Interviews

Inside Embassy - Jonny Kane

© Planetlemans - Gabriel Portos

“Inside Embassy” will bring you regularly behind the scenes of one of the most interesting teams of the Le Mans Series, Embassy Racing. In their debut as brand new constructors, Jonathan France’s men are entering a completely new phase and we’ll be talking to many of them as the season progresses. A real privilege for Planetlemans that starts today!

In our first edition of “Inside Embassy” we had the opportunity of exchanging views with Jonny Kane, one of the team drivers and a very important asset in Jonathan France’s squad. As our readers might remember from a previous interview, Jonny is not just a very neat and consistent driver but he is also a driver coach, transmitting his former experience as a driver to younger talents in formation. But in fact the start of our conversation was around his experience working at a team that is simultaneously a constructor and how this influences his job behind the wheel.

PLM- Jonny, you had experience already in constructor teams. What is different?

JK- Right, last year at Spyker was a good example but I’ve also been previously with MG, Bentley, Arena when they were an Audi team… I think the main difference with a customer team is that you execute an ongoing feedback process in order to accelerate development. Here at Embassy it is somehow more challenging since we started from scratch with a brand new project, we had no reference, points, no information except what the simulation process was telling us beforehand.

© Planetlemans - Gabriel Portos

PLM- So what is the main objective at the very beginning?

JK- Well, the first step when the car is ready is to verify the data on the track which you obtain from the wind tunnel. You look primarily for a good balance on the chassis and need to work on different aerodynamic packages that you will need to apply at the different circuits and all that keeping a strict methodology and quality processes. You could say that gathering information is the main priority, both cars will be trying different things and then we will transfer information and data from one to another. The drivers will look for similar things so this basically speeds up the whole process.

PLM- Does this mean you all have similar approach to the development of the car?

JK- We are all looking for the best balance that we can find, as I mentioned we seem to look for but also feel similar things in the car. This accelerates the work considerably as our progress after Barcelona has showed. In fact we had very little time before that first race so we took it more as a shakedown, but since then there has been tremendous improvement. To feel that performance boost is very pleasing from a driver’s point of view, when you have no mechanical issues you can put a lot of track time and obviously collect lots more information.

PLM- So you feel a big difference here at Monza

JK- Indeed, it is a whole different atmosphere. When things go smoother that lifts all spirits and you get really focussed. Just before coming here we tested at Silverstone, we knew the issue with the steering that forced us out at Barcelona, we tested, we fixed it and it was an important milestone looking at the rest of the season as well. The way the calendar is structured up to Le Mans makes us very busy, it is a worst case scenario in our circumstance as a new constructor and the team needs to be flat out on the race weekend to be able to deliver. Having just a couple of weeks in between races you need a lot of hard work to progress further, this is not like Formula 1 where you have a test team… but after Le Mans it will get easier with more time for development.

PLM- This effort does require very strong teamwork therefore…

JK- This team is most impressive; it’s like a small family. We do not have a huge corporation making road cars behind us, this is a true private manufacturer where you need to stay together and there are less people involved. This means as well that when we get the results the feeling of achievement will be much bigger, more intense. It was similar when we ran with Arena at Sebring, but there we had a bigger group of people on the manufacturing side.

© Planetlemans - Gabriel Portos

PLM- You sound completely at home here.

JK- Well, first of all I am very impressed by the level of professionalism I have found here, there’s extremely good people and even if it’s early days I start to feel part of the family already. And now that the season started we work more together which is very important. We have everything we need and are very fortunate to have a very motivated and supportive boss!

PLM- Do you think the team is going in the right direction, then? Does this fit Jonathan’s vision?

JK- Our ultimate goal is very clear, win races. And in order to do that we need to do proper development. I think I have now the right experience to be a developer. When you are young and race in, say, Formula 3 you try to maximize performance starting from the same car everyone else has. Now I take things otherwise, I am not an “arrive and drive” character but this is one of the reasons why I was chosen for the job, you cannot “buy’ experience, it comes with the years (laughs)

PLM- And do you like all that testing?

JK- I enjoy it, in the end to win races you need a fast car and only proper testing can get you there. I see the importance of that as does the team. Trying different things is key and I enjoy that, looking for the ways to structurally improve as we do at Embassy. A lot of drivers don’t particularly enjoy this but it’s part of my approach, that’s why I also coach younger drivers, You can go home with a good feeling if you improved a driver’s lap time or your car’s performance.

PLM- So what does Embassy expect from the drivers then?

JK- First of all we are all professional, this is our job and it’s only professional to give 100% , that’s what is expected from you and if you don’t deliver it will be immediately noticed. We are all very competitive and each one of us four wants to be the fastest. Additionally there’s two groups of two and a group of four in the team dynamics. Of course we compete and we race hard but that never becomes fighting, it cannot become counterproductive, you cannot be selfish at sportscars! In this environment you know that you will not get the perfect seating position, you might not get all track time you ant but here it is all about the team. In the end Embassy is who we work for and who we represent, that’s the team we want to get to the podium!!

A really good conversation which gave us a good picture of how things are going at Embassy. It’s not only Jonny’s maturity and racing approach but mostly how those aspects fit in the bigger picture at Embassy Racing and the value that Jonny adds to the vision that the team has set in order to achieve their objectives. It won’t be an easy road looking at the level of competition and pressure but Jonny’s professionalism and determination within Embassy’s framework seems to be a very strong ingredient for future success.