Audi Sport Italia Press Release
ZOLDER RACE PREVIEW
2013 International Superstars Series - Round 7 + 8
AUDI SPORT ITALIA KEEN TO BRING ITS RS5S TO THE FIRST 2013 VENUE WHICH, ON PAPER, SUITS THEIR 4-WHEEL-DRIVE
International Superstars Series’ Belgian meeting has novelty recipes in store for Audi Sport Italia. Young Audi driver Laurens Vanthoor has signed to race for the four-ring Italian outfit in this year's round seven and eight.
The Hasselt-based Belgian will be a newcomer to V8 tin-tops, but since he calls Zolder his hometrack and being an Audi stalwart in GT3 racing he’s unlikely to be expected by a steep learning curve. Moreover, he may well be the hottest man on Sunday, as he’ll also share driving duties with former Superstars driver Thomas Schoeffler in the MTM R8 LMS ultra fielded by the German team in GT Sprint. Vanthoor will replace in the silver No 46 RS 5 Ferdinando Geri, who stood down from Superstars.
Regular driver Gianni Morbidelli will be a precious help for the Belgian teammate to make a quick transition from the rear-wheel-driven R8 LMS ultra to the 4WD RS 5; the pair might together mount a sharp challenge to the Top Spot, which has been escaping Audi drivers since September 2012. Morbidelli can’t wait to try his car for the first time since the series’ June 12 Balance Of Performance, which was aimed at slowing down the so far dominating AMG Mercedeses and to help the opposition to rebound: namely so for the Panamera Porsches which were granted 40 kilos less on the scales, but the Ingolstadt cars’ minimum weight was also cut by 20 kilos. Even better the Audi engines were saved the depressing choke of air restrictors.
Interestingly the Balance Of Performance provisions might have been a boon in the past meetings--where Audis struggled with the quick features of Monza and Slovakia--but they may well prove a less deciding factor at Zolder, whose layout used to be a favorite for 4WDs on a regular basis. 90s’ touring cars top series, DTM and Supertourenwagen made 11 visits to the Belgian track from 1994 to 1997, and only 3 times could a non-4WD post a win, each time courtesy of BMW legend Johnny Cecotto.
Photo credit: Audi Sport Italia
