WEC Archives - World of Speed

Nov282023 by Tomaž StrgaršekNo Comments

Rossi confirmed for Le Mans 24 Hours

Valentino Rossi will compete in the World Endurance Championship (WEC) next year in the new LMGT3 category. The Italian, who has raced in the GT World Challenge Europe series for the past two seasons, will thus take another step forward in his new career on four wheels. He will continue to be part of the Belgian team WRT, which uses racing cars from the German manufacturer BMW. Next June, as part of the WEC season, he will take part in one of the most legendary races, the 24 Hours of Le Mans. "I'm very happy to compete in the WEC championship. It's the next step in my endurance racing career," said the nine-time World Motorcycle Champion. BMW is one of the nine manufacturers that will compete in the LMGT3 category in the upcoming WEC season. In addition to them, Ferrari, Porsche, Chevrolet, Aston

Nov52023 by Blaž ŠtremfeljNo Comments

Valentino Rossi behind the wheel of an LMP2 racing car for the first time

Other sports

Valentino Rossi took part in the testing of the young drivers of the WEC Championship in Bahrain, and for the first time in his career he drove the WRT Oreca 07 prototype racing car. The MotoGP star clearly got to know the car quickly, as he set a lap time of 1:55.118 in the afternoon, just behind the best time of the riders in the LMP2 class, 1:54.302, set by Charles Weerts, also a guest of the WRT team by less than a second, but it was just under seven-tenths of a second faster than the worst time in the same class. https://twitter.com/Endurance_Live/status/1721102341703664101

Jan112023 by Tomaž Strgaršek1 How

Valentino Rossi is behind the wheel again this weekend

Automotive

Valentino Rossi will compete in the 14.1.23 Hours of Dubai endurance race this weekend (Saturday, 24). The nine-time motorcycle world champion will share the BMW M4 GT3 in Team WRT with Tim White, Sean Gelael and former 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Maxime Martin. The Italian star recently racked up the first racing kilometers of the year while driving a kart. https://www.instagram.com/p/CnHLb7aMXvK/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y= In Dubai, he will also have to make friends with a new racing car, as the WRT team ended its cooperation with Audi before this season and opted for BMW. More than 42 teams with 54 cars are registered for the race, which are divided into three categories (GT3, GTX and TCR). A total of 226 racers will compete.

Mar82022 by Blaž ŠtremfeljNo Comments

Valentino Rossi presented this year's colors of the Audi R8 GT3

MotoGP News, World Endurance Championship

MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi will race in the GT World Challenge Europe this year. At the start of two days of testing before the season, the Italian also revealed the colors of his Audi R8 LMS GT3 car. The former MotoGP champion took a wet track test in February and impressed WRT team boss Vincent Vosse. "Valentino was really good on the wet track. He has a natural sense of grip on the track, which doesn't surprise me, as we know he's a great natural talent, but he still made a good impression on me." The 42-year-old Rossi is aiming for the podium in his first season. I like Audi, and my team is always competitive. They are always fighting for victories, which is very important. The car is extremely good, and the guys on the team also say that my times are not bad. I hope to be competitive and to

Dec172020 by Bojan VrbnjakNo Comments

PORSCHE announces a return to the LE MANS, WEC and IMSA series

24 Hours of Le Mans, Motorsport

Porsche is developing a prototype car for the new LMDh rules, with which it will be able to compete in both the WEC Championship, the Le Mans race and the IMSA series. The LMDh category race cars will weigh about 1000 kilograms and develop a power of 680 horsepower. “The new LMDh category allows us to fight for joint victories in the classic Le Mans, Daytone and Sebring races with a hybrid system,” said Oliver Blume, Porsche’s CEO. "This project is extremely attractive to Porsche. Endurance racing is part of the DNA of our brand." Porsche has a record in manufacturers ’victories at Le Mans. Their last success with Bernhard, Hartley and Bamber in 2017 was their nineteenth. A study of Porsche's hyper race car, with which they want to return to the WEC, IMSA series in 2023 and, of course, to only

Dec272018 by Blaž ŠtremfeljNo Comments

Red Bull could leave F1 and dedicate themselves to Le Mans

formula 1

Austrian energy drink maker Red Bull could soon leave Formula One, where it owns two teams, and dedicate itself to competing in the world of endurance racing in the World Endurance Championship. This could happen if the radical changes in the sport announced for 2021 are not to their liking, Helmut Marko revealed. Red Bull's patience will be put to the test for the next two seasons with a new engine partner, Honda, which did not sign under enviable results in the new era of Formula One appearances. Chase Carey, the new owner of Formula One, has not been as successful in pushing the teams to sign a new Concorde contract as Bernie Ecclestone once was, causing the value of the championship shares to fall and the uncertain future of the sport unconvincing quite a few racers.

May52018 by Tomaž StrgaršekNo Comments

Alonso wins endurance race in Spa

Other sports

Fernando Alonso won for the first time in almost five years after he and former Formula 1 racers Kazuki Nakaimo and Sebastian Buemi won the 6 Hour Spade endurance race with the Toyota TS050 Hybrid, turning the best starting position into a victory. The Spaniard maintained an advantage over the other Toyota team led by racer Mike Conway in the last part of the race. The first part of the race was driven by Sebastian Buemi for the team in which Fernando Alonso competed. A safety car also drove onto the track three times. Buemi then handed the car over to Nakajima in the first place, who had to drive into the pits while in a convincing lead due to a seat belt problem that was not properly fastened. Alonso took the car in the last part of the race, a good hour before the end

Apr182016 by Blaž Štremfelj700 Comments

Audi was left without a win at Silverstone

World Endurance Championship

Audi was left without a win after a roadworthiness test after a 6-hour race in Silverstone, as commissioners measured excessive wear on the sliding pads at the bottom of their car. Commissioners' measurements showed that the plates on the Audi R18 with number 7, driven by Andre Lotterer, Beniot Treluyer and Marcel Fassler, were 20 millimeters outside the permitted tolerance, so disqualification followed after the season's debut. So the victory for the green table went to Porsche. The team appealed the commissioners' decision.

Dec292014 by Blaž Štremfelj52 Comments

Sutil is thinking about WEC and Haas

formula 1

Adrian Sutil has confirmed that he could race in the upcoming WEC (World Endurance Championship) season, and he is also interested in the new Formula One Haas F1 Team, which will debut in 2016. Let us recall that Sutil raced for Sauber this year, but lost his seat on the Swiss team when it replaced the racing team with Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr. Sutil looks at his future in a relaxed way: "There are many opportunities, as I don't have to race in Formula One. My plan is to look at all opportunities, so I'm open to all possibilities. I'm interested in Haas, but maybe I'll cross. even in the WEC, because everyone is talking positively about this championship, the cars are fast and maybe even very similar to Formula One, but I definitely want to race at 24 Hours of Le Mans, at least once in my career.

Dec232014 by Blaž ŠtremfeljNo Comments

Buemi remains Red Bull's reserve racer

formula 1

Buemi, who competed in as many as 55 major awards between 2009 and 2011, currently holds the position of reserve racer Red Bull. He will continue to play this role in the coming season, as his boss Christian Horner believes he has become a very important member of the Red Bull racing squad: “Buemi has been a member of our team for quite a few years now. He has progressed and become very important to us. With his experience, we can fight for the title. That's why we extended his contract, because we want him in our circle of racers. ”Buemi is currently competing in the Formula E championship, where he ranks second in the overall standings. This year he also competed in the WEC championship. Sam says he will be happy to help Red Bull regain the title he lost to Mercedes this year: “I love being a member of the team