Valentino Rossi continued to get used to the Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II at the official GT World Challenge test and got first reference from teammates
The official pre-season test for the 2022 GT World Challenge (GTWC) Europe season took place at Circuit Paul Ricard in Le Castellet, France on Monday and Tuesday. Also taking part on the second day was Valentino Rossi, who will be driving the WRT racing team’s Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II for the full season.
The two Audi works drivers Frederic Vervisch and Nico Müller were presented as Rossi’s team-mates in the black/yellow Audi with start number 46 a few days ago. On Tuesday, Rossi got a first reference when he shared the car with his teammates for the first time. Before that, the nine-time motorbike world champion had got to know the racing version of the R8 during several private tests (Valencia, Magny-Cours, Misano).
In Le Castellet, Rossi was only in action on the second day of testing. He completed 73 laps and set a personal best of 1:54.735 minutes. He set this time in the morning session. Vervisch was only four tenths of a second faster in the same session with 1:54.331 minutes. In the afternoon, however, the Belgian improved to 1:53.960, whereas Rossi was unable to match his own morning time.
Rossi’s conclusion after his first official day of testing was largely positive: “It was a good day and it was also the first time that we were all together in action. So we all got better comparative values from each other,” says the Italian.
“We worked on the set-up. And of course we noticed areas where we still have to improve. But the feeling is good. The track is not new to me, but it’s been over 20 years since I last rode it. That’s why I first had to get used to it again. But all in all it was a good day,” said Rossi.
Thanks to Vervisch’s lap times, the WRT Audi finished P22 and P18 on the timesheet in Tuesday’s two test sessions. By comparison, the fastest time by an Audi was 1:52.971 minutes set by the Sainteloc team. However, this was not the absolute best time of the test. That was set by Fabian Schiller in the main Mercedes with 1:52.533 minutes.
A total of 43 GT3 cars were on track during the two-day test in Le Castellet. As many as 52 cars from nine manufacturers are entered in the Endurance Cup for the 2022 GTWC season, 16 of them in the Pro class, in which the WRT Audi with Rossi’s characteristic starting number 46 is also entered.
The season opener takes place on 3 April in the form of the 3 Hours of Imola. It is the first of five races in the Endurance Cup. The first of five Sprint Cup races is on the calendar four weeks later at Brands Hatch. Rossi will drive all ten races on the 2022 GTWC calendar together with Vervisch, with Nico Müller joining as a third driver for the five Endurance races.