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PEUGEOT ANNOUNCES WEC DRIVER LINE UP

Peugeot announce WEC driver line-up - Image: LAT

By Bruce Williams

Peugeot announce WEC driver line-up - Image: LAT

Peugeot announces WEC driver line-up – Image: LAT

Peugeot Sport has announced its driver line-up for the 2022 FIA World Endurance Championship which includes no less than three ex-Formula 1 drivers.

By DAN McCARTHY

The French manufacturer will return to top-tier endurance racing for the first time since 2011 and is pulling no punches with its impressive driver line-up.

Seven drivers have been signed up for Peugeot’s first season, including 2020 Haas F1 driver Kevin Magnussen, ex-Scuderia Toro Tosso driver Jean Eric-Vergne and former Force India driver and reigning LMP2 champion Paul di Resta.

The other four drivers listed are endurance experts, headed by former Le Mans 24 Hours winner and World Endurance Champion Loic Duval, previous LMP2 champion Gustavo Menezes, European Le Mans LMP3 class winner Mikkel Jensen and WEC regular James Rossiter.

WEC technical director at Peugeot Sport Olivier Jansonnie feels the best seven drivers have been selected for the job at hand.

“We looked at all the endurance racing championships that have been organised over the past five years, we didn’t just take individual results into consideration,” Jansonnie explained.

“We also examined the speed, consistency and reliability of a long list of drivers because we are looking for a line-up that meshes together well, with an eclectic mix of upcoming youngsters and experienced campaigners with proven development skills, especially in the field of hybrid power trains.”

Throughout 2021, the six nominated race drivers and one reserve and simulator driver will contribute to the new Hypercar’s development. At this stage it has not been announced of the seven who the reserve driver will be.

The Peugeot squad has 12 months to prepare before it goes into battle.

The CEO of the FIA World Endurance Championship Frederic Lequien is impressed to see the calibre of drivers that the French brand has signed for 2022.

“Peugeot Sport has announced an extremely strong driver line-up for its assault on the WEC and it’s fantastic to see the marque make continued progress with its Hypercar,” he said.

“The strength and experience in its chosen drivers is second to none and they will certainly be a force to be reckoned with on the circuit.

“We wish Peugeot Sport continued success in its development programme and we can’t wait to welcome them to the grid in 2022.”

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