6 HOURS OF FUJI : REBELLION RACING WINS THE FIA ENDURANCE TROPHY FOR LMP1 TEAMS IN JAPAN

REBELLION Racing achieved another milestone at Fuji Speedway by winning the first FIA Endurance Trophy for LMP1 Teams in history. In the inaugural season of the FIA World Endurance Championship, REBELLION Racing has confirmed its place as the best LMP1 private team in World endurance racing. 2012 has seen the team achieve all of its objectives : first privateer at Le Mans 24 Hours and first privateer in the FIA WEC.

REBELLION Racing is really honored to offer such a great result to our main partners : Rebellion Timepieces, LEMO Connectors, Lotus cars, Harwood, Tornos and Swiss Interim.

All through the season, Neel Jani, Nicolas Prost, Andrea Belicchi and Harold Primat have collected important wins and precious points through quick and reliable driving in a remarkable team spirit.

The engineers have had a key role of the improving the cars’ performance throughout the season in front of strong competition with the HPD-Hondas getting quicker and quicker race after race.
All the mechanics have worked hard and at the higest level all season long, evidenced by the fact that both cars have finished all the races so far.

Toyota Motorsport GmbH and Toyota Racing engineers in Japan have supported the team and have been an invaluable partner for the second year in a row.  Winning the FIA Endurance Trophy for LMP1 Teams here in Japan is a fitting reward for their efforts and contribution. The Toyota RV8KLM engines have always been powerful, strong and reliable.

In achieving this Championship win, the REBELLION Racing Team extends its thanks to our tyre supplier, Michelin, who have always provided the team with a first class service.  The cars have benefited from the quality of the Michelin tyres which have been quick, consistant and durable at each race around the World.

REBELLION Racing’s cars led the Privateer race in the 6 Hours of Fuji from the start to the chequered flag, in the early stages of the race with the #13 Lola-Toyota and not long afterwards with the #12 sister car. Neel Jani and Nicolas Prost won their fourth race of the season after clinching their fourth pole yesterday. Andrea Belicchi and Harold Primat were forced to change strategy after first pitstop and were delayed.

Nicolas Prost – Lola-Toyota #12 :
«The team has reached its goal today ! We did a perfect season this year : we secured the FIA Endurance Trophy for LMP1 Teams, winning five races in seven. We’ve had a super race today. All week during the free practice  sessions, we ran the car with high fuel and old tyres, so our laptimes weren’t spectacular, but we found a  good setup and, in doing so, a good car for the race. The team is definitely not the same team that I joined in 2009; it has advanced and we are now a team that is able to consistently race for the top place of privateer LMP1 field”.

Neel Jani – Lola-Toyota #12 :
«By finishing in fourth place overall, we achieved the maximum result we could expect in today’s race. We have had the week-end we wanted ! We secured the Teams’ title, that was our main goal for this season, and are now third in the FIA WEC Drivers World Championship. The fight for the drivers’ Championship podium is in our own hands.”

Andrea Belicchi – Lola-Toyota #13 :
« With car #13, we didn’t get the race result that we were expecting this weekend, we were in contention, but didn’t reach the podium.  But, the team has done a good job all season and we are all rewarded by this Championship win. I’m very happy for the team. »

Harold Primat – Lola-Toyota #13 :
“I’m really delighted by the success of the team. With Andrea and all the #13 crew, we played our part in the win of the FIA Endurance LMP1 Trophy bringing a win and  precious points to the teams classification and helping to improve the cars along the way. I’m happy to have contributed to this. I do appreciate the team I joined this season. It’s a small sized team compared to Aston Martin.  There’s a family spirit and I’m amazed by all the energy and passion that every member of the team brings to win. This is a really open-minded team where every one can bring his own experience/ideas to improve the cars. This team works very hard in a very good atmosphere. That’s surely why such a sized team can race for the best places of the World endurance privateer field, just behind the works hybrid cars…”

Bart Hayden REBELLION Racing Team Manager :
« The FIA Endurance Trophy for LMP1 Teams has been our target this season and we’ve won it with still one race to go!  It’s an amazing result, but fully deserved by each and every member of the Team who have all strived so hard for this success.  The drivers drove sensibly as well as quickly today, managing to keep out of trouble, whilst still lighting up the timing screens.  The engineers and mechanics have tuned and prepared the cars to the highest level all year and our finishing record and results this season show that.  I’d like to thank Michelin for the great tyres, Toyota Motorsport GmbH and their colleagues from Toyota Motorsport Division who have been here supporting us this weekend and our major partners at Rebellion Timepieces and LEMO Connectors; it’s a Team championship that we have won, and we have all won it together.
We’re also looking forward to the final WEC round in Shanghai, we’ll go there with no pressure, and perhaps we’ll even find time for a small celebration there too!  »