One of the towering figures in American motorsport, Chip Ganassi, is in the paddock this weekend overseeing the Ford team which bears his name.
Ford Chip Ganassi Racing, running a pair of the turbocharged Ford GTs, has been one of the stories of the season with the stunning LMGTE Pro cars.
Ganassi is seeing his first European action of the 3.5 V6 turbocharged cars after being at Laguna Seca last weekend where he witnessed the first victory for the Ford GT design which has so far captured the imagination of the motorsport world.
The hugely decorated team boss arrived at Spa for the first time since he raced in the 24 Hours of Spa in 1980 at the wheel of a Toyota Corolla GT. The American was clear in his praise for the current golden period of sportscar racing in the WEC.
“I think we're in a period of racing right now where manufacturers seem to be the fuel of the sport,” said Ganassi. “For us, it obviously expands our footprint. It gives us a little more access to people, gives us access to market, gives us access to formulae that we wouldn't otherwise have. So that's the nice thing for us. It's one of the attractions to the program, one of the attractions to Ford in the first place."
In addition to Spa, Ganassi will also be at Le Mans and is also likely to attend the 6 Hours of Circuit of the Americas in September.
“I am looking forward to seeing the races,” confirmed Ganassi. “The format is good, the level is good and I think the variety of racers in the cockpit is really interesting. What I see is a strong product and that is why we are here racing in the WEC, as well as back home (in the US) too.”
With thanks to John Dagys at www.sportscar365.com for contributing to this feature
