LMP1 Rebellion R13
Last year’s LMP2 champions announced in December that they will return to the LMP1 category for the 2018/19 ‘Super Season’ of the World Endurance Championship. Competing in the non-hybrid arena, the Swiss team will race with two R13’s featuring an ORECA chassis along with a Gibson 4.5L V8 engine and Michelin tyres.
Rebellion Racing are no strangers to LMP1, claiming their fifth LMP1 privateer title in 2016. They then went on to race in the highly competitive LMP2 category last year. The link between Rebellion and ORECA goes back to 2014, when ORECA was tasked with designing the R-One which was powered by Toyota’s 2013 3.4-litre RV8KLM-L engine.
‘We are proud and happy to continue our collaboration because the historical links that exist between Rebellion Racing and ORECA are strong,’ highlights Calim Bouhadra, Vice President of the Rebellion Group. ‘The successes achieved together and by ORECA in recent years are undeniable and confirm the confidence we have in them. The project of development of our new LMP1 is reasoned and our close collaboration aspires to aim at ambitious successes.’
Car #1 will have André Lotterer, multiple Le Mans winner at the wheel, along with Neel Jani and Bruno Senna. Car #3 will be driven by the FIA WEC 2017 Rookie of the year, Thomas Laurent, as well as Mathias Beche and Gustavo Menezes.
‘I am looking forward to coming back where my endurance career started 9 years ago,’ highlights Neel Jani. ‘Rebellion Racing played a huge role in my career and also helped me become a factory driver for Porsche. When Porsche stopped in LMP1, it was clear for me that I wanted to race again for Rebellion. With the new regulations, I hope we can reach the overall podium at Le Mans and with a bit of luck, maybe we can even grab some wins during the super season of WEC.’
