Having secured back-to-back Pro-Am podium positions in Monza and Silverstone, the team head to the French circuit in pursuit of further success to elevate to the top of the championship standings.
Unlike the opening rounds, the race at Paul Ricard is fought over six hours (1000km) instead of the usual three. This tees the teams up well ahead of the season famous, Total 24 Hours of Spa, in July.
An unfortunate first round in Monza saw the team suffer a string of punctures that put their first win of the season on hold. The trio of Ahmad Al Harthy, Salih Yoluc and Charlie Eastwood partnered well to finish in third despite the setbacks and showcased the speed of the #97 Aston Martin, early on.
At Silverstone, the trio crossed the line in second and as a result have moved up to second place in both the drivers and teams’ championships.
Having shown great pace in both previous events, including achieving back-to-back pole positions, a strong result in France could promote the team to the top of the standings. With the team seeking their first win of the season, spirits are high heading into the weekend.
Tom Ferrier, TF Sport Director
“We have had the pace to win races this year and we head to Paul Ricard as we have to both Monza and Silverstone with the same mindset. We were unfortunate at Monza with the punctures and showed our pace again at Silverstone. This is a very tough event – anything can happen in a six-hour race, but as ever the aim is to stay in the championship hunt with another podium position.”
Ahmad Al Harthy
“I’m looking forward to our race at Paul Ricard. It’s going to be our longest and toughest race so far this season, but obviously we’ve had two strong results so far and we hope to continue this way as well as further understanding and developing the new car.”
Salih Yoluc
“I’m looking forward to racing with Ahmad and Charlie again, but I’m hoping we have better luck this time out. The test went really well, we completed a lot of laps, so this should put us in a strong position this weekend and we expect to be going for the win and hopefully the lead in the championship.”
Charlie Eastwood
“The season has been good so far with two pole positions out of two, but unfortunately we haven’t been able to convert them into race wins yet. At Paul Ricard we plan to change that as it should be a very strong track for the new Aston Martin. We’re going for gold!”