Rebellion team test report from Paul Ricard
For the first time this season, all of the Swiss team’s drivers were together:
Lola-Rebellion # 12 : Marco Andretti – Neel Jani – Nicolas Prost
Lola-Rebellion # 13 : Andrea Belicchi – Jean-Christophe Boullion – Guy Smith.
The team was satisfied with the first day of testing. The performance shown by both Lola-Rebellions met the team’s expectations, despite unusual winter weather. The fresh air and the cold track meant that it wasn’t possible to keep the tires at optimum temperature levels. As with all the other teams present, the tire testing program had to be limited.
This first day of practice allowed each driver to accumulate miles and familiarize themselves with the Lola B10/60 – Rebellion. Marco Andretti and Guy Smith coming directly from the United States to turn their first laps.
Marco Andretti was quickly at ease with the Lola-Rebellion # 12, achieving promising lap times. "The feeling of the Lola-Rebellion is very close to the Acura LMP2 that I drove in 2008. I am impressed by the level of the team and the quality of my teammates. I am delighted to share the driving of the No. 12 with Nicolas and Neel.
I think we can aim for a good result at the 24 Hours of Le Mans."
As for Guy Smith, he was also very quickly comfortable with the Lola-Rebellion # 13: "The car is bigger and heavier than the Lola I drive in the ALMS. It is well balanced and easy to control. I was favorably impressed with the Rebellion engine. The REBELLION Racing team is very good and they make you feel at home quickly, it is important for my integration into the team for the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the 8 Hours of Paul Ricard. “
In the evening, the team participated in the night test session to validate new lighting solutions for Le Mans 24 Hours.
On the second day the weather was cold again. Both Lola-Rebellions turned a large number of trouble-free laps. The two crews worked through a setup program to prepare more specifically for the 8 Hours of Paul Ricard.
Marco Andretti and Guy Smith continued to learn the car working on suspension and aerodynamic settings.
Nicolas Prost: "We are pleased with the work done at Le Castellet. We are still far from exploiting the full potential of our two Lola Rebellions. Our driver trio is very homogeneous, both in terms of feedback and size. And most importantly, we understand each other very well, which bodes well for races like Le Mans 24 Hours. We still have to work before realizing all the performance of our cars. But we will start the season with a team ready for the challenge. “
Neel Jani: "Despite the cold conditions this weekend, we managed to find our tire choice. I am pleased to have Marco in our team. I knew he was a good driver. We now have confirmation that we can aim at the highest level with the Lola-Rebellion. “
Andrea Belicchi: "I'm happy with what we achieved here at Paul Ricard. We had no technical problems during these tests. The engine seems reliable. We are moving in the right direction.
We were able to test and validate the tire choice that we will use for the first races of the season. “
Jean-Christophe Boullion: "We made good progress on the car technically both on the set-up and on the comfort of driving. As always, we would have liked to continue to work one or two more days on the development of the car. Communication between drivers is excellent. The two cars experienced the same progression bringing us to solutions that are very close to each other. “
The team is satisfied with its two days of testing, with good progress in understanding the Lola B10-60 – Rebellion and exploitation of its potential. The team feels ready to face their rivals in the opening round of the Le Mans Series (10 and 11 April) at the 8 Hours of Paul Ricard.