ART Grand Prix has completed round two of the GT Tour with two top 5 finishes in both races on the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, including one on the podium. Grégoire Demoustier and Ulric Amado remain at the top of the drivers’ championship while Antoine Leclerc and Gilles Vannelet have climbed straight into 5th place. ART Grand Prix sits second overall in the teams championship.
For the second of seven scheduled events in the 2013 season, the GT Tour Championship crossed the French border in the direction of Italy’s historic circuit, Enzo e Dino Ferrari. Arriving as the leaders in the land of one of their main rivals, the crew of the McLaren MP4-12C No. 12, Gregory Demoustier / Ulric Amado quickly familiarized themselves with the Imola circuit, the main objective being to depart at the end of the weekend retaining the championship.
Mission accomplished with double satisfaction: the first pole position of the season with an ART Grand Prix team thanks to a brilliant performance from Grégoire Demoustier and a double finish in the top five, 2nd and 5th respectively in the two Italian events. In the first race, Gregory capitalized on his pole position and created a twenty second gap to his pursuers. Despite the heaviest time handicap, Ulric Amado came out of the pits ahead of Gilles and Antoine’s sister McLaren car which come back out among the leaders from 7th on the grid.
Both ART Grand Prix teams reversed their finishing spots for the start of race two, securing fourth and fifth places after a faultless performance from sixth (Leclerc) and 11th (Amado) on the grid. Ulric was on a solid run and made up two places before handing the car to Grégoire. Despite the handicap penalty that saw him drop to 12th, he quickly returned to 5th place.
Meanwhile, recovering from his accident at Le Mans two weeks earlier where he suffered a broken rib, Antoine Leclerc made a spectacular comeback. Together with his teammate Gilles Vannelet, a native from Epinal, led twice in his McLaren MP4-12C, pushing hard to give his MP4-12C two top 4 finishes: a few seconds behind the sister ART Grand Prix car during the first round and within two seconds of a second podium the following day. The two men propelled themselves to fifth place overall in the drivers’ championship with Gregory and Ulric still occupying top spot. ART Grand Prix sits second in the teams championship, nine points behind the leaders.
On the 8th and 9th of June, the GT Tour will head to another legendary circuit, Spa-Francorchamps for the third round of the season.
Frédéric Vasseur: “ART Grand Prix is pleased with the overall result from both crews, who were very successful in sometimes difficult conditions. Congratulations to the team and its two crews. We scored big points in both championships and have also gained a lot of confidence before the Spa races where victory is our goal.”
Grégoire Demoustier: “Taking into account our handicap time, our main objective was to try to keep the overall lead. The mission was certainly not easy, but we have completed it. I am very happy with this first pole position as well as how we managed the races. It was impossible to do any better on Saturday or Sunday. On the technical side of things, ART Grand Prix has worked very hard to ensure that the car does not suffer tire degradation, despite the heat. Therefore, the McLaren MP4-12C was competitive from the first to the last lap.”
Ulric Amado: “I am very pleased with the progress and outcome of the weekend because neither I nor Gregory knew the Imola circuit. Unluckily though, the first free practice session was held in the rain, which did not help with grip. But, we have successfully negotiated this delicate phase, which was one of the keys this weekend, alongside a good set-up. Personally, I’m disappointed not to have done better in qualifying, in part because of traffic, but also because I made a mistake on my fastest lap. I had a pole position last year and I have to find this level again to be able to fulfill our goal, the title.”
Antoine Leclerc: “This has been a very positive weekend for Gilles and I, especially after the Le Mans races that ended so badly. I’m still suffering the aftermath of the accident, but the team has fully supported me and this weekend went well. It was also a weekend that benefited ART Grand Prix as they continue to lead the championship and got a lot of points with both cars at Imola. Honestly, we couldn’t do any better. We just missed a second podium because at the pit stop we had a time penalty of 5 seconds and that benefited our direct opponents. The most important is that this result gives us confidence for the next round at Spa-Francorchamps. This is both my and Gilles’ favorite circuit and it has always served us both well. We are looking look forward to it.”
Gilles Vannelet: “We had to open our score card after the disappointment at Le Mans. Antoine had to grit his teeth and was very brave and talented to maintain such a high level of performance in qualifying and in the race. We took all the places that were available to us during the race and we have the satisfaction of getting the best possible results. For us, the season began in Imola and we now look forward to our trip to Spa so we can build on this positive momentum.”
Source : ART Grand Prix