|
- Official team for 2012 FIA European Rally
Championship
- Official team for 2012 European Le Mans Series
- Rewards for results with Lotus Racing Karts
Rallying
The Lotus International Rally team is set to
make its race debut in April in the FIA European
Rally Championship. In partnership with Italian
team United Business, who won the title last
year, the hotly anticipated Exige R-GT will be
painted in Lotus’ iconic black and gold colour
scheme.
Former Portuguese champion and Super 2000 World
Rally Championship (SWRC) driver Bernardo Sousa
is in-line to race the car at the Rally 1000
Miglia in Brescia, Italy, on 19-21 April,
provided the car is ready. Next week the Exige
R-GT undergoes its final testing before being
submitted to the FIA for homologation. Ten cars
will be built this year, with seven cars
allocated to the official team and European
racing drivers.
Claudio Berro, Director of Lotus Racing, started
his career rallying and is thrilled to be back.
“This will be the first GT car to be homologated
by the FIA. Lotus, of course, has been
successful in rallying before, winning the 1981
World Rally Championship with the Talbot Sunbeam
Lotus. So in many ways we’re all going back to
our roots. Partnering with the United Business
Rally Team in the FIA European Rally
Championship makes perfect sense because they,
like us, know how to win. I think this is going
to be a very strong collaboration. The
championship largely takes place on tarmac,
which suits us too. It’s so exciting to go
rallying with this new project. It’s another big
challenge for Lotus.”
Pier Liberali, Owner and President of United
Business, commented: “This partnership agreement
with Lotus Racing fills me with pride. Lotus is
one of the most famous manufacturers worldwide
in the motorsports field. It is an honour for us
to be able to work with them, and we will do our
utmost to exceed their expectations.”
GT
Lotus is to enter an official team in this
year’s European Le Mans Series. The black and
gold-coloured Evora GTE will compete in the GTE
Pro class with factory driver Johnny Mowlem at
the wheel. The two other drivers that will
comprise this one-car team will be announced
shortly.
Lotus Giudici Racing is run by former
professional touring car driver turned GT racer
Gianni Giudici, who ran an Evora GT4 in the
European Blancpain Series last year and finished
runner-up.
Testing kicks off at Lotus’ Hethel track,
followed by six hour endurance races at Le
Castellet (France), Zolder (Belgium), Donington
(UK), Brno (Czech Republic) and Portimao
(Portugal).
Director of Lotus Racing, Claudio Berro, is
pleased to have GTE programmes on both sides of
the Atlantic: “Having already announced our
American Le Mans Series team, Lotus-AJR, it’s
great to now announce our entry in the European
Le Mans Series. Last year marked the Evora GTE’s
first year of competition. It was a foundation
year, which proved promising, and by now
splitting programs between these two prestigious
series I hope we’ll be able to further hone the
GTE into a title contender.
“Gianni Giudici has long been one of Lotus
Racing’s most important customers, and creating
this official partnership makes perfect sense.
He has been very successful in endurance racing,
and has the capability to run the car at a very
high level. With Lotus’ technical support this
will be a good combination for the European
platform.”
Karting
The Lotus Racing Karts team is flat-out in
preparation for the 2012 CIK-FIA Under-18
Karting World Championship. Registration is now
open and the deadline for entries is 30th March.
The total entries will be limited to 102 and
it’s first come first served.
Therefore,
drivers interested in entering this World
Championship are advised to enter online as soon
as possible: http://www.cikfia.com/championships/entry-form.html
The championship, which starts on July 8 in
Braga, Portugal, aims to promote drivers aged
15-18 and rigorously limit the costs involved,
such as with the free allocation of tyres and
engines to all participants. The series promises
to refocus the pure sport of karting not as a
spending competition, which has seen costs rise
drastically across most other international
championships, but as the de-facto school for
tomorrow’s grand prix superstars.
Just like the greats, from Jim Clark through to
Kimi Raikkonen, aspiring youngsters now have the
opportunity to become Lotus factory-supported
drivers.
Built in Italy, the Lotus Racing Kart is
arguably the most fun, raw and inspirational
Lotus ever to hit the race track. The focus is
on quality, speed, reliability and versatility
through its automated robot welding technology
of the C30 and C32 chassis, and on developing
the next generation of Lotus racers early.
The top three drivers to race Lotus Racing Karts
will be richly rewarded: A fully-sponsored
Formula Monza test with the Lotus Formula
Juniors team and a go in Lotus’ F1-inspired Type
125 customer car, plus a two-day test with the
Lotus Racing Karts team and a tour of the Group
Lotus factory and facilities in Hethel, England.
So, points mean big shiny prizes. |
