A gold mine of inspiration, entertainment, brilliant minds and business excellence fills the World Endurance Championship paddock. And I got a taste of every one of these at this year's 6 Hours of Silverstone.
Funfair games, merchandise tents and a row of very sexy Aston Martins welcomed me as I approached the entrance of the iconic Silverstone Circuit. To my left was the Formula V8 3.5 and F3 Europe paddock, distinctly different to the very impressive motorhomes to my right of the WEC teams.
The towering media centre and hospitality boxes of the famous Silverstone Wing directly in front of me looked like an extremely inviting retreat from the icy wind and lingering rain clouds. Luckily it wasn’t snowing like last year’s race and since I left my snow boots and thermals from Rally Sweden at home, a welcome relief. Exploration hat on, it was time to discover the people who call the WEC paddock home.
First stop was the green and yellow quarters of Aston Martin Racing where practice was under way. Danish GTE World Champions Nicki Thiim and Marco Sorensen, aka the ‘Dane-train’, chatted and joked in front of their #95 car. Sporting an AMR beanie, a huge smile, and prepped in his race suit, Marco offered some advice to young drivers fighting for success.
“I think it’s important to have a good team so if you have everyone in the team behind you and you feel good it helps you as a driver as well,” the former Renault and Lotus F1 development driver admitted. “If you don’t feel at home there… it’s hard to get the right results, and it’s important to be easy to work with.”
Although that cheesy grin rarely leaves his tanned face, when it comes to racing there’s no doubt it’s serious business with one goal in mind this year.
“Everyone on the car wants to sign off Le Mans and if we can do that we have a World Championship and we have Le Mans, so that would be the ideal thing,” Marco explained, determination flashing in his eyes.
Moving down the line, past Ford’s Lego man and the crowds waiting outside Porsche and Toyota I stopped at the LMP2 privateer team Vaillante Rebellion. Within their welcoming hospitality, I was invited to join the circle of drivers relaxing on the leather couches and bean bags. The likes of Bruno Senna, Nicolas Prost, Nelson Piquet Jr, Mathias Beche, Julien Canal and David Heinemeier Hansson surrounded me, some enjoying carrot soup.
As Formula V8 3.5 played on the big screen I was lucky enough to pick one very impressive brain. Warm, open and pleasantly modest, David Heinemeier Hansson was as keen as his co-drivers Nelson and Mathias for Sunday’s WEC red starting lights to go out. He recalled the moment he became addicted to motorsport.
“I didn’t get my driver’s licence until I was 25 years old. I lived in Copenhagen, Denmark and just didn’t need a car!” revealed the third Dane I’d met that day. “A friend of mine knew of a race track that was close to Chicago where I was living. I got a chance to drive tiny formula car. I did that one day and was just blown away. It was just an amazing amount of fun to be in a car and to experience driving on the limit.
“In 2009 I got involved with a real racing class, Porsche GT4-type thing… and then I really got hooked. Pretty quickly after that the goal then became to go to the 24 Hour of Le Mans. That movement up the ranks is very addictive.”
I also discovered he was an author, motivational speaker, multiple business owner and founder of Basecamp software and Ruby on Rails; clearly there was never going to be any shortage of questions to ask DHH.
Turning to the very well-known young man sitting on my right, Bruno Senna, who was passionately watching his friend Pietro Fittipaldi battle for the podium on track, I succeeded in peeling him away from the screen after Pietro took the win.
Having raced in a number of different series across the world, fans eager for photos and autographs no matter where he goes, Bruno’s ultimate goal is still yet to be achieved.
“I still haven’t managed to win a championship which is quite annoying,” Senna remarks as his frustration is slightly evident. “Last year we got close, we got close a couple of times now but no cigar yet. So winning a championship is the first objective. Winning a World Championship is an extra bonus.
“If we can win here, hopefully we can win a few times and Le Mans definitely. In the US win some of the big races like the Daytona and Sebring – these things are the most immediate objectives. But racing for me doesn’t stop next year, it hopefully stops many years from now.”
Glancing back to the TV screen, Fittipaldi waving the trophy above his head, Bruno explained his relationship with the youngster who also bears a famous racing name.
“First [the support] it’s personal not necessarily about the surname but… because we’re friends,” Bruno insists. “Pietro stayed in my place a couple of times and every time he comes we hang out so it’s really nice to see them [Pietro and brother Enzo] doing well. Enzo is still a bit younger but I’m sure we’re going to get him in trouble eventually.
“I really hope that they do well and I think it’s good for our country as well for the racing side so there’s only positives there.”
All while this was happening there was a new sound to my ears around the Silverstone grand prix circuit; the screaming engines of the Formula V8 3.5 machines. Resembling the tones of an old F1 car, it was music to my ears. With faster cornering speeds than a modern F1 car I later sought to find out more about the specs of these racers.
Michiel Gommers, Technical Director of Lotus Formula V8 3.5 team, was more than happy to talk me through every inch of their car in incredible detail. Explaining the what’s, how’s, why’s and answering the bevy of technical questions I fired at him, no holds barred, I clearly understood why this operation works so well.
Drivers Rene Binder, nephew of a former F1 driver and Pietro Fittipaldi, grandson of the great Emerson Fittipaldi were also on hand to offer their point of view from behind the wheel. The immense passion and warmth of this entire team made me feel lucky to be part of the motorsport world and to experience first-hand a dynamic like this.
On Saturday fans of all ages began to flood through the gates, cameras in hand, autograph books out and some hauling cases of valuable memorabilia awaiting signatures. The entire paddock was constantly buzzing throughout the day.
After the FIA press conference where the Directors of ACO, FIA and the Endurance Commission extended the WEC agreement until 2020, I enjoyed meeting a welcoming FIA President Jean Todt and the delightful ACO’s boss man Pierre Fillon.
Toyota Gazoo Racing’s ‘meet the drivers’ was definitely a highlight and not only because of the delicious petite cakes served. The planets aligned on that Saturday afternoon and F1’s Bahrain GP qualifying just happened to be showcased live on the silver screen within TMG’s toasty, funky headquarters. Watching quali on those plush leather couches with Toyota’s full LMP1 line-up of drivers commentating their every thought was seriously entertaining to say the least. It would have made one hell of a TV show with that range of interesting personalities combined with expertise.
Kamui Kobayashi, Sébastien Buemi, Alex Lynn, Jose Maria Lopez, Anthony Davidson, Mike Conway, Kazuki Nakajima – their racing experiences and tales, from karts to the highest level, would fill a book that I for one would love to read. After watching Valtteri Bottas claim his maiden pole in F1, we sat chatting to the down-to-earth Toyota boys on the couch for the next hour or so.
Buemi, Davidson, and Nakajima went on the next day to celebrate on the top step of WEC’s first podium of 2017. Heightened emotions filled the Toyota pit garage and hospitality after such an eventful race, a stark contrast to the calm residence I had basked in the previous afternoon.
“I am so happy with this win,” said Buemi. “It has been a long time since the last one on our car so it’s great to start the season like that. It was a tough race and really exciting at the end.”
Davidson praised his team mate for such a solid drive.
“Séb was on fire at the end on fresher tyres. Kazuki and I were willing him on from the pits and he did an amazing job. We couldn’t be prouder to win this one.”
As the icy night closed in I yearned for a cosy pub dinner and a large glass of wine. What I got was a beetroot muesli bar, a warm bottle of water and three hours of traffic on the M25 back to London.
Oh well, a girl can dream..!
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