Peter Dumbreck - Latest News

SNORAS Spyker Squadron finishes fifth at Nürburgring

Nürburgring, 17 Augustus 2008 - After a long break in the Le Mans Series calendar, the last race was at Spa in May, the championship continued this weekend with the Nürburgring 1000 km. In the hard-fought race, the #85 SNORAS Spyker C8 Laviolette GT2R finished in fifth place.

Just before noon the Spyker Laviolette’s left their pit box to be positioned on the grid. The race started just after twelve o’clock with the traditional Le Mans rolling start. The by Andrea Chiesa and Benjamin Leuenberger driven #94 Spyker C8 of Swiss Speedy Racing team started from a 9th position on the grid and the second Spyker on the grid today, the #85 SNORAS Spyker Squadron car, driven by Peter Dumbreck, Ralf Kelleners and Alexei Vasiliev qualified 1.7 seconds from the class leader and started from a 7th place.

Peter Dumbreck started the race this afternoon and gradually won a few positions. After his first stint he handed the car over to Ralf Kelleners. Ralf improved the quickest lap time at the end of his 1 hour stint and proved that the Michelin rubber did its work well. At twelve minutes past two o’clock, after almost two hours of racing, he returned the car in P4. Alexei took over and rejoined the field with fresh tires and a full tank of fuel. After this trouble-free stint he returned to the pit running in a sixth position.

Peter rejoined in a seventh position, just behind the #94 sister car, and immediately improved the car’s quickest time twice in a row. After 40 minutes he warned the team that he was hit by one of the Audi prototypes. Although the right mirror was lost in the incident the car was fortunately not further damaged. In the next stint, when Ralf Kelleners took over from Peter Dumbreck, the right mirror would have been handy to see an approaching Porsche prototype. The Porsche LMP tried to overtake the Spyker at the end of the straight on the right whilst there was no room at all. The LMP hit the Spyker on the side and as a result the Spyker spun. Ralf quickly rejoined but lost valuable seconds.

In the last stages of the race Peter Dumbreck pushed the car to its limit but it was difficult to close the gap to the car in front. After almost six hours of racing the car finished in fifth position.

“We are much more competitive than in the past” said Ralf Kelleners just after the race. “The first two cars are of a different world but the gap to the quicker cars is quite a bit smaller now. By the speed on the straight you can tell that the engine is a lot better. After our finish in the Omnitel 1000 km, and a good position here, I can only say we are going in the right direction”.

In the other car, the #94 Speedy Racing Team car, Benjamin Leuenberger started the race. The pace of Andrea Chiesa and Benjamin Leuenberger was good and they hovered around a seventh position in the competitive GT2 field. A pit stop of Spyker’s neighbor LMP team caused the Speedy Racing Spyker a lot of time: the LMP entered the pit lane just before Benjamin did and drove half speed to the box. The Swiss team already lost 10 seconds there and the LMP driver also parked the prototype in such way that it took the Spyker crew valuable seconds to maneuver the Spyker C8 to the right position to refuel. 30 minutes before the end of the race their race came to a stop when Benjamin returned to the pit box with an Engine problem.

Andrea Chiesa: "It is always frustrating when you will not see the checkered flag. Apparently today it was not our day - we struggled a bit with the setup. The guys in the #85 managed to get a much better setup and produced better and more consistent lap times in the race. Then also we also had problems with one of the pit stops and lost a lot of time. I was quite surprised that the engine broke; I was happy with the power output of the new engine configuration. Peter and the team did a very good job on the engine; compared to the other cars we are not loosing time and it is a big step forward for us. We now have to continue to work to further improve reliability to be able to score points".

Peter van Erp, managing director Spyker Squadron: "We did well in all free practice sessions and our performance in the race was also good. I have not seen such competitive times in the Le Mans Series GT2 class: the Virgo car is of a different world and Porsche did well with their new ultra economic 4.0 liter engines. We are competing in the top-5 and the drivers of both cars were very happy with the performance. For podiums though, we need to further improve our pace. Unfortunately the Speedy car did not reach the finish".
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SPYKER SQUADRON Nürburgring preview

Zeewolde, 13 august 2008 - After a short break racing resumes this weekend for SNORAS Spyker Squadron. The fourth round of the Le Mans Series; the 1000 km of the Nürburgring is the team’s second last race this year.

