Le Mans Series

Swiss Spirit returns with Lola and Audi

© Swiss Spirit

After a very good 2006 season, with a pole position at Spa-Francorchamps and two podium finishes at Spa and Jaram, Swiss Spirit is returning to the Le Mans Series in an almost complete new identity. Former Racing Organisation Course (ROC) competition boss Fred Stalder took over the Swiss Spirit name and with the Swiss in charge the team is willing to reach its ultimate goal, winning the Le Mans 24 Hours with a Swiss driver.
The Courage LC70 that was used by the team in 2006 was owned by Saulnier Racing and was recently sold to JN Investissements. Swiss Spirit has chosen the new Lola B07/10 chassis in order to get closer to their goal of winning Le Mans. The Lola will be powered by the fabulous Audi V8 FSI twin turbo engine. This is the same engine that was in the world famous Audi R8 and it was thanks to the longstanding relationship between Fred Stalder and Audi Sport that the deal was confirmed. The team will also get technical support from Audi throughout the season.

With the support from the Audi power the team is looking forward to racing in the Le Mans Series and hopes to get several podium finishes. Beside the Le Mans Series entry, the team also hopes to be selected by the ACO to take part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Driving for the ’new’ Swiss Spirit team will be Jean-Denis Delétraz and Swiss Spirit regular Marcel Fässler. The two already drove together during the Proximus 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps (FIA GT) when they were team mates in the Phoenix Racing Aston Martin DBR9 that finished second in the race.

Delétraz drove for ROC in the LMP675 category at Le Mans in 2001 and 2002, winning the race on both attempts, and more recently in the LMP1 class when he joined Nicolas Minassian and Jamie Campbell-Walter at Creation Autosportif in Istanbul in 2005.
Fässler will be in his second Le Mans Series year with Swiss Spirit after joining the endurance racing series last year when he lost his DTM seat.

It is unclear when the Lola is delivered to the Swiss team, nor is it known yet when the Audi engine will be fitted. The Paul Ricard test in March might come to soon, but the team is looking forward to the first race in Monza.