Larbre Compétition unveils its crew

After the ACO conference held at Rétromobile in Paris where the lists of entrants to 24 Hours of Le Mans (June 16-17) and on WEC Super Season were presented, Larbre Compétition has finalized its crew which will be present in all rounds of the World ChampionshipEndurance.

Fernando Rees will thus spearhead the only Ligier JS P217 in the LMP2 field of the WEC since the Brazilian will be accompanied by two Bronze drivers from the LMP3 of theELMS with Erwin Creed and Romano Ricci who do not yet have experience with LMP2 prototypes.

“The commitment to 24 Hours of Le Mans to celebrate a 25th participation of Larbre Compétition in Sarthe provoked great reflection on my part. Of course, this could only be a big project. At the same time, the development of activities in motorsport with my friend Jacques Nicolet, which began seven years ago, led us to reflect on our facilities in Val-de-Vienne”, explains Jack Leconte, the owner of Larbre Compétition.

“I am delighted to welcome two newcomers, Erwin and Romano, and I am sure that they will enjoy driving our LMP2 after having had a great season in LMP3 last year. We have had more than ten drivers debut at Le Mans who have gone on to become great endurance professionals and I am happy to still be able to offer such an opportunity. I am also very happy to find Fernando for this great challenge. He delivered a very good performance last year and I am delighted to work with him again”, he added.

Erwin Creed raced last year in the Norma M 30 LMP3 from Yvan Muller's team before moving to the LMP2 category of the WEC.

“Every pilot dreams of being able to participate in such a program one day. After racing in ELMS and V de V endurance, I dreamed of reaching this level. Last year, I tested a Ligier JS P3, it's very nice to drive, you really feel in harmony with the car. This new experience in LMP2 promises to be interesting, especially with their new level of performance. Last season I was happy with my progress in the race at Road to Le Mans where I finished in third place after starting from the back of the grid. I really like this new program », declared the new recruit of Larbre Compétition.

“I thank Jack for offering me such a challenge, commented for his part Romano Ricci who was entered in the Ligier JS P3 of M. Racing – YMR. It's very stimulating to join a team with a track record as rich as Larbre's. I am also delighted to have Erwin as a teammate. We have been friends since childhood, so we know each other very well and have a lot of respect for each other. It will be interesting to compare our level of performance compared to the competition, and we may surprise a few. I have a little experience in endurance with a participation in Le Mans in 2000; I also raced at Road to Le Mans in 2016 and 2017, and participated in the ELMS championship last year. I even did the 25 Hours of Spa 17 times! It will be important to understand certain key points such as tire management and traffic. I can't wait to tackle this new challenge. »