The FIA World Endurance Championship teams have had a hiatus from racing for two months, since the June 22-23 running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. They finally return to racing on August 31-September 1 for the 6 Hours of Sao Paulo at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace, formerly known as the Interlagos Circuit, in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Following the challenging Le Mans race, the Krohn Racing Team spent time rebuilding the car and testing at Vallelunga Circuit in Italy. They completed a shakedown and suitable testing program with the rebuilt Ferrari F458.
Team owner/driver Tracy W. Krohn will be back in the No. 57 Ferrari F458 with co-driver Nic Jönsson, of Sweden, and Maurizio Mediani, of Italy. Krohn and Jönsson have previously been on the Sao Paulo circuit but only for testing for the 6 Hours of Sao Paulo race last year. Third driver Michele Rugolo qualified the car second in the GTE-Am class in 2012 but suffered a first-lap accident which forced a retirement for the popular green-and-blue liveried Krohn Team.
TRACY W. KROHN, Krohn Racing Team Owner/Driver, No. 57 Krohn Racing Ferrari F458 GTE-Am:
Krohn Racing has recently purchased a new Ferrari F458 since the accident in Le Mans and done some testing. Please share about the status of the new car and how the testing in Italy went. "We did buy a new chassis, but were able to salvage some parts. We were able to do some testing at Vallelunga and we left feeling as though we had improved the car, but you do not really know until you go racing. One of the problems we had at Le Mans was with the braking on the ‘rented chassis’. It was extremely difficult to set the bias and trust that it would be the same for the next corner. I believe we have reliable braking now and that will make a huge difference.”
Interlagos is one of the older WEC tracks. What are some of the characteristics you enjoy about the circuit? “Interlagos is a real ballsy kind of roller coaster ride, but I think it is a very fair track in the sense that there are places you can take big risk and get around someone, or you can be patient and still finish well. It will take both mindsets to win at Interlagos.”
Krohn Racing has had some bad luck and poor finishes in the first half of the season. How does the Team plan to come back to be in the GTE-Am championship points hunt? “The team has to really pull together and eliminate mistakes and go for wins. This is a really tough series with excellent drivers and being patient and aggressive will determine how we end up assuming minimal mechanical difficulty.”
NIC JONSSON, No. 57 Krohn Racing Ferrari 430 GTE-Am:
Last year at Sao Paulo, the Krohn Team was pretty comfortable and confident before the race but a first lap accident put you out of the race. How do you feel going in to this year’s race? "We had a very good and well balanced car last year and I believe the car is going to be good and fast this year again and give us the opportunity to compete for the victory!”
Interlagos is one of the older WEC tracks. What are some of the characteristics you enjoy about the circuit? “Interlagos has a lot of history and the reason is because there have been many very close and fantastic races there over the years,thanks to the challenging lay out of the track. The track has some real steep elevation changes that unload the car while turning and make it very challenging to keep the car in balance. It also offers several great passing zones after high speed straights. The track really has everything that a world class track should have.”
All the WEC drivers have a heavy schedule ahead with five races in three months on three continents. The Krohn Racing Team is well traveled and versatile, as are you and your co-drivers. How does this help with a rather strenuous schedule ahead? “The travel schedule is hard on everybody, but the most important thing is to make sure you get plenty of sleep and eat and drink healthy. Most guys in the WEC series are very seasoned and used to travel so I think it's more about how everyone conditionsand preparesthemselves rather than the travel that's going to make the difference!!”
MAURIZIO MEDIANI, No. 57 Krohn Racing Ferrari F458 GTE-Am:
You recently participated in some testing for Krohn Racing so please share a little about it. “I did a shakedown of a new chassis with Tracy at Vallelunga, in Italy near Rome. I think we had a good team work and we found a good set up, constant and fast, even with used tires.”
Tell us about your experiences driving at Sao Paulo and what you think of the circuit. “In the past I was in SaoPaulo one time. I did a race in the Brazilian championship with a local team name Promtec, with a Ferrari 360GT. Interlagos circuit means that we are between two lakes, and this makes the weather very changeable. We can easily have conditions like Silverstone.
All the WEC drivers have a heavy schedule ahead with five races in three months on three continents. The Krohn Racing Team is well traveled and versatile, as are you and your co-drivers. How does this help with a rather strenuous schedule ahead? "The best possibility is to have a flight in business class, then a lot of melatonin...to sleep. This time I think it will be a harder life more for our competitors, the European team. They have to send the material and cars in the containers too. They will have no trucks and no hospitality. Then there is the race in Texas. We will feel at home and maybe we will have our fantastic green truck!!”
From Krohn Racing press release
Photo: SPA FRANCORCHAMPS CIRCUIT (SPA, BELGIUM), WEC 6 HOURS OF SPA FRANCORCHAMPS, SATURDAY 4TH MAY 2013. The No.57 Krohn Racing Ferrari 458 Italia of Krohn-Jonsson-Mediani.
