For its debut at Sebring, the Aston Martin Valkyrie sees the finish in the top 10

For the occasion, exit the green livery seen on the two prototypes entered in WEC, Sebring being a round of theIMSA. It was therefore with the well-known blue, black and yellow of the Heart of Racing structure that the Valkyrie offered its major V12 symphony to the very many spectators who made the trip to Florida. The objective was simple for the British brand, to see the finish with the machine n°23, driven by Ross Gunn, Alex Riberas and Roman De Angelis. A bet met, with the bonus of first points in IMSA, with ninth place at stake, two laps behind Porsche victorious.

The Valkyrie's presence on track at Sebring also marked the first outing of a car meeting LMH regulations in the American championship. Until now, only LMDh machines took part in both the WEC and IMSA. Perhaps a first step towards the presence of Toyota, Ferrari or others Peugeot in the great classics of theEndurance across the Atlantic? The English racing car, officially derived from the production machine, has in any case shown a nice progression curve throughout this weekend in Florida, even if it is worth noting that it finished one lap behind eighth place. Enough to delight Adam Carter, head of Endurance programs at Aston Martin.

« The Valkyrie's performance is satisfactory and highlights the progress made by the program with each lap completed. Sebring is well known for being a tough test for any race car, not to mention a new Hypercar. But we were confident in the car's ability to go the distance, and the fact that it did so well is a huge testament to everyone who worked on the program. We are only at the beginning with the Valkyrie, et il y aura carefully sure opportunities, potential improvement, to the direction us have beaucoup learned et collected a huge amount de data that we can now analyze."

Analyze before chaining races

Drivers like Alex Riberas were also extremely pleased to see the end of twelve hours of racing on a track as demanding as Sebring. Finishing ahead of an Acura ARX-06 is no bad thing either: « It's an extraordinary feeling. We came here without any expectations, because we knew that Sebring would be one of the most challenging difficult challenges we would have to face as a team with a new car. We really didn't think we could come here and do what we just did – finish the race, and not only that, but also in the top ten."

Ian James, the team's Team Principal, believes the data collected at Sebring will be excellent for the rest of the program. The program will first take place in the United States, with the Long Beach event on April 12, followed by the WEC's 6 Hours of Imola eight days later. Not at all, the endurance season is truly about to get into the thick of things on both sides of the Atlantic.

« If we could have wished for anything before this race, a place in the top ten would have been a dream. We beat some very good cars, and 12 hours around this circuit is an important moment for us and for our program. We learn something every round and we will come back stronger every time. »

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