Valentino Rossi’s COTA WEC Hopes Dashed by Late Breakdown in Lone Star Le Mans

Valentino Rossi's COTA WEC race thwarted by late mechanical failure

The #46 WRT BMW experienced technical problems just 15 minutes before the conclusion of the Lone Star Le Mans

The #46 WRT BMW LMGT3 vehicle, piloted by Valentino Rossi, Ahmad Al Harty, and Maxime Martin, withdrew from the Austin World Endurance Championship race with only 15 minutes remaining.

Last Sunday at the Circuit of the Americas, a car with MotoGP legend Rossi’s iconic #46 made an impressive climb from 15th to 5th place in the opening phase of the Lone Star Le Mans race.

During his stint, Al Harty secured a competitive position for the car, and teammates Rossi and Martin continued to uphold that impressive pace.

As the race was drawing to a close, and the car was holding a position within the top five, a hydraulics problem emerged with just 15 minutes remaining, leading to its retirement from the competition.

"The weekend experienced a mix of positive and negative moments," stated Vincent Vosse, the head of the WRT team.

“While the outcome is not what we hoped for, there are still several encouraging aspects to acknowledge."

"Our team was the only one able to match the Ferrari's pace in the Hypercar category for the first half of the race, which was a significant positive aspect."

"We need to master doing this flawlessly until the race concludes."

"However, let's maintain a positive outlook and concentrate on the upcoming race scheduled for two weeks from now in Fuji. The outcome in LMGT3 has been less than satisfactory."

“We did our best with vehicle #31. Car #46 experienced a technical malfunction, specifically a problem with the power steering. We will conduct a thorough investigation to determine the root cause of this issue.”

"Our rivals outperformed us, causing us to fall further behind the top two teams. We need to figure out how to do better in Fuji."

The Heart of Racing Aston Martin, car number 27, clinched victory in the LMGT3 category at Circuit of the Americas, whereas the other WRT vehicle, car number 31, finished in fifth place.

The #83 AF Corse Ferrari, driven by former Formula 1 driver Robert Kubica, along with Robert Shwartzman and Yifei Ye, secured an outright win and claimed the top spot in the Hypercar category.

Rossi's debut season in the World Endurance Championship has had its ups and downs, with the #46 vehicle achieving a podium finish at Imola but unable to match that success in subsequent races.

As the weekend approached, Rossi believed that his previous experience racing at COTA during his MotoGP career from 2013 to 2021 would be beneficial.

Rossi mentioned to Sportscar365 that he is consistently quicker and performs better on familiar tracks with his motorcycle.

"Since you can transfer a lot of knowledge. You’re familiar with the track, understand the racing lines, and know where the bumps and grip points are."

"However, the GT is quite distinct in several ways. You have the ability to take different routes and create various lines by cutting significantly."

"Ultimately, the course remains unchanged. Therefore, being familiar with the track while riding the bike is beneficial."

Explore Further

Recent Updates

Current Headlines

Site Directory

Crash.Net

©1999-2024 Crash Media Group

It is prohibited to reproduce text, photos, or illustrations, either in whole or in part, in any manner.