Spa: Team Nasamax preview

Green Fuel Team Nasamax Looks Forward To Next Race at Spa Circuit

Team Nasamax was encouraged by the fifth place performance at Silverstone for the Nasamax DM139 Judd V10 running on wholly renewable fuel bio-ethanol, according to John McNeil, Team Technical Director and Renewables Consultant, and is looking forward to the next Le Mans Endurance Series 1000km race at Spa, Belgium, on Sunday 2 September.

'At Silverstone, where you need the most downforce, we were evidently short of it. This is because we are the only LMP1 car running to the new specification at the moment, and the cornering speeds are limited in the 2004 regulations by reducing the downforce on the cars. We reached a good mechanical balance for the maximum possible grip, and we had the use of Michelin tyres which we find to be more suited to the car. With careful planning of pit stops and driver changes, and no problems to prolong our stops, we ran through to a strong fifth place.

'Spa is another high downforce circuit, and we will be seeking more downforce; we have a few small developments, such as the rear wing geometry and position. We expect to be nearer the pace at Spa, despite the high downforce needed there, as the power and mechanical grip we have should help redress the balance.

'We've made a lot of progress curing the low rpm 'hole' in engine performance which made the car difficult to drive in certain conditions, and we had eliminated it for the Silverstone race. We also have a new specification wiring loom on the engine.

'Our three drivers coped extremely well at Silverstone with a car which was not at all easy to drive at that pace, but their patience and maturity was evident on the live TV pictures.'

The Nasamax DM139 Judd topped 290kph (180mph) in qualifying at Silverstone and was again the fastest car on the straights, as it has been at Monza and Le Mans this year.

Romain Dumas, overall winner of the Spa 24 Hours last year, will be driving again with Werner Lupberger and Robbie Stirling, who qualified third and finished sixth in the Euroboss Series 2003 Spa race driving Nasamax's 840bhp Reynard Cosworth Champcar running on bio-ethanol.

The car will be running with new Nasamax branding for Spa as it is being filmed for a science programme on the Nasamax project.

Plans are well under way for development of the Nasamax DM139 prototype for 2005 and the construction of an all-new car for 2006.

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