WRC legend and multitask driver Sébastien Loeb joined the FIA World Rallycross Championship circle and in typical Loeb fashion he was quick to be competitive and even score a win in the process. Now his own team follows the Frenchman and joins rallycross, as Sébastien Loeb Racing will be part of the World RX grid for the whole 2018 season.
Like the driver, the team will count with French machinery as the Peugeot 208 WRX was selected for the campaign, but what is most impressive in this deal is that SLR will have the assistance of ORECA and Onroak Automotive in the development of the car.
Along with the sportscar experience throughout the years as a racing team and as a prototype builder and tuner, ORECA is actively participating in rallying and was one of the organizations behind the Team Peugeot-Hansen 208 WRX for quite a long time. As for Onroak Automotive, they are your typical sportscar company, being involved with prototypes from the Pescarolo 01 LMP1 to the recent Ligier JS P4, with history in historical circuit racers and now joining the open wheel ranks with its Formula 4 machine.
About the team, Sébastien Loeb Racing is coming from the final year of WTCC in its TC1 regulations, though it will continue in the new WTCR competition with TCR class machinery. Some years back in time show that SLR had ties with Oreca as they aligned an Oreca 03 LMP2 in the European Le Mans Series and at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and it was around that time when Sébastien Loeb himself drove for his team in the FIA GT Series, which is the Blancpain GT Sprint Cup currently.
As it is the case with most of SLR programs, it won’t be Loeb to do the driving, and instead it will be Gregoire Demoustier, a nomadic driver with a recent WTCC stint with SLR, followed by a move to World RX with DA Racing in older 208 WRX with Jean-Baptiste Dubourg, without going past the qualifying heats. As for Loeb, he will be part of the Peugeot World RX effort as they step up the game with Hansen Motorsport.
The 2018 World RX season starts on April 16th at Barcelona.
PHOTO: Sébastien Loeb Racing
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