European Le Mans

Silverstone: Vanina Ickx race report

Vanina Ickx : Her Silverstone weekend by the numbers... With a sixth place finish in the Le Mans Series finale, Pierre Ragues, Franck Mailleux and the Belgian driver give the Signature-Plus Team second row in the championship.. After two LMP1 ...

Published: Sep 15, 2010, 4:12 AM

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Vanina Ickx : Her Silverstone weekend by the numbers...

With a sixth place finish in the Le Mans Series finale, Pierre Ragues, Franck Mailleux and the Belgian driver give the Signature-Plus Team second row in the championship..

After two LMP1 podiums, at Portimao and Budapest, Vanina Ickx faced stiff competition at the Silverstone 1000km, with two Peugeots 908 HDi FAP, two Audi R15s and two factory Lola-Aston Martins. With a good showing, she finished sixth in the event placing her and her teammates, Pierre Ragues and Franck Mailleux, in fourth in the Drivers championship. Meanwhile, the Signature-Plus Team ends the season second in the Teams standings. Check out Vanina's weekend by the numbers.

1.48.826 : Vanina's fastest lap.
"I'm very happy to have posted this lap time (1:48.227 was the record time for the 008 car), even more so since I was not on new tyres. Before the warm-up, I still had several seconds to gain since I hadn't yet run on a completely dry track. Our practice session schedule had been affected by the weather. I didn't have any doubts, but I hadn't yet found all of my marks. Since the cars ahead of me were fast, this allowed me to follow a good cadence."

5h11 : The amount of time to complete 1000km.
"The rhythm of the race was particularly quick and this time shows this. At Silverstone the average speed is very high! The Beckett section is impressive: the corners "jump" into your face. The car was pretty well balanced for this track and it gave a lot of confidence to the driver. After Portimao and Budapest, we were finally at a quick track where our car could really sing."

6 : Finishing position.
"Without a tyre problem during the race, I think we could have finished fifth. We were competitive, but we still lacked a few tenths. I'm therefore a little disappointed because we are only two little points away from the drivers championship podium. The battle with Aston Martin Racing was interesting. It showed that we have all progressed, both as a team and as drivers."

55 : The number of points scored by Signature-Plus Team.
"The team went into the Le Mans Series finale in second place. We were able to keep this position and we couldn't have hoped for better. This performance is rewarding for all of the efforts during the season. And most importantly, this second place means an automatic bid for the 2011 Le Mans 24 Hours."

008 : The number worn by the Lola-Aston Martin.
"I'll remember this for a long time! I'm realising a dream and I'm living a dream by working with such a team and driving such a car. Being in this magnificent car is the best thing I can do in sportscar racing."

3 : The number of Le Mans Series seasons for Vanina.
"2010 has been my best year in Le Mans Series and that was reinforced in the evening of the Silverstone race. I drove as well as at Budapest, maybe even better, even if the result was not quite as good. I'm satisfied with that, especially when I receive compliments. For several reasons, this year has nothing to do with what I've known in the past."

2011 : Next season.
"There are still several uncertainties obviously. But I want to pass to the next step in 2011 and to reap the benefits of all the hard work that we've done this year. I've never had so much fun behind the wheel...and I want to continue!"

-source: ickx

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