After their overall victory of the Omnitel 1000 km last month it is back to business for the majority of the team after having enjoyed a short vacation. Immediately after the 24 Hours of Le Mans, held mid-June, the Squadron engineers and mechanics continued to further develop the car. Both cars will appear at the start this weekend with the engines that have the new flat plane crankshaft layout as tested in an earlier Le Mans Series race at Spa. A number of small improvements have been made to improve the engine reliability. The cars also have aerodynamic improvements and will be fitted with a new rear wing and front splitter.

Peter Dumbreck, Ralf Kelleners and Alexei Vasilliev will drive the number 85 Spyker Squadron C8 Laviolette GT2R and behind the wheel of the Speedy Racing car we can also find familiar faces: Andrea Chiesa and Benjamin Leuenberger will be driving the Swiss car.

Peter van Erp, managing director Spyker Squadron: “The Nürburgring, with its low grip levels, is always a tough track for us. Although we have been on the podium here in the past, it was always a challenge to quickly find a good setup. This year it will be the first time that we will race the Michelin tires here so I am curious if our quest for a good setup has changed in our favor”.

He continues: “I hope that in this race, but also in the last race at Silverstone, luck is on our side and we can finish in top-5 - that is absolutely the level we are aiming at. If we can work-out a good setup in the free practice session and grip levels permit, we will try to push in the race and drive progressively”.

Two free practices sessions are in the agenda this Friday followed by the third one-hour session on Saturday. Saturday afternoon there is the regular 20 minute GT qualifying session. The 1000 km or six-hour race will start this Sunday at 12:05.
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Second in Sugo

Round 5 of the Super GT calendar was at the 3.7 km Sugo circuit towards the North of Japan.

Qualifying went well with me making the fastest ten cut to go into the Super Lap then recording 6th on the final starting grid.

My team mate Tatsuya Kataoka started the race and straight away was challenging the two Lexus’s ahead. After passing the Tom’s Lexus and the Real Racing Honda NSX by lap 23 he was sitting in 4th right behind the number 25 Lexus while the two NSX’s up front were gradually easing out a gap.

On lap 35 out of the 81 T.K pitted to hand the car to me. It was important that I have a fast pitout lap on new tyres to jump ahead of the 25 car – so was pretty pleased to flash passed him as he left the pits one lap later to move into 3rd. At that point the gap to the leading 2 was around 15 seconds.

As we were all recording around the same lap times, it was difficult to catch up to the cars ahead until I came through the final corner on lap 65 to see the Orange number 1 NSX sitting in the middle of the track after contact with the tyre wall. Unlucky for him but nice for me as it moved me to second. At this point with so many cars crashing out from both GT300 and our class - GT 500 I was careful to avoid any trouble as I began lapping some of the slower cars.

With one lap to go I had a big lead over the 3rd placed car and 12 seconds to the leader so was very relaxed until the second last corner when a Ferrari in the GT300 class spun right in front of me forcing me to take to the grass sideways in avoidance. Luckily no harm done and I was able to cross the finish line in second.
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Snoras Spyker Squadron Wins Omnitel 1000 KM - 21st July 2008

Palanga, 19 July 2008 - In good weather conditions SNORAS Spyker Squadron started from pole position in the Baltic's biggest endurance race; the Omnitel 1000 km. The annual held race drew many thousands spectators to the top-class Lithuanian beach resort of Palanga for the 50-car grid with entrants from several Baltic countries.

