Drivers Marcel Fässler (CH), André Lotterer (D) and Benoît Tréluyer (F) are jointly tackling the title defense. The trio has been racing together for Audi since 2010 and celebrated the WEC drivers’ title and victory at the Le Mans 24 Hours last year, their biggest successes so far. Eight-time Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen (DK) and Allan McNish (GB), who has won at La Sarthe twice, are forming a team with Loïc Duval in 2013 for the first time. The Frenchman made his debut with Audi in 2012 and won the Spa 6 Hours. The two driver teams will be competing at all eight WEC rounds.
At the Spa 6 Hours and the Le Mans 24 Hours, Audi is relying on an additional driver line-up. The Brazilian Lucas di Grassi, who debuted with Audi in the WEC at his home round at São Paulo last year and immediately qualified on the front row, will be driving a third R18 e-tron quattro. He is sharing the cockpit this season with the Spaniard Marc Gené, last year’s winner of the Spa 6 Hours. Oliver Jarvis is the third driver in this combination. In the Audi R8 GRAND-AM, the Briton won the GT class at the Daytona 24 Hours a week ago.
“With these three combinations we’ve put together an international team that we expect a lot of,” says Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. “Our younger drivers will have the chance to establish themselves alongside the experienced Audi drivers who have really been pleasing us with their top results in all these years. With that, we’re in a very good position in terms of drivers for the Le Mans 24 Hours as well as for the other WEC races.”
2013 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) driver combinations
Spa 6 Hours and Le Mans 24 Hours
Marcel Fässler/André Lotterer/Benoît Tréluyer (CH/D/F)
Loïc Duval/Tom Kristensen/Allan McNish (F/DK/GB)
Marc Gené/Lucas di Grassi/Oliver Jarvis (E/BR/GB)
All other 2013 FIA World Endurance Championship races (WEC)
Marcel Fässler/André Lotterer/Benoît Tréluyer (CH/D/F)
Loïc Duval/Tom Kristensen/Allan McNish (F/DK/GB)
– End –