After the incident at the Official Test Day 24 Hours of Le Mans on April 24 last, the LMP1 Pescarolo #24 of OAK Racing team will not be present at Spa on the 7th of May.
This absence is due to too late delivery of spare parts, given the very short period of one week between the test day and departure of cars to Spa this weekend. “Unfortunately, the consequences of the excursion of #24 on Test Day 24 Hours of Le Mans requires us to declare our first withdrawl”, said Francois Sicard, CEO of OAK Racing. “The car was badly damaged and Richard Hein and Jacques Nicolet will not participate in their first race in Le Mans Series season, the 1000 km of Spa-Francorchamps. Even if the car could be ready, we would not have sufficient spare parts to be prepared for a weekend of racing as Spa. ”
Only two Pescarolo-OAK acrs will therefore defend the colors of the team for the second round of ILMC and Le Mans Series 2011 season. LM P1 #15, driven by Matthieu Lahaye, Guillaume Moreau and Pierre Ragues will want to repeat the pace seen at Sebring prior to thier ninth hour retirement. The LM P2 #35, of Andrea Barlesi, Frédéric Da Rocha and Patrice Lafargue, will want to repeat the LMP2 podiums in 2009 and 2010 obtained by the team at Spa, as well as the third place at Sebring in the first round of the ILMC 2011.
(According to press information of OAK Racing)