SNORAS Spyker Squadron was invited by their principal partner SNORAS Bank to participate in the annual Lithuanian race event. After thorough preparations of their 2006/2007 LMS racer, the C8 Spyder GT2R, the team left their Zeewolde (the Netherlands) based workshop last Tuesday to be in time for Wednesday’s technical and administrative checks at the Palanga track. Wednesday’s checks were followed by a parade in town in the afternoon which was visited by an army of race fans. The annual race is held at a non-permanent track and at six o’clock in the evening the organizer closed the public roads and marshals prepared the track and provisional pit lane for the two 70 minute Free Practice sessions on Thursday.

SNORAS Spyker Squadron regulars Peter Dumbreck, Alexei Vasiliev and Ralf Kelleners were joined by 19-year-old local talent Jonas Gelžinis. Following in the footsteps of his father, Jonas has been participating in motoring sports since his seventh year and has been the Lithuanian karting champion in his age group for a number of times. He also participated and won podium places in a number of Lithuanian rallies and set the quickest time in the Omnitel 1000 km qualifying race last year.

In the first free practice session the team set the second best time overall and was first in class. In the second session the team continued working on the car’s setup and local ace Jonas Gelžinis set an excellent time in the last session and broke the track’s lap time record!

In the qualifying race on Friday Peter Dumbreck set a quickest time of 1:19,438 around the 2994 meter circuit and thereby again improving the track’s lap time record. 76 teams started in the 40 minute qualifying race and only the quickest 50 cars would appear on the start of Saturday’s race.

The race started at 11 o’clock in sunny weather conditions and it took the team a little over nine hours and 333 laps to reach the finish on the tight an busy track. The team’s closest competitor finished 5 laps down.

Peter van Erp, managing director Spyker Squadron: “Normally the Porsches and Ferrari’s set the pace in the races we normally compete in, but here we were the team to beat. It was a clean race; the drivers managed to bring the C8 Spyder to the finish undamaged and the car ran without a problem. We had a few challenges with Safety Car situations but in the end, with a good strategy and quick pit stops, we managed to increase our lead and win the race. A great result after our disappointing durability issues at Le Mans. The mechanics continued working on the cars and it is a great victory for them and the rest of the team but also for Snoras Bank with a win in their own country”.

“The Dutch team received a warm welcome from the public and from the guests invited by our principal sponsor Snoras Bank. I would like to thank the Snoras Bank-team for their hospitality and support and I would like to add that I was impressed with the performance of Jonas Gelžinis” Peter van Erp said after the race.

He continues: “The level of competition cannot be compared with the Le Mans Series but with several performances of artists, fireworks, price givings and a lot other spectacle (and all broadcast live nationwide) the Omnitel 1000 km is for sure a great event and other race series organizers can learn from the Lithuanian organization how to market and promote such an event”.

The next race for the Dutch team will be the fourth round in the Le Mans Series, the 1000 km of the Nürburgring August 17.
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Spyker Squadron: Le Mans 24 hours race report

At exactly three o’clock this afternoon the field of 55 prototypes and GT’s crossed the finish line. For the first time the green flag was not waved from the Rolex tower at the finish line but at 400 kms above the track from the international space station.

Swiss Andrea Chiesa started the race in the #94 Speedy Racing Team Spyker C8. After an hour in the race he moved up two positions and ran in a tenth position in the GT2 class. In the other car, the #85 SNORAS Spyker Squadron car, it was Scotsman Peter Dumbreck to kick off the 24 hour race. He was also able to able to win a few positions at the beginning of the race and climbed up to a seventh position at 16:00.

Both regularly returned to the box for stops to refuel and to fit fresh Michelin rubber. After both Chiesa and Dumbreck completed their double stint Benjamin Leuenberger and Ralf Kelleners took over. Benjamin rejoined in eight position, just behind Ralf who ran in a seventh position with the #85.

At 17:40 the number #94 Speedy Racing Team car returned to the pit for a normal stop to refuel the car. Benjamin could rejoin the field in the same position - eight in GT2 class. His stop was followed by Ralf who also came in for refuelling. He rejoined in a seventh position. According to the timing data the #85 stop was the quickest so far in the GT2 class.

