REBELLION Racing ready to face Bahrain challenges

REBELLION RACING TO FACE THE CHALLENGES OF THE DESERT AT THE 6 HOURS OF BAHRAIN

For the 6th round of the FIA World Endurance Championship, 28 sportscars will fire up for the first time in the Kingdom of Bahrain’s desert.

#12 Rebellion Racing Lola B12/60 Coupé Toyota: Nicolas Prost, Neel Jani

Photo by: xpb.cc

Having both Lola-Toyota cars winning in the last four rounds of the FIA Endurance LMP1 Team Trophy at Spa, Le Mans, Silverstone and Sao Paulo, the whole team is eager to repeat this result in Bahrain this coming weekend.

An additional win at Bahrain would give the team enough points to win the 2012 FIA Endurance LMP1 Team Trophy.

At the same time REBELLION Racing will be targeting an overall podium finish at the Bahrain International Circuit. The podium is a reasonable objective, the team’s Lola-Toyota cars have ended the last four rounds of the FIA World Endurance Championship as first non-factory car, scoring three fourth place finishes overall in the last three rounds.

The specific challenges REBELION Racing will have to face in Bahrain : The Bahrain International Circuit is a tough track for tyres and brakes alike. Its mix of long straights and predominantly low- and medium-speed corners meaning that good grip and efficient braking are key factors. The 3.363-mile / 5.412km track provides a complex technical challenge for the teams.

The layout of the circuit means the likelihood of a safety car is very low.

Heat management is crucial, both for the cars and the drivers. Ambient temperatures regularly exceed 35/40 degrees and the cloudless desert skies push the track temperature towards 60 degrees – the highest of the year. Such extreme conditions affect tyre wear, breaking efficiency and result in the drivers losing up to one gallon of fluid during the race. To avoid the hottest temperatures, most of the racing will take place at night.

The 6 Hours of Barhain race will start at 16 :00 local time (14 :00 CET).

Bart Hayden, REBELLION Racing Team Manager: “We head into the 6 Hours of Bahrain with confidence but also realism, this race could put us into a really strong position for the win in the FIA Endurance Trophy for Private LMP1 Teams. We will have six hours of extremely tough racing against very strong opposition to get through first. We have confidence in the pace of our cars and our determination will be high for the best possible results to get closer to our targets."

Source: REBELLION Racing