The cars which star in the Le Mans 24 Hours are coming to Silverstone this weekend - with one team based right on the doorstep planning to give the home crowd plenty to shout about.
The first round of this season’s FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) takes place at the county racetrack this weekend, from April 12 to 14.
The centrepiece is the six-hour race, which has attracted more than 35 entries, including 21 Le Mans prototypes, and a host of drivers of Formula 1 fame, including Allan McNish, Bruno Senna, Kamui Kobayashi and Anthony Davidson.
And competing in the LMP1 class, for prototype machines, are Silverstone-based Strakka Racing, with their Honda HPD.
Drivers Danny Watts, Jonny Kane and Nick Leventis were on hand to help launch the season with a photocall outside Tower Bridge in London.
Asked about the aims ahead of the season, Watts said: “Quite simply, to win. The first round is highly important to us because we are based at Silverstone, and there are going to be a lot of sponsors, guests, friends and family along, which adds a bit more pressure.
“At Silverstone the biggest thing will be the weather. You are putting a lot of trust in your engineers to pick the right tyres at the right point of the race, whether that’s wets, inters or slicks.”
On the prospect of racing at home, Kane said: “I don’t think it makes much of a difference performance-wise, but we have friends and families coming to watch us, which always makes it a bit nicer.
“When you are in Shanghai or somewhere like that, you don’t always get that opportunity. I stay in my own bed, as I only live 45 minutes away, so it’s nice to spend some time at home.
“I think we all enjoy Silverstone as a circuit. It is a really good track, and the fact that it is our local event does make it a bit special. We get to do the fun bit at the end of it, but a lot of hard graft goes in from the team through the year.
“It is a fantastic championship and you get to go to some really cool places, and really good circuits. We just hope we start off with a good load of points in the first round.
“It is the only chance that people in the UK will get to see cars like ours racing, unless they are prepared to make the trip to Le Mans in June.”
Leventis added: “We love Silverstone. It is an area we know well and a circuit we know well. Also as a team, logistically it does take the pressure off when it’s on your doorstep.
“The problem with flyaway rounds and small teams such as ourselves are you’re limited with the amount of kit you can take. Silverstone we can turn up with all guns blazing, with everything at our beck and call.
“The support of having your friends and the home fans always helps. So much happens in our races. It is exciting and is always spectacular.”
To book tickets, visit www.silverstone.co.uk or call 0844 3728 260.