is the Mount Everest challenge of motor sport,” explained David Floury. “Our first main objective is for both cars to successfully complete the race, but also with the very best results. We need to maximise the potential of our cars and team and do not have room for error.”
After the weighing in session at Jacobins (Tuesday at 14H00) that kicks of the start of the big week of the Le Mans 24 Hours, the practice session will commence on Wednesday featuring a brand new format (6 hours), followed on Thursday with the qualifying sessions (2 – 2 hours sessions) The team will use these qualifying sessions to focus on preparing the two ORECA-01s for the race: finding the optimal set-up, and making that crucial decision of all – the appropriate tyre selection.
Source : ORECA