Ferrari returns to triumph in the LMGTE AM class of the FIA World Endurance Championship with a 6h of Spa-Francorchamps which also delivers a historic result.
The AF Corse 488 #83 branded Richard Mille Racing was a great protagonist among the GTEs in the Ardennes, but inevitably the spotlights deservedly end up on a superlative Lilou Wadoux.
The Frenchwoman, the latest addition to the Prancing Horse family, achieves her first success in the series and is also the first woman to win in history, in a race tackled with grit and gritted teeth in far from simple conditions.
At the start, when the surface was damp, it was the turn of the Bronze of the trio, Luis Pérez Companc, to take over the wheel of the Red with dry tires as a strategy. A gamble that the South American managed very well despite a spin on cold tires, only to then give way to Wadoux.
The transalpine probably found herself in the most complicated situation of the race, in the middle of traffic and managing her position in the neutralizations, but once she got to grips with everything she literally let loose, climbing towards the top of the standings to finally hand over the wheel to Alessio Rovera .
The Varese native is now a certainty and with the sound of fast laps he increased his advantage over his pursuers, only to find them back in the queue again with the entry of the last Safety Car. At the restart, the GTE AM 2021 and LMP2 Pro/Am 2022 Champion started hammering again (best time in 2’14″829 and a twenty-second advantage over the Corvette) and his smile at the end of the race was one that revealed a sincere satisfaction.
#83 Richard Mille AF Corse Ferrari 488 GTE EVO: Luis Perez Companc, Lilou Wadoux, Alessio Rovera
Photo by: Paul Foster
“In Portimao we had already come close to winning, but we had narrowly missed it, even though we showed that we are very strong with a Bronze driver like Luis who is among the best,” Rovera commented to Motorsport.com, admitting subsequently that the triumph is galvanizing for the environment.
“This victory means a lot on a personal level and because it’s the first together with this extraordinary crew: Louis and Lilou did a great job today. My stint was probably the easiest compared to those of my team mates.”
“I have to say Luis was very brave starting on the slicks, it’s different between sitting in the pits and in the car. He did a great job and then we managed to get the car back to first place, gaining ground on the Corvette, which is our main rival”.
Now there’s Le Mans, where Rovera has already triumphed aboard the 488, but also given that rivals can be as competitive as and more than him.
“The 488 at Spa was fantastic and easy to drive, now we go to Le Mans where there are many other points up for grabs. In view of the 24h we are motivated and aware that we have a very competitive car: we will do our best to seek a great result ”.
“We will all have the same weight, but I think Corvettes could have a good advantage because here they loaded 45kg and were still very fast. Also last year in LMGTE PRO they showed that they have a great pace, so I see them as favourites. It is it’s up to us to give it our all and try to regain success”.
GTE Podium: #83 Richard Mille AF Corse Ferrari 488 GTE EVO: Luis Perez Companc, Lilou Wadoux, Alessio Rovera, #33 Corvette Racing Chevrolet Corvette C8.R: Ben Keating, Nicolas Varrone, Nicky Catsburg, #25 Ort By TF Aston Martin Vantage AMR: Ahmad Al Harthy, Michael Dinan, Charlie Eastwood
Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images
But as we said at the beginning, the real and most deserved applause was for Wadoux, who will climb the top step of the podium for the first time in the FIA WEC, where she has only been racing since last year.
“I’m very proud of this, this is also my first success as an official Ferrari driver and for this I want to thank everyone starting with my team mates and the AF Corse team who have done a great job. The fact of being the first female driver to I am pleased to have won a FIA WEC race, but as I often say, what interests me is racing and not the gender difference”, underlines the 22-year-old.
“In any case, getting on the top step of the podium in a world event is a great emotion, moreover on a track like Spa, which in my opinion is fantastic. I’m really happy to have obtained my first victory of the year: it’s a nice moment that I want to celebrate with all my team. It’s nice, but it’s also important because we got good points for the championship and now we’ll have to show up even stronger at Le Mans and for the rest of the season.”
On her turn at the wheel, the Amiens native explains that the credit is also due to the strategy adopted by the team and Pérez Companc’s skill in managing the start.
“Luis did a great job and gave me the car in fifth position, but close to the others. The first stint was very difficult because there were some problems, but after that the situation improved and the car was really fast” .
“The team’s strategy was excellent and even with the Safety Car we gained a little bit, which helped us. I thank my mates and the team for the excellent work.”
“To get on the top step of the podium in a world championship event is a great emotion, moreover on a track like Spa, which in my opinion is fantastic. The 24 Hours of Mans? The dream would be to win it, in June, but if it weren’t possible I would be delighted to get on the podium of the most famous endurance race in the world”.
#83 Richard Mille AF Corse Ferrari 488 GTE EVO: Luis Perez Companc, Lilou Wadoux, Alessio Rovera
Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images
Finally, Pérez Companc also deserves compliments, positive in Qualifying and very good at defending himself at the start on a track where he had already managed to win in the past.
“Qualifying was demanding considering that I only had two laps to set the time, also finding a lot of traffic. I could not find the best weather, too bad. In any case, the car was fast and I was very confident for the race,” says the Argentine.
“When the engineer told me that I should start with slick tyres, while a few drops of rain were falling, I agreed to give it a try! But in the end it proved to be the right choice, even if the first lap was really difficult”.
“I concentrated on keeping the car on a dry line and not making mistakes because I have some excellent team-mates, who are very fast, and I wanted to give it to them in a good position to fight for the win.”
“The car felt great, but the first lap was incredibly difficult, then once the temperatures got better and better and I started to push. When they told me to do the double stint, in the end it was calm and turned out to be the right strategy.”
“For me, winning again here at Spa is great, above all because we started with an accident at Sebring, then at Portimao we got on the podium, taking second place and today’s victory confirmed that we are very strong. We hope to keep this pace too. for the next races, but for now I’m very happy”.
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