FIA GT Championship

Planetlemans talks to José María “Pechito” López

© José María López

In between races and just after he leaves an important Argentinian Automobile Club (ACA) meeting in Buenos Aires we get hold of José María “Pechito” López to ask him about this brand new Argentinian FIA-GT project.

PLM- How’s the Escudería ACA project coming along?

JML- I just come back from the ACA where we met and discussed about the team. It’s not easy since all of us drivers have commitments here in Argentina and the project is running a bit tight.

PLM- So will you be able to race?

JML- Sure, it is a great opportunity and it’s worth making the effort to be in 5 or 6 races which is what I think I will be able to do at FIA-GT this season.

PLM- Will we see you at Silverstone?

JML- Actually I cannot make it to Silverstone due to previous commitments (editor’s note : TC race next Sunday at 9 de Julio), the whole idea is that there will be a rotative pool of drivers depending on who can make it to a certain race?

PLM- So you will be changing through the season?

JML- As much as possible we’ll have fixed pairings, one should be Esteban Tuero-Gastón Mazzacane and the other one Martín Basso and myself. Most probably at Silverstone it will be Gastón and either Esteban or Martín. I think my first race will be Adria, I cannot make it to Europe before that.

PLM- A lot has been said about the car and its potential lack of competitiveness….

JLM- In all honesty I don’t know the car but here the important thing is about motivation and push and this team has that. We need to see how the car behaves, which improvements have been made since it is a car of some years ago.

PLM- You have experience on the ALMS , how was that?

JML- It was actually my first time driving a car with a roof! I was unlucky at Sebring when a broken oil hose put fire to the car and then I made a driving mistake at St. Petersburg and I was not called back. It was my mistake, no excuses, but it was my third time on a GT car on a track like St. Pete…

PLM- Do you see this escudería ACA as a first step in a european return?

JML- I hope it turns that way. I’d love to return to Europe, it is tough once you got back to Argentina to try and get back but this is also because I’m really fine being in my country. I did a lot of work to get to Formula 1 but this time the work can open other doors like at GT classes.

PLM- And prototypes, would you like to race those?

JML- I’d love to!! But i would like to do it in a proper way, with preparation and the necessary tests to be at the best point and show what I can do…

“Pechito”won’t be at Silverstone but we’re sure he will let see what he can do starting at the Adria round of FIA-GT. In the meantime the historical blue-yello racing colors of Argentina will be present the whole year generating an extra attractive for FIA-GT fans.