HVM Status GP has launched its campaign on the FIA World Endurance Championship by beginning a two day test session at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve, starting on Thursday and running until the end of Friday.
The team will enjoy exclusive running at the track and will be looking to pout their Lola-Judd B12/80 Coupe through its paces before the first race of the season, the Six Hours of Silverstone on April 14.
The test will be the first on-track running for the team which formed at the end of last year with the amalgamation of INDYCAR team HVM Racing and the UK-based Status Grand Prix.
They will work on tyre compound evaluations as well as having both Lola and Engine Developments oversee chassis and power train improvements.
HVM Status GP team co-principal, Keith Wiggins, said: “It’s good to be finally getting underway in 2013. We are really excited to begin our on-track running as well as developing and building on our current driver line-up.”
Fellow team co-principal David Kennedy said: “We have lots of developments on the car and engine to try out as well, so we have a full programme across the two days. There’s a raft of improvements we’ve been working on and we believe we will see some significant steps forward.”
The WEC consists of eight endurance races all over the world, with the premier event being the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans. The team will conduct a second private test in Spain in mid-March before attending the official WEC pre-season test as Paul Ricard at the end of March.
Wiggins added: “The competition is very strong in the WEC and the challenge of a true ‘world championship’ is very exciting. We believe that our combined team is a strong contender.”
HVM Status’ driver line-up has yet to be announced, but it will be revealed at some point ‘in the near future’, the team said.
