The last few weeks have been really intense for the Lamborghini Iron Lynx team, busy developing the SC63 and trying to make up as much time as possible.
After the debut on the track in the summer, first at Vallelunga and then at Imola, during the Paul Ricard tests an accident with Mirko Bortolotti at the wheel damaged the LMDh of Sant’Agata Bolognese, with the Toro technicians having to rebuild everything in Emily.
Work has restarted in Spain and the prototype which will debut in 2024 first in the FIA World Endurance Championship and then in the IMSA SportsCar Championship has started clocking up km again with the other dedicated official drivers, namely Andrea Caldarelli, Romain Grosjean and Daniil Kvyat .
Motorsport.com, together with other media, was able to meet the Head of Lamborghini Squadra Corse, Giorgio Sanna, and the Chief Technical Officer, Rouven Mohr, with whom the situation was taken stock of a phase as complex as it is important in the development of the ‘car.
Photo by: Lamborghini Squadra Corse
Lamborghini SC63 LMDh
What happened to Paul Ricard?
GS: “Simply, a small error by the driver made in a very fast corner caused a major impact with enormous damage. The important thing is that the driver was not hurt and the car was rebuilt, but above all that it did not technical problems have occurred. During the development of a new car the drivers must also get to know it, trying to reach the limit.”
RM: “I would add that we certainly can’t complain about the pilot, unfortunately the consequences of a small mistake were enormous. And luckily he didn’t hurt himself.”
How much did the accident slow you down?
GS: “We suffered a three-week slowdown in which it was necessary to rebuild the car, canceling the test scheduled in Spa. But we recovered immediately by going to Almería and Jerez.”
RM: “The stop period was taken as an opportunity to carry out simulation tests on the suspensions, which we had planned for later. In the end it was not a real delay, but rather a rescheduling of activities in the best possible way and only losing the Spa test.”
GS: “The time required to rebuild the SC63 was capitalized by working in parallel on the data collected in the tests carried out previously, doing very well from both a simulation and engineering point of view, developing in advance the parts that had to be introduced in the second half of the test programme. In Spain I think we worked very well and in the right direction.”
Photo by: Lamborghini Squadra Corse
Lamborghini SC63 LMDh
Now how will you continue the work?
GS: “We are close to completing the first part of the work in Europe, from my point of view successfully because we have collected a lot of data by putting together many km, learning a lot about the entire car at every session and meter travelled. A fundamental aspect both for the team and for the drivers. Now the journey continues in America with tests in Daytona and Austin until Christmas, then at the beginning of 2024 we will move forward in view of the homologation and debut in Qatar.”
What are the pilots’ feelings?
GS: “They are happy and when you see them smile I would say that we can all feel calm. When a driver is confident and happy with the car and progress it means that we are going in the right direction.”
RW: “It is also important to note that the pilots tell us more or less the same sensations and impressions, from which we can capitalize.”
When will the approval take place?
GS: “Mid-November for IMSA and early January for WEC. Thanks to the support of the federations we have the period in between to continue development, which is very important for us.”
RM: “This will also give us the opportunity to resolve all the problems that arise, clearly each championship has its own priorities for their respective activities, therefore continuing the tests also in December will be important and useful. And it was nice to have this support from IMSA and WEC”.
Photo by: Lamborghini Squadra Corse
Lamborghini SC63 LMDh
How many frames will there be?
RM: “At the time of the accident we only had one car ready, so it took time to assemble the other one. For the start of the season we will have two chassis in IMSA and two in WEC.”
How many km have you traveled so far?
GS: “At the moment I can’t give an exact number, but in the last sessions carried out in Spain we put together more than 4,000. In Jerez, above all, some long runs were carried out with excellent performances of around 2,400km in total. We will continue with the tests endurance in December, for now I would say that we are satisfied and on the right path.”
Are you concerned that until now LMDhs haven’t been as fast as Hypercars?
GS: “As you know, by regulation we cannot talk about Balance of Performance. I would say that, based on what we have seen so far, we have confidence in those who manage the championships. I think that promoters, FIA, Manufacturers and all those involved in the Hypercar category know very well about have the great opportunity to make the WEC the most successful series in recent years. And we are working together to achieve this. There isn’t much to discuss about it, everyone knows what work needs to be done.”
Photo by: Lamborghini Squadra Corse
Lamborghini SC63 LMDh
In recent months, several names have come up for the last two LMDh places, first of all that of Raffaele Marciello; What can you say about it?
GS: “We have spoken to many and we are close to announcing the last two of the lineup. I have nothing else to add, except that marriages are made in two, with satisfaction and motivation on the part of both. We are looking for talented pilots with these characteristics , who can help us and support us to grow, as a Manufacturer and as a team.”
RM: “What we are looking for are drivers who can be team men, who put the team first and not only themselves, but who are part of a family.”
Matteo Cairoli and Edoardo Mortara tested the SC63, can they be candidates?
GS: “Now it’s too early to talk about it, as you have seen we have tested them and talked to them. What we are looking for are talented pilots with the characteristics that Rouven described. And with experience, obviously”.
Is it possible that Bortolotti, Caldarelli and other LMDh drivers race in other GT series?
RM: “The LMDh challenge is demanding, but it is clear that a driver like Mirko in the GT is important for us. In the DTM, for example, we want to still be there, but we need the best drivers because the level is very high. We will choose what is best for the market and also evaluating concomitances with other series”.
GS: “The luck is that the WEC and GT3 calendars, like GTWC and DTM, do not have concomitances, so we will have drivers involved in both categories. I like the versatile ones and we can be open to various hypotheses. The good thing is that the promoters we talk about the various championships to try to come together, each clearly wants to have the best protagonists, but we sit at a table and find solutions.”
#WEC #Lamborghini #SC63 #track #Happy #drivers