Like Olivier Panis and two-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Romain Dumas, Stéphane Sarrazin has founded his own team. As he did last year, the French driver himself participated in the Tour de Corse, but now he wants to focus on supporting up-and-coming drivers. This is the reason Sarrazin Motorsport Endurance has set its sights on the LMP3 class, successfully set up by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest to serve as a stepping stone in endurance racing.

The team is set to enter a Ligier JS P3 in the Asian Le Mans Series in the 2017/2018 season which will kick off in China at the end of October. Then the outfit will move into the European Le Mans Series (ELMS) next year. It will also offer its services to private teams in LMP1 and LMP2, as explained by Stéphane Sarrazin, three-time pole sitter at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Stéphane Sarrazin: "We have ordered our first Ligier JSP3 and we are keen to run it later this season in the Asian Le Mans Series (four rounds, beginning October 29, 2017, Ed.) before stepping up to European competition in 2018. This will enable our drivers to take full advantage of the most comprehensive programme possible, from management support to carefully personalised coaching during testing and, of course, at races. At the same time, we plan to offer our services to non-hybrid LMP1 and LMP2 teams, which will allow them access to a raft of both human and logistical resources, aimed at helping them to progress and obtain better results. In every case, and irrespective of the challenges we face along the way, our watchwords will be professionalism, determination and performance."

This year, Stéphane Sarrazin's program in endurance with Toyota has been scaled back. He has only participated in the WEC 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps and the 24 Hours of Le Mans (retirement) and will not be taking the wheel of the Toyota TS050 HYBRID between now and the end of the year.

Quotation from team press release.

PHOTO: Stéphane Sarrazin represented Toyota at the 85th edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.