A good performance for both Panis-Barthez Compétition line-ups

Sarah Abadie - Team-Manager : “It went well this weekend at Paul Ricard for both cars which set their best result since the beginning of the season. Regarding the LMP2, we feared about the deterioration of the tyres but it was fine eventually. The whole team did not make any mistake and the drivers were great. They had a good pace all throughout the race which allowed us to catch up the other competitors as well as secure a good result. This is very positive for the rest of the championship.

About the LMP3, we were a bit more opportunist and the drivers were excellent too. We had decided to give the opportunity to Theo to start the race in ELMS for the first time. In our logic of young drivers’ development, it is important that each driver could start a race at least once during the season. He did a great job as well as Éric Debard, and, more particularly, Simon Gachet, who did an amazing catching-up. He even set the fastest time of all the LMP3 drivers.

With very hot conditions at Le Castellet, it was not easy, but we worked well to improve the comfort of the driver. The cars improved well all throughout the weekend and we were cautious due to the deterioration of the tyres like in Timothé Buret’s first stint. Anyway, a positive weekend that gives us hopes for the rest of the season for both line-ups.” 

Fabien Barthez – LMP2 driver – Ligier JS P217 #23 : “Beyond the sporting satisfaction, this fourth place delights me because it is the result of the work of the whole team and we are happy to dedicate it to our team-principal, Olivier Panis, absent at Le Castellet for personal reasons. The engineers and their staff did an amazing job for this race especially because we were not able to run a lot during the free practices. They knew how to gather the best parameters with only little information from us. They deserve this result. Nathanaël, Timothé and I had a very competitive car that allowed us to go for it and we enjoyed ourselves a lot on this track." 

Nathanaël Berthon- LMP2 driver – Ligier JS P217 #23 : "I had my stints at the end of the race, after a great job from my two teammates. We can be proud of this result, the best of the year because it was a bit tough at the beginning of the meeting. Indeed, we did not run much during the free sessions but the engineers found the right set-up. Timothé did awesome laptimes and fought well during his double stint. As usual, Fabien did not make any mistake. We are always confident when he is on track. Without the last Full Course Yellow, the podium was within reach but we only want to remember the best: this good result, our improvement throughout the different rounds and the growing understanding with the technical staff. We are even more motivated for Spa; it is one of my favourite tracks. It is the place where I have always been successful in different categories; I really look forward to being there!”

Timothé Buret – LMP2 driver - Ligier JS P217 #23 : "My start was good; I did not lose any position which was the most important thing. We knew the key element would be the deterioration of the tyres so I took care of them for five or six laps. Moreover, I had to save a fair amount of fuel because we have a tendency to overconsume. I had quite a few parameters to take into account but, laps after laps, I had the right pace, the deterioration was not so serious. I also managed the traffic well and the team did a good job. All these elements allowed me to have fun at the wheel of the car, I would even say it is the first time I have enjoyed so much at Paul Ricard. This fourth place is a good reward for our technical staff which prepared us a top car.”

Simon Gachet - LMP3 driver – Ligier JSP3 #16 : « It is a very positive weekend with the best result of the season up to now. It is a good thing, especially after our disappointment at the last round. We changed our way of working a bit, before the race mainly focusing more on consistency during free sessions. During the race, we did not make any mistake and this 5^th place shows our real potential in the championship. During my stint, I felt really well, and I had a good pace. I was really happy to regularly set the fastest time. Theo succeeded in having his first start in ELMS, he gained confidence in himself and it comforted us in the coherence of our line-up. We will be stronger at Spa!”

Theo Bean – LMP3 driver – Ligier JSP3 #16 : “It was my first start in ELMS. It was good but, at one corner, I had one car on my right, one on my left. The one on the right turned in to me and touched the front part of my car. I had contact with the car on the left; it was like a kind of triangle in front of me. I broke two aerodynamics parts at the front but it was not too serious. I lost a few positions and after that, I had a pretty good pace. I am quite happy with my stint, laptimes were good and I really enjoyed myself on this new track for me. Now I look forward to the next round at Spa. It will be a special moment for me because I used to watch Formula 1 at Spa with my dad when I was a kid.”

Eric Debard - LMP3 driver – Ligier JSP3 #16 : “I really enjoyed this race, the car was just perfect and our engineer, Christophe, did an amazing job with his squad. All throughout my stint, the grip was consistent and that allowed us to catch up some competitors ahead. We all did a good job and we succeeded in putting things in the right order. We are rewarded by this good result and it augments a good perspective for the rest of the season.”