One of the high profile additions to the WEC paddock this season is former F1 racer Vitaly Petrov. The 31 year-old has joined his countrymen at the SMP Racing squad to form an all-Russian line-up with Victor Shaytar and Kiril Ladygin.
“So far it is quite good for us and the team has done a good job with the new BR01 car and we have made quite a lot of testing,” said Petrov. “Still though we have not opened the full potential (of the BR01) at the moment, but we are positive within the team. It will be a tough and interesting year in LMP2 with some very hard competition, but this is good to race against a level like this.”
The operational aspect of endurance racing will not be new for Petrov and he has become completely re-engaged with having to share a car with team mates during pre-season testing.
“Splitting the time in the car with all three drivers is not a new thing for me because I did Le Mans in 2007 (in a Noel Del Bello Courage), so working together as one team is okay, and actually I really enjoy this.”
Petrov, who competed in 57 Grands Prix for Renault and Caterham, has fitted in instantly to the WEC paddock and is delighted to be part of the championship in 2016.
“The WEC is getting bigger and more popular all the time and I am very happy to be in this championship,” said the Russian. “We can see a high quality of drivers in the championship now and it is good to come here and see some familiar faces from my F1 days.
“For sure it is important for everyone to have a big Russian flag behind the project, so I hope we can do a good job this year and fly that flag proudly all season with some good results.”
For Petrov, a year on the sidelines in 2015 was worth the temporary frustration as he decided his future.
“For me it was important last year when I wasn’t racing, to look around and see what was happening in racing, this is why I didn’t compete in 2015, because I wanted to stand back and see what the future might bring,” continued Petrov. “In the SMP Racing team I can see a good future with big plans. It is a great team and they have big ambition. Today we concentrate on the LMP2 championship and we see what plans there are in the future.”
Sam Smith
