Just as the international motorsport scene is going into its traditional winter hibernation mode, the time has come for reviews and other end of season conclusions. And the least one can say and write is that Maxime Martin can be truly satisfied with his 2011 campaign, which was as rich as it was intense. “When I look back on my various participations this year, I can only be but really happy, the Brussels based driver commented. “There were lots of positive things, lots of victories, and more especially some great races, often highly prestigious. In fact my only regret is not to have had everything in hand to perform well during the final rounds of the European FIA GT3 Championship as also the FIA GT1 world competition. But that’s how it is. As for the rest, the objectives set at the beginning of the season were achieved … “

Amongst others Maxime Martine’s key performances during two 24 Hour events, which no driver would wish to miss out on … “Being given the opportunity to compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans at the wheel of an LMP1 Prototype, which this splendid Lola Aston Martin is, is quite simply unforgettable. As for the title Rookie of the Year, I took that to be the cherry on top of a superb cake. And all rounded off by clinching a 7th place overall. At the 24 Hours of Spa, the top international GT3 players were on hand. Registering pole position at the wheel of the Marc VDS Racing BMW Z4 was definitely another highly intense moment. I can honestly say that I was truly proud of that performance … “

And then there were these four victories achieved in hard fought battles in the FIA GT1 World Championship at the wheel of a Marc VDS Racing Ford GT, which this year was not spoilt by the Balance of Performance … « We grabbed victory at Abu Dhabi, at the Sachsenring, and twice on the Ordos circuit, in the vicinity of Peking. On a world scene, this is the top! On the other hand it was a pity that our car was somewhat lacking in power and torque. On certain tracks, where full boost was ongoing, we were beaten outright. We saw this during the final at San Luis. Under these conditions it is obviously quite difficult to go all out for the title. Having to alternate with teammates did not really help either. They obviously didn’t do a bad job, but the inevitable time it takes to adapt to a circuit, a championship or a car did not play in our favour. If one takes all these elements into account I reckon we can consider our overall performance to have been a success.”

But there is another competition in which Maxime proved his worth, namely the Blancpain Endurance Series, with two victories respectively on the Magny-Cours and Silverstone circuits, at the wheel of the Marc VDS Racing BMW, the latter allowing him to clinch pole at the 24 Hours of Spa.

At the end of every racing season the inevitable question of the future, on the short and long term, comes to mind. In Martin’s case the coming weeks will be filled with intense discussions and negotiations … “We know that the Marc VDS Racing team won’t be competing in FIA GT1, which I regret. Therefore one of my objectives is to find a drive in that competition … as long as his organisation has been confirmed. As for the rest I’m dealing with loads of people, but presently nothing is official. And seeing that I have no intention of solely competing in six races of the Blancpain Endurance Series 2012, everything is still wide open. Let’s hope that we can soon reveal the first part of the good news. In the meanwhile I would like to thank all those who have allowed me to achieve such a wonderful 2011 year. Bring on the new season! ”

Source : Maxime Martin