Both cars ran like a clock until minutes after 18:00 Ralf called the team over the radio that he had to return to the pit box. Just after the Porsche Curves he got a problem with the engine. He could return to the box but after a quick inspection by the mechanics the car was retired from the race.

Shortly after Ralf’s car was retired Benjamin also reported a problem with the #94 car. He got a ‘low voltage’ warning and returned to the box to change a broken alternator. It took about 10 minutes to fix the problem but he is back out in eight position.

Just after the 19:00 mark Iradj Alexander took over from Benjamin Leuenberger. He started his stint with a fresh set of tires and a full tank. At ten before eight he returned to the box with the same low voltage problem. Both the alternator and battery were now replaced and after ten minutes he was back out.

Half an hour later he complained that he lost torque and speed. The team decided to get him in to check the car’s data but before he could make it to the pit box he stopped at the track after the second chicane. Iradj could not restart and the car has been officially retired.
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Spyker Squadron: Le Mans qualifying results - 13th March 2008

Le Mans, 12 June – After yesterday’s action packed qualifying sessions, the teams got another chance today to further improve their race setup and qualifying times today. Like yesterday two two-hour session were scheduled and today’s goal was to finalise a satisfactionary setup for this weekend’s race.

The number 85 Spyker C8 Laviolette GT2R, driven by Peter Dumbreck, Ralf Kelleners and Alexei Vasiliev, will start the race this Saturday from a 9th position in class. The number 94 car with Andrea Chiesa, Benjamin Leuenberger and Iradj Alexander behind the wheel will start from a 12th place.

After last weeks weather drama the majority of time was spent yesterday on installation laps and a basic setup. Alexei started in the #85 car before switching seats with Ralf Kelleners. At the begin of the first session the air temperature was still high and the crew paid extra attention to the engine and cockpit temperatures. Regulations demand the cockpit temperatures to be lower than 32 degrees centigrade and violations will be penalised. With 30 minutes to go Peter got in the car for his share of track time. Towards the end of the first two-hour session he went for two flying laps and set the 8th time in GT2. In the other car it was Andrea Chiesa who kicked off the first session. He spent little over an hour in the car and returned a number of times to the box for changes to improve the behaviour of the car. At a quarter past eight he handed the car over to Swiss Benjamin Leuenberger. Iradj Alexander completed the last 15 minutes to the checkered flag.
In Wednesday’s second session the goal was to complete the mandatory night laps - three for each driver. Peter Dumbreck did improve his time in the 85 car although their plans for another quick lap towards the end of the second session were abandoned due to another code red.

At 19:00 today green light was given for the third two-hour session. Just before the start of the session a few showers hit the track, but with the sun replacing the clouds all cars went out on slicks. After only six minutes an LMP1 went into the barriers and caused another red flag situation. It took the marshals about 25 minutes to clear the track and repair the guard rails before the cars went out again at 19:30. Session-starter Alexei Vasiliev switched with Ralf Kelleners after the code red was lifted. Ralf worked with the mechanics on the last bits of setup-work and after the session he said he was happy with the setup and handling of the car. Just after 20:30 another code red was given for shunt of an prototype and at 20:48 the organisation announced that the session was finished as the marshals required all time to clean the track.

In the fourth and last qualifying session both crews were able to improve their times. Benjamin Leuenberger and Andrea Chiesa improved their time and will start this weekend from a 12th position. In the other car it was Peter Dumbreck that set a quickest lap of 4:03.641, which will put him and his team mates 9th on the GT2 grid.

Andrea Chiesa: “We concentrated on the race setup instead of a good qualifying result. Instead of being further up the grid we have saved some soft tires for the race that we can use at night. As a driver of course you always want to be quick but I think this will pay off in the race. I am happy with the setup of the car. Of course we could always have used another test day but I am looking forward to a reliable race without too much trouble”.
Peter van Erp, managing director Spyker Squadron: “We have been able to complete a lot of work in the last two days. We managed to work out a good setup and eventually we have set a very acceptable time. Although I think our time is really good, the competition is stronger than ever and it is unbelievable that the