– The new C-Spec tyre helped G-Drive Racing to a record-breaking pole.
– Dunlop dries, intermediates and wets competitive in diverse conditions.
– Jackie Chan DC Racing in strong contention for the championship.
The Dunlop Motorsport Team encountered the unpredictable nature of the Spa-Francorchamps round of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC). The six-hour race had it all, with sunshine, rain and even snow all making an appearance.
The race demonstrated Dunlop’s diverse tyre range and being on the right tyre at the right time was paramount in such a challenging race.
Dunlop’s Trackside Support Engineering & Testing Manager, Mike McGregor, described how the tyres performed throughout the weekend: « The range of dry, intermediate and full wet tyres was used in this race and the mixed conditions were a good test of the full range in the build-up to for Le Mans. The championship fight continues to the last race as both Jackie Chan DC Racing cars are within striking distance of the team’s title. »
Dunlop brought the new for 2019 C-Spec tyre to Spa after it showed strong pace in the last round in Sebring. Jean-Eric Vergne in the G-Drive Racing utilised it well in qualifying nearly breaking the 2-minute barrier with an average lap time of 2min 00.674.
In the race, G-Drive was just 3.9 sec from victory, beating the championship leader by half a second, despite making one additional pit stop.
Mike McGregor describes the step forward the Dunlop team have had in qualifying: « Jean-Eric Vergne’s qualifying lap time was 1.8 secs faster than qualifying in 2018, this shows the step forward we have made in the performance of the tyres and the impact of the C-Spec tyre. »
Dunlop head to the next and final round of the WEC Super Season aiming to support their teams in their quest to secure the LMP2 title at the 24hr of Le Mans finale. Before that, the team head to Monza next week for the European Le Mans Series, with the Milanese circuit hosting the second round of that championship.
Adam Arbon,