Round two of the FIA World Endurance Championship at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit saw Karun Chandhok’s JRM Racing deliver another strong performance and an impressive result by finishing eighth overall at the iconic 6-hours of Spa.
The achievement was made even more rewarding as the team had to overcome a series of challenges during the build- up to the event.
With the onset of rain on Saturday morning and, with six-hours of competition ahead of them, the team was confident that good progress could be made during the race.
However, the relentless rain had made levels of grip even more unpredictable than normal and, whilst the exit of Eau Rouge posed no problems on the first of the formation laps for Karun, he suddenly found himself on the grass on the second.
The car then clipped a barrier, with the impact severely damaging the car’s bodywork and rear suspension.
Fortunately, Karun was able to nurse the car back to the pits, where the team set about repairing the damage before the start of the race.
After a supreme effort, the HPD was ready to go in time for the green light, although Karun had to start from the pit lane and, in keeping with the regulations, was required to wait a full lap before being allowed to exit onto the track.
He then set about the task ahead and, lap-by-lap, scythed his way past slower cars and, after the first hour and his first pit stop, was sixth of the Privateer LMP1 runners.
After a tough race at one of his favourite circuits, Karun commented, “I think I gave the boys a bit too much work to do today. It’s been a tough weekend for everybody in the team and the guys have done a fantastic job to get the car ready in time. I couldn’t be a mechanic, that’s for sure.''
''Even though there were some issues to resolve earlier in the week, the car was very good today and you can tell there’s definitely more to come.”
JRM Racing arrived at Spa earlier this week, intending to use the first two practice sessions on Thursday to set up the car for the unique characteristics of the Belgium track. An issue with the brakes meant the only time available for the team to dial in the settings was during Friday morning’s one-hour practice session. Karun drove the 20-minute qualifying stint in the afternoon and was able to put the car a strong eighth on the grid.
With the rain slowly retreating and the track drying out, the initial set of wet tyres were swapped for slicks, which saw the lap times improve further.
But then, after a further 40-minutes, contact was made with another car as he went to overtake it on the entrance to the ‘Bus stop’, the incident damaging a front wing.
The next scheduled pit stop saw the affected parts replaced and, after a storming stint that lasted two-hours and 45-minutes, Karun came into the pits to swap with David Brabham.
Following a safety car period due to another competitor going off the road at the same point that Karun did earlier — but this time in a big way —Brabham then proceeded to deliver one of his customary solid performances, the car getting quicker as the laps clicked past.
And, after nearly two hours and with one-hour and 20-minutes of the race left, he came in to hand over to Peter Dumbreck. The team now prepares for the big one: the 24-hours of Le Mans, which takes place on June 16 and 17.