At at the 77th edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Pierre Kaffer reached the top step on the podium in the former LM GT2 class with Jaime Melo and Mika Salo. But another Finn, Toni Vilander with Italian driver Giancarlo Fisichella won at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2012 and 2014 along with Gianmaria Bruni, now an official Porsche driver with the AF Corse team.

The Italian outfit, entering two Ferrari 488 GTEs, will be one of the Texan team's main rivals, counting on only one car in its attempt to win the LM GTE Pro class at Le Mans. Fortunately, the trio's experience (a total of 25 participations in the 24 Hours) should make up for that, especially since Pierre Kaffer, who was a member of the ByKOLLES outfit in LM P1 last year, knows the team well.

Team owner Giuseppe Risi: "[Pierre Kaffer] an excellent match because he has a first-rate history with the team, knows how to work with the engineers and crew, knows the other drivers and has had success driving for us in Ferraris. He should be able to step right in to the role without any issues. We're glad to have him back with us as we challenge Le Mans for the 13th time."

Risi Competizione, who finished second in the LM GTE Pro class between two Fords last year, has already claimed the top step on the class podium three times, beginning with its first race in 1998 in the LM P1 class at a time when the GTs were able to win overall, then in GT2 in 2008 and 2009.

Quotation from team press release.

Photo: Pierre Kaffer will join the Risi Competizione team this year at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.