McNish to Race for Oreca
Allan McNish will unexpectedly bring an end to his successful association with the Audi R8 sportscar on home soil after signing to drive for Team Oreca at next week's LMES round at Silverstone
The Scot will race with Stephane Ortelli, the 35-year-old Frenchman who McNish won the Le Mans 24 Hours with in 1998. He will drive the same Audi R8 chassis that he used to win last year's corresponding Silverstone LMES race.
McNish has contested 19 races in the Audi R8 since the car's launch in March 2000, and claimed second and third place finishes in the Sebring 12 Hours and Le Mans 24 Hours this year.
"I was only scheduled to race at Sebring and Le Mans this year while concentrating on the DTM," McNish said. "But I've been given the chance and it's too good an opportunity to miss."
"The Audi R8 has re-written the history books concerning sportscar racing. I raced it in its debut season in 2000 and I'm delighted to be bringing my association with it to a close in Britain.
"Compared to last year, the Audi R8 carries 50kg more ballast while a smaller air intake restrictor reduces the power to around 520bhp. In comparison, when I drove the Audi R8 in 2000, the power was more than 600bhp."
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