The long awaited race across the Atlantic is back for its 2017 edition on October 7th. For this IMSA 2017 Final, REBELLION Racing will line up an Oreca 07 LMP2 prototype with a team composed of Nick Heidfeld, Mathias Beche and Gustavo Menezes.
Nick Heidfeld won the race in 2013 with REBELLION Racing (with Neel Jani and Nicolas Prost). Mathias Beche also won in Petit Le Mans in the LMP2 category in 2012. Gustavo Menezes will make his first appearance under the colors of REBELLION Racing. FIA WEC LMP2 Champion in 2016, Gustavo has already participated in Petit Le Mans in the category LMPC.
Petit Le Mans is the closing race of the endurance season in the USA since 1998 on the Road Atlanta circuit in Georgia. It is a race of 1,000 miles (1,600 km), with the maximum duration of ten hours, which is contested in the United Sportscar Championship (IMSA).
REBELLION Racing comes back to Road Atlanta after four years with a legitimate victory ambition, the Swiss team won the event twice in 2012 and 2013. For this edition of Petit Le Mans, REBELLION Racing Oreca 07 number 13 will be colored in yellow, the color of ONLY WATCH 2017.
REBELLION Timepieces is a privileged partner of ONLY WATCH, the famous charity auction of unique watches created by the best brands united to help research on Duchenne muscular dystrophy. REBELLION Timepieces recently presented a unique version of the Predator 2.0 Power Reserve model, designed by Sébastien Buemi. This made it exceptional by encrusting yellow, its fetish color, to the case of carbon fiber. It will be auctioned during ONLY WATCH 2017 which will take place in Geneva on November 11th.
Bart Hayden, Team manager:
“It’s been six months since our last race in the IMSA WeatherTech Championship and in that time, we have learned a lot more about the Oreca 07 LMP2 car. We have a different driver line-up from when we raced at Sebring, but the drivers that will be in our car for the season finale at Atlanta have shown their pace previously, so we know that we will be competitive. On our last two visits to the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta, we won the race outright, so we will be trying to keep that record going.”
Mathias Beche:
“I am extremely happy to be able to compete in this mythical race for REBELLION Racing. The team has already won the 2012 and 2013 editions and therefore the objective will necessarily be very high for us. We want to shine and finish the American campaign well. It will be nice to team up with Gustavo and find Nick with whom I’ve teamed up for two years. This year, the competition is tough against teams like Cadillac, Nissan and Mazda and we hope to upset the hierarchy. I love driving in the US and look forward to the challenge.”
Gustavo Menezes:
“I am extremely excited to have the opportunity to compete in Atlanta for the Petit Le Mans. Over the last two years, I have been competing in the WEC championship in the LMP2 category and to finally be able to go do a race in the insane championship in the same car is fantastic. Also I am really looking forward to joining the rebellion boys for the race, we have always been good friends and although we compete against each others during the WEC season, I am an ambassador for the brand so it’s actually really special to be able to extend the partnership! I can’t wait to get started come Wednesday in Atlanta, especially with REBELLION’s track history there.”
