After two successful seasons in the European Le Mans Series (ELMS), Swiss Benoit Morand joins the LMP2 class of the FIA WEC while Japanese team SARD RACING TEAM is coming back in an international championship.
Over the past two seasons in the highly competitive LMP2 class, Benoit Morand and his Judd-powered Morgan claimed one overall victory, finished in the top 3 in the final standings of the 2014 ELMS and twice received the chequered flag in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Founded in 1972, Sigma Automotive Co Ltd started its racing activities as SARD (the acronym for Sigma Advanced Research and Development) in the mid-eighties, establishing a long-term relationship with Toyota, notably in endurance racing. SARD and Toyota scored their best result in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1994, with the runner-up spot for the 94 CV prototype driven by Jeff Krosnoff, Eddie Irvine and Mauro Martini.
These two approaches of motor racing, blending Benoit Morand’s reputation of originality and performance and SARD’s Japanese tradition and racing experience, are joining together today to create TEAM SARD-MORAND. The team is initiating an exciting challenge, which starts in 2015 with a significant presence in the LMP2 grid of the FIA WEC with two Morgan EVO SARDs.
Katsuyuki Sato (SARD RACING TEAM President): “Benoit Morand has the spirit to win and the knowledge needed to be a strong team which seems a usual things for a team manager but it is not occasional case in today’s motor sport. We would also like to demonstrate our new technology in FIA WEC and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.”
Benoit Morand (Team Principal): “For a young team like us, it is an honour to share our destiny with SARD RACING TEAM. SARD’s long history demonstrates that this team has always been searching for new challenges while combining a professional spirit with a family environment.”
TEAM SARD-MORAND choose an involvement of international level in the LMP2 class of the FIA WEC, a world championship in great expansion attracting many renowned new teams as well as drivers of high reputation. In order to tackle with a fierce competition, TEAM SARD-MORAND will enter two cars in 2015 and aim at battling as soon as possible in the LMP2 top positions.
Shin Kato (SARD RACING TEAM founder): “Our best finish in the 24 Hours of Le Mans is second so you can easily guess our next target. As far as I know, the LMP2 class will be very competitive in 2015, notably because of a growing number of entries.”
Benoit Morand: “TEAM SARD-MORAND is born to win races, it’s in our genes! The Morgan chassis received a new 2015 homologation. After discussions with our partner Onroak Automotive, it rapidly was obvious that thanks to the changes which can be made, the chassis will keep a very good level of competitiveness. We know the Morgan very well and it is the best option for TEAM SARD-MORAND in 2015.”
TEAM SARD-MORAND will once again collaborate with Onroak Automotive, and the two Morgan EVO SARDs entered in the FIA WEC will feature the 2015 technical evolutions designed by Jacques Nicolet’s staff, and will be fitted by a 3.6 litre V8 SARD engine. Dunlop has been working with Benoit Morand since the inception of his team and will carry on this year as the tyre supplier for TEAM SARD-MORAND.
Hideki Noda (SARD RACING TEAM General Manager): “In the two previous seasons Benoit Morand run and won with the Morgan chassis. Endurance racing is not just about speed, there are many conditions required for victory. I think the Morgan is really reliable and easy to drive, and this is very important for our drivers.”
Benoit Morand: “SARD RACING TEAM became a team of worldwide reputation thanks to their long relationship with Toyota, but they remain very humble. Hideki Noda previously was a driver of very high standard outside Japan and his global comprehension of motor sports will be very helpful.”
Jacques Nicolet (Onroak Automotive President): “I am very pleased and proud to keep on partnering with Benoit Morand who will trust us once again by entering a second chassis by Onroak Automotive for his great leap in the FIA WEC. We have developed a new aero kit, the Morgan LMP2 EVO will be even more performing, and I hope it will offer the team even more victories very soon.”
For their two Morgan EVO SARD chassis, TEAM SARD-MORAND blend the experience and talents of drivers from all over the world. Christian Klien from Austria (a former Formula 1 and LMP1 factory driver, who raced with Benoit Morand’s team in 2013 and 2014) and Koki Saga from Japan (a Super Formula and Super GT stalwart in his country) will share the #39 car. The third driver will be announced shortly. Pierre Ragues from France and Oliver Webb from the UK (both claimed the LMP2 drivers’ title, in 2013 and 2014 respectively) will be at the wheel of the #43. They will joined by the winner of the “Race To 24” show for the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the remaining rounds of the 2015 FIA WEC. The team mate of the Ragues-Webb pair for the Silverstone and Spa-Francorchamps race will be announced soon.
Christian Klien: “It was satisfying to witness a private team improve in stature and become a race winning team in the 2014 ELMS. I am proud to have contributed to this progress and have enjoyed working closely with Benoit Morand, his wife Gladys and the other team members. My goal was to compete in FIA WEC, to do so with the team I raced with the last two years is even better. SARD RACING TEAM has already a very valuable experience in top sports car racing, whilst Morand proved his strength in last years ELMS and the 24h of Le Mans. The combination of these two very enthusiastic and passionate units creates a great opportunity to become a top WEC sports car team. I love being able to bring the experience I have from Formula 1 and as a factory LMP1 racing driver to a private team and built it up from there. Endurance racing is all about precision and consistency, the whole team has to pull in the same direction. I will help my team mates as well as the race engineers as much as I can. At the end of the day it is a team sport and only if we work closely together we can be strong and compete for race wins. I am very motivated and looking forward to the FIA WEC season to begin.”
Koki Saga: “I believe that the FIA WEC is a one of the highest-level championships in the world. In fact, during the whole season of the FIA WEC, attractive competition is coming up every single race. I definitely make use of this huge chance to get the 2015 LMP2 title. In Japan, we believe that the 24 Hours of Le Mans are one of the most prestigious races in the world. I know that many racers in the world wish to participate the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Joining in this race is an honour but it is also very challenging.”
Pierre Ragues: “A world championship definitely requires a new approach. The season is longer and so are the races, lasting 6 hours. Of course the climax of the season will be the 24 Hours of Le Mans I will compete in for the ninth time. The FIA WEC is a high-standard challenge and I am really looking forward to starting the season, I kept great memories of my 2012 season. For the second half of the season starting in Germany, we will have a very tight schedule, with five events in less than three months! My goal at the wheel of the #43 car will be to bring experience and performance. As usual we will have to work together as a team, which is the key to the success in endurance racing. I felt very comfortable inside the team last year and I am sure that we will once again do a great job together. Our pre-season tests will be very important, we will have to be ready and immediately competitive at the start of the first round at Silverstone.”
Oliver Webb: “This is the best stage for me: after winning the ELMS and coming third at Le Mans, both in my first attempt, I am ready for the world stage. To do this with a great two-car team and the combination of skills, professionalism and knowledge of TEAM SARD-MORAND, it will be a very successful year and one where we can tackle some amazing tracks. I can’t wait after the ELMS championship to have longer races and some amazing places in the world to race at, and also to show our skills as a team together on the best stage there is, the FIA WEC. This is a great opportunity to show what we can do and work together to win the FIA WEC LMP2 championship.”
For TEAM SARD-MORAND, 2015 will be a year of discovery in the FIA WEC and its circuits, but the team will be aiming at podium finishes before even higher objectives in 2016.
An announcement regarding the “Race to 24” show, whose winner will join Pierre Ragues and Oliver Webb at the wheel of the #43 Morgan EVO SARD, will be made on Wednesday February 4. More information to come soon, stay tuned!