24h Le Mans
The FIA Endurance Commission has released a new version of the driver classification list for the 2016 season, a document determining the composition of the driver line-ups in the World Endurance Championship (WEC), and also in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
A few changes from the list published in November involve the drivers who took the start at the 24 Hours of Le Mans this year. Roman Rusinov, who claimed the third step on the podium in the LM P2 class and who won in the World Endurance Championship (WEC) with G-Drive Racing, has gone from Gold status to Silver, as has Jeff Segal, third in LM GTE Am in Scuderia Corsa's Ferrari.
His teammate Bill Sweedler has gone from Bronze to Silver, whereas Rui Aguas, the teammate of François Perrodo and Emmanuel Collard in one of AF Corse's Ferraris is promised Gold. Identical situation for Gary Hirsch, a recent title-winner in the ELMS with Greaves Motorsport. The only driver to go from Gold to Platinum is Pierre Kaffer who raced this year in the Team ByKOLLES' CLM P1/01 in the LM P1 class.
Recall that as for the cars, there are four classes of drivers: Platinum (professional drivers), Gold (professional drivers or amateurs compliant with certain results criteria), Silver and Bronze (amateur drivers).
A driver who wishes to participate in one of the championships must mandatorily send a classification request to the FIA or risk not being approved to take a wheel. If the driver is not satisfied with the response, he can file an appeal prior to November 15th by taking necessary materials to the inspection of his file and by respecting the process put in place by the FIA.
Though the make-up of the drivers is open in the LM GTE Pro class and only slightly restrictive in LM P1 (only Bronze drivers are not admitted), the same is not true for the LM P2 and LM GTE Am classes. In the first, a driver line-up of two or three drivers must be composed of at least one Silver or Bronze driver, whereas in the second, a driver line-up of two or three drivers must include at least a Bronze driver and a Bronze or Silver driver.
Cécile Bonardel / ACO - Translation by Nikki Ehrhardt / ACO
PHOTO: LE MANS (SARTHE, FRANCE), CIRCUIT DES 24 HEURES, 24 HOURS OF LE MANS, TUESDAY JUNE 9 2015, AUTOGRAPH SESSION. Pierre Kaffer, at left, sees his status go from Gold to Platinum.
