Genesis on track after "500 days of waiting"

It's not yet Free Practice 1 for the 6 Hours of Imola, but Genesis has never been closer to its official FIA debut. WECThe arrival of the Korean manufacturer, officially announced in September 2024, is now materializing with its presence at the Prologue in Emilia-Romagna. This opening event has been delayed, as the 1812km Qatar race will now take place in October, instead of March as originally planned.

This is sure to further increase impatience among the troops of Cyril Abiteboulwho have spent the last few months honing their skills on European circuits, and in particular the Circuit Paul Ricard, very close to the team's workshops in Signes. By taking to the track with its two prototypes at Imola, the Group's premium brand Hyundai was finally able to measure itself for the first time against its opponents for the seasons to come, and according to Paul-Loup Chatin, one of the team's off-season recruits, the 500 days were both short and long!

“This is the first time we’ve taken to the track in official conditions, so everyone was naturally excited about it; we’ve been waiting for this for 500 days. We gathered a lot of information and did a good job. We were able to test the rain tires, the medium tires, the soft tires, and we really focused on ourselves to maximize the time available to us.”

The Frenchman was indeed able to drive the GMR-001 Hypercar for the first time equipped with Michelin rain tires, as the session began on a wet track. These conditions were welcome for Genesis, as opportunities to test its car in changing grip conditions, this time on increasingly dry asphalt, are particularly rare.

"It was a good session for us, we need to continue like this, without mistakes, and make sure we find our rhythm. We are still in a learning phase, but we are very proud of what the team was able to achieve. It was a good session for both cars."

The first driver announced for the project, along with Brazilian Pipo Derani, German André Lotterer also took advantage of this first "real-life" meeting with the rest of the WEC paddock. The three-time winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans He's no stranger to large-scale projects, but the same thrill is always there when you arrive with a new manufacturer. Despite a few minor teething problems, the GMR-001 ran smoothly this Tuesday morning.

“It’s very exciting to be here, to take to the track for the first time against other Hypercars. This allows us to start measuring ourselves against the competition. It wasn’t a bad first session; there were a few minor issues here and there, of course, but nothing major. We were able to test some things, find our rhythm in challenging conditions, on a track that was drying out. For the first day of the championship, it’s not too bad.”

On track until 18:30 PM this evening, Genesis will continue to gather data until the end of the Prologue. On Friday, it will be time to truly enter the arena, with the primary objective of learning and gradually increasing their performance.

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