As a Belgian driver how does it feel to race in your home track?
Racing at Spa is always a treat not only because it’s our home circuit but also because it is one of the best circuits in the world. It’s challenging and the weather always provides interesting surprises such as we witnessed in the 24 hours this July. But it’s definitely a nice opportunity to have family, friends and locals supporting us.
How the season in Michelin GT3 Le Mans Cup is going alongside your dad, Pierre-Marie De Leener?
The season has been fun so far. I have to say driving at Le Mans was a great experience and we had some good races the following weekends. It’s always great to share a passion with your father and I was really excited when he mentioned he would consider doing a championship together after having stopped for a season. I have to say it’s nice to reverse the roles and have me teaching him!
GT3 LMC is a championship that focuses on the bronze driver and allows them to drive on the best tracks in Europe, whilst having a professional driver help them improve. This is a value proposition that can’t be found elsewhere.
Do you think you will have an advantage, racing at home? And what will be your main goal for this race?
I love the track and I know it well after doing the 24 hours. The major difficulty is seeing how the balance will be with the 458. Because for now we are at a significant disadvantage compared to the new generation cars, especially in fast segments. So to put in a good lap you really have to be on the limit all the time as we saw in Paul Ricard. This for the gentlemen driver becomes really difficult.
However we will do the best we can as always and maybe we can get some luck on our side that we can use to our advantage. I would say the goal is to firstly always enjoy the weekend, then if we can get a top 5 that’s a nice bonus. You can always count on me to try no matter what!
Do you already have some plans for the next season?
It’s quite early to say for next year. For sure there are already some exciting options that have surfaced. However for the moment I’m fully focused on utilizing my MBA (Masters) to build up my professional career! Once I finalize that I will see the time I can dedicate to next season.
CLICK HERE to download the timetable of the Spa round.
