Interviews

Planetlemans talks to Karim Ojjeh

© Planetlemans - Gabriel Portos // The “Merci Renate” on the Zytek

After a successful season ending with two LMS victories in LMP2 at Silverstone and Interlagos with Barazi-Epsilon (teaming with Michael Vergers and Juan Barazi), Karim Ojjeh is back this year with the Trading Performance Zytek, a new team which we erroneously thought was his own…

PLM- Karim, how do you feel now as team owner?

KO- I’am not the owner!(laughs) my mother owns the car!

PLM- Really?

KO- Absolutely! You need to see the “Merci Renate” logo on the car, that’s our thanks for her enabling this effort.

PLM- So was this your mother’s idea?

KO- My mother is a big racing fan for a very long time. Remember when we (TAG) sponsored the Williams Formula 1 team in the 80s? She even got a test ride in the Formula 1 car back then. In fact everything started when I called her up in October and we discussed the project, it is her way of having fun and she was very motivated to have the team in the LMS and Le Mans.

PLM- So this is your mother’s first team.

KO- Well, in fact she was backing Claude-Yves (Gosselin) on the Belgian Touring Car Championship last year. When we went on defining the team we ended with a structure where the car and engines are hers and Claude-Yves manages the team.

PLM- So you’re nothing more than a driver!

KO- A paid driver!! (laughs) All three of us are paid drivers in fact.

PLM- So why did you choose the Zytek?

KO- Well, after last year we knew the car was good and we wanted to fight with the other teams even when you cannot match certain performances. Take Michael (Vergers), you cannot beat Michael!! There’s no way we can compete with such a fast driver, however we knew we could be competitive. All that changed when we knew three Porsche Spyders had been sold in Europe, that changed the game completely in LMP2.

PLM- So how did you reset your goals then?

KO- Mainly the team is growing, learning. Barcelona proved that during such a tough time we did hung together and this is important. We’re now at Monza and it’s going clearly better, we’re mingling with the other LMP2s and that’s good progress.

PLM- Are you feeling more relaxed now then?

KO- On the contrary, now we have more pressure on ourselves competing against Embassy, Barazi… the Porsches and the Speedy-Sebah Lola are on another league to be really honest.

PLM- Is the gap so big?

KO- Well, when you have that kind of car and a Formula 1 driver… did you see (Jos) Verstappen braking in Barcelona/at the first chicane? It was amazing! He was braking 70-80 meters before the turn and we could only brake 110-120 meters before. I was talking to Michael (Vergers) and he said he could brake later than that but I’m sure we could not match that performance.

PLM- Is it the car or the driver?

KO- Both. If you see the Essex Porsche, John Nielsen was giving it a hard time through the chicanes and I thought “this car won’t last 6 hours” but it did. The Zytek can still be a contender, don’t get me wrong. But it will take hard work to get it to the podium.

PLM- Is it a budget gap?

KO- As well, our whole budget for the year could not buy us even a Porsche and the spares, it’s simply another level.

PLM- So what’s the reward then for privateer teams like Trading Performance?

KO- A lot of things. We’re still learning, getting faster and faster since Barcelona. And the feeling of the car is still great, it’s fun to drive. But driving is getting also more physical these days, there’s lots of demand on your body. Take Parabolica, there’s lots of G force now driving through it. We’re now getting through in 4th gear there which was not the case before, it’s become a much quicker corner and therefore harder on your neck and other muscles.

PLM- So what’s the objective then, bottom line?

KO- Have a good time and do well, if we do well, it’s the cherry on top of the cake. Our project is a 2 year project so at the end of 2009 we’ll sell the car and probably I will stop driving.

PLM- is that decided already?

KO- Well, if we get accepted to Le Mans in 2009 it will be my fifth Le Mans 24 Hours. I was very lucky to get to the podium on my first Le Mans in 2005, how many people can claim that? You also need to get the younger guys race, so many people want to drive at Le Mans, it is just fair you give other people also the chance.

PLM- But is Le Mans “the” objective for this team?

KO- No, the objective is the Le Mans Series and Le Mans. You see, these races are great, our families, our colleagues attend and it becomes a business entertainment occasion. I always tell people, don’t expect us to win all the time, it’s not the idea but people are motivated to come and have a good time.

PLM- Winning has become much more difficult this year…

KO- Sure, the series has grown enormously and the bar has raised much higher than many people expected. My heart goes to teams like Creation. Having to fight against Audi and Peugeot is shattering, has a demoralizing effect. They were challenging Pescarolo before and now they have quite a gap to the diesels.

© Planetlemans - Gabriel Portos

PLM- So is this evolution positive for the series in your opinion?

KO- It is, look at the paddock, the infrastructure, the level of competition. You remember how it was 2 years ago, right? The TV coverage is better but still has to improve like other aspects: take the intention to grow outside Europe. It is difficult to achieve that when every team and their stakeholders are European, there’s little added value for a European-only sponsor to finance a race like Interlagos or Shanghai, it’s a tough sell.

PLM- So what does the series need in your opinion to grow further?

KO- Education! We need to educate the spectators, help them understand and follow the race. There’s lots of aspects that, when explained, make the racing experience much more fun. We need to bring people to the pits, show them how everything works. We can still move forward in these and other not so well known aspects. Take the logo here on the car, the Borneo Tropical Rainforest Foundation (BTRF), we are environmentally positive and this should be much more publicized!

PLM- Could you explain more?

KO- Sure, we fund BTRF to plant rainforest overcompensating our carbon dioxide production. Not just the car’s carbon dioxide emission, that’s only 2% of what we produce with our trucks, machines, etc. We made a calculation and plant more rainforest than is needed to counter that effect, it is an aspect that is also part of racing these days.

The chat with Karim goes on for quite some time, brainstorming on potential aspects that could enhance the series, bring more spectators to the track and increase the exposure to the big TV audience. Clearly, Karim is a contributor to the LMS by also proposing practical ideas to the organization and not just racing and those are the kind of things that can make a difference.