Nissan will provide driver and engine support to Onroak Automotive for their development of the new Ligier JS P2.
The driver being provided by Nissan to Onroak is Mark Schulzhitskiy, the 2012 Russian Nissan GT Academy winner, with the young Russian already testing the car at Estoril, Portugal. The opportunity for Schulzhitskiy to test the Ligier gives him extra experience in an LMP2 car, having already made his World Endurance Championship debut at the 2013 6 Hours of Shanghai alongside Bjorn Wirdheim and Eric Lux at Greaves Motorsports.
Meanwhile on the engine side of things, Nissan NISMO will provide the JS P2 with its VK45DE 4.5L naturally-aspirated V8 engine to the team.
“When Jacques (Nicolet – President of Onroak Automotive) asked us to support the development of the new Ligier JS P2 we were delighted to help,” said NISMO’s Global Head of Brand, Marketing and Sales, Darren Cox.
“OAK Racing, working closely with Onroak Automotive, had a fantastic season in 2013, winning first and second place in FIA WEC with the Nissan LMP2 engine. We have enjoyed strong partnerships with our partner teams in the past and I look forward to working with Onroak Automotive on this project.”
Nicolet, meanwhile, also commented on the deal, saying: “I’m delighted with this partnership between the constructor Onroak Automotive and engine manufacturer Nissan, who are going to join forces in the search for the best possible performance. It’s an excellent association in the context of the development work on our new prototype, the Ligier JS P2.”
The Ligier will continue testing in Portugal until April 27.
