It’s not like the teams involved in the Império Endurance Brasil are in the wait for the new season, as the extra time for the season start meant more possibilities to fine tune setups, shakedown new solutions and test potential drivers before the 1 May kickoff, so here’s a bit of everything from the last week and this one.
-MC Tubarão P3 prototype ready to race
Even in a year of change for MC Tubarão, they won't be away from the prototype scene, as their P3 class prototype was presented in its complete state at the Velopark last week. It was a necessary step back in order to work in a new home made P1 class prototype, which is set to debut next season.
The drivers will be Tiel Andrade, who is also listed in the GT4 class BMW M4 GT4 of the team, and newcomer João Maia, and both drivers along with the team had extra time to extract more from the recently built car due to the postponement of the 2021 season start to May.
After going Chevrolet for the last two P1 cars and Honda for their former P2 entry, MC Tubarão stuffed a Ford Duratec in this project, capable of 260 HP and coupled with a sequential 6-speed Sadev transmission. The team had a recent test run at the same Velopark, with both drivers at the wheel of the new No. 05, with the BMW M4 GT4 also turning laps with Lucas Foresti, who will share the car with Henry Visconde, Paulo Sousa and Tiel Andrade during the season.
-Ebrahim Motors brings back Audi R8
Since the deal sealed with Ginetta to race a G57 while having another one at disposal, Ebrahim Motors dropped the occasional appearances with their 2012 spec Audi R8 LMS GT3, but this year the German machine is set to come back.
It's said that family that races united remains united, and this case has two families involved, as Pedro Ebrahim, nephew of Fábio and Wagner, will share the car with Claudio Kyrila, father of Fábio and Wagner's team mate Gustavo Kyrila, while Marcelo Lozasso completes the trio.
Wagner and Fábio Ebrahim used to race this R8 LMS at the closest rounds to their home in Curitiba, usually the local track and Interlagos. While not clear, it's expected that the Audi will follow the Ginetta G57 for a full season campaign, and currently the car is listed for the GT4 Light class despite being a late second generation GT3, though it appears that will be a GT3 in the looks only.
-All aboard the No. 175 express
JLM Racing confirmed the lineup for the No. 175 AJR, as Fernando Fortes and Henrique Assunção remain in the car and welcome long time partner Fernando Ohashi, with the trio now focusing entirely in the P1 class, following the sale of their reliable MetalMoro MRX-Ford, ran by SATTI Racing, to Leandro Totti's LT Team.
Assunção and Fortes gain in team chemistry in what was already a race winning lineup, with their 2020 season having a dramatic win at the 3 Hours of Velopark, and the increased focus will be needed considering the strong lineups driving the AJRs and GT3s at the top spots.
-Tests and more tests
MC Tubarão wasn't the only team burning rubber on track for testing mileage, as Power Imports Racing had a shakedown with their JLM Racing AJR No. 80, which was driven by Alexandre Finardi and Witold Ramasauskas, who comes out of a title in the Mercedes-Benz Challenge’s C300 Cup in 2020.
The Sigma P1, now in the hands of FTR Motorsport, was also accumulating mileage, as Jindra Kraucher was accelerating at Tarumã in a private session, and he will return to the competition with Aldo Piedade, repeating the recent lineup that took part in the P2 class with some strong results.
PHOTOS: MC Tubarão, Ebrahim Motors, JLM Racing, Sigma P1 Engenharia
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