Marc Gené joins the ranks of Audi

Timo Bernhard will be unable to compete in the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps following his violent exit during testing held by the manufacturer at the rings at Sebring. The Ingolstadt firm has just hired the former pilot Peugeot Marc Gené as reserve driver and former winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2009 with Peugeot will be directly involved in replacing the German at the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps. The Spaniard, who is also a reserve pilot for the Team Ferrari, will share the wheel of the No. 18 R3 ultra with Romain Dumas and Loic duval. He becomes the third driver to occupy this position in the German team after Lucas Luhr in 2010 and Marco Bonanomi last year.

Dr Wolfgang Ullrich is obviously saddened to see Timo Bernhard absent in the test event before the 24 Hours of Le Mans. But the Audi sporting director is confident about the recovery of his driver and the potential of his new recruit. ?From our first meetings, I immediately felt that Marc would fit in well with our team and we quickly signed an agreement. It's a real shame that Timo Bernhard won't be able to compete in the second round of the WEC in Spa as planned. At the same time, I am happy to see that his recovery is happening quickly. This is why we are keeping our initial plan by keeping it in the entry list for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. »