Hot on the heels of its FIA World Endurance Championship title success in LMP2, OAK Racing has announced some key changes in organisation and personnel. The newcomers will be working closely with team owner, Jacques Nicolet, to bring the team’s latest projects to fruition. The French team has yet to announce its full racing plans for 2014.
After an extremely successful four year tenure, Team Principal Sébastien Philippe is saying goodbye to endurance competition and returning to single-seater racing. To pursue the team’s development plans and reinforce its management structure, OAK Racing is placing its trust in two experienced names: Serge Lapierre and Philippe Dumas.
Serge Lapierre is taking over the management side of the company in many areas including administration, human resources and budgets. He will be Jacques Nicolet’s Executive Manager, and he is determined to optimise the way the company is run in order to enable everyone to concentrate on racing and the pursuit of performance in the sporting arena. Lapierre has been at the head of LSP, the benchmark in the domain of driving courses based at the Magny-Cours circuit, for 18 years. His successes as a company director in the field of motorsport will be a major asset for the team.
Philippe Dumas, a talented team manager since the age of 24, will put to use the experience he has accumulated in endurance racing over the years as OAK Racing’s Sporting Director. He ran Hexis Racing for 10 years, taking numerous victories including the FIA GT1 World Championship title in 2011 plus the runner-up spot the following year. There cannot be any doubt that his professionalism, his determination to succeed and his ability to unite a team around him will enable OAK Racing to attain its future aims.
Jacques Nicolet, OAK Racing President: “Saying goodbye to Sébastien Philippe makes me feel very emotional. I think we became a strong pairing and that’s brought us the results we’re enjoying today. I’d like to wish him all the success he deserves in the next step in his career. This is the right moment for OAK Racing to carry out a reorganisation to achieve its new objectives. Serge Lapierre and Philippe Dumas are joining us and I’m delighted to welcome them. I’m absolutely sure that their talents and their determination will help us to continue our success.”
From OAK Racing press release
Photo: BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT (SAKHIR, BAHRAIN), 6 HOURS OF BAHRAIN, SATURDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2013. A fond farewell to OAK Racing's Sebastien Philippe (left) from Jacques Nicolet (right)
