To start out in the Blancpain Endurance Series, the TDS Racing team made a strong debut. Indeed, while the team discovers the world of GT, it finishes 7th in the crazy race. Ludovic Badey and Henri Hassid went up by 36 positions in the 3 hour race!
This first Blancpain Endurance Series round started with a beautiful sun. The BMW Z4 GT3 had to start from the 43rd place on the grid after practices during which the team underwent a series of small issues (a broken electronic case and exhaust pipe). Henri Hassid was in charge of the start.
Nevertheless, in the middle of all the Pro drivers, he was 39th at the first bend! Throughout his stint, he remained focused on one single objective: go back up in the hierarchy of the classification! After a great stint, he was 13th when he handed over to Ludovic Badey. The latter went out of the pits in the 17th place and gained places. Unfortunately, he was slowed down as two safety cars appeared on the track on two occasions. Nevertheless, he was 8th when Henri took the steering wheel for the last time.
The latter remained safe for his last 50 minutes on track and it is in a superb 7th place that the crew of the BMW Z4 finished. Furthermore, their good result even allows them to climb on the second step of the Pro Am podium (crew composed of a professional and a gentleman driver). Very important points were scored for the championship and the team looks forward to the next round which will take place in England.
Ludovic Badey : ” I have to admit that this morning, I would have signed for this result ! We did not start off very well at the beginning of the weekend but we managed to find the efficiency of this car. Henri did a great job, he did not do any mistakes. He overtook about 25 cars, gave me the car when we were 20th and I managed to go back up to the 6th place! We had two safety cars. The first one allowed us to stick to the other cars in the front and the second was a little more annoying. In any case, we really did a good race, the car was great and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves! ”
Henri Hassid : “At the start, I gained 4 or 5 positions. Nevertheless, at the first bend, there were cars everywhere. The car was amazing, I did a great first stint and overtook more than 20 competitors. I managed to improve my lap time. But, in the two last laps, I felt my tyres deteriorating. When I gave the car to Ludovic, he did the rest of the job. He gave me the car back in the 8th place and it was vital to secure the result. To finish in the second place in Pro Am category is unbelievable-especially after the qualifying session. It was a great first experience with this car! ”
Xavier Combet, team manager : “I first wish to congratulate our two exceptional drivers. Henri was fantastic during his first stint, driving as fast as the professional drivers! We made him start first, it was a deliberate and paying strategy of the team! He started 43rd and at the end of one hour of race, he had already caught the first 15 cars!
He was well supplied by Ludovic Badey who was unfortunately not able to show all his talent because he had safety cars. At every pit stop, the mechanics did a great job. The team was strong: no mistake was done, the strategy was perfect and this allows us to end in the 7th place, especially in front of the official BMW cars! Furthermore, on a track which is not in favour of our car, we can climb on the second step of the Pro Am podium! It allows us to score big points for this beginning of season! Given the issues we had during the practices, it was difficult to imagine such a result!
We have learned a lot of things this weekend, it was not always easy for the team which finished very late! But everybody showed solidarity and we have been rewarded! The drivers have never thrown in the towel, they were remarkable! In these moments, it is necessary to be strong and it is what we did! “
Source : TDS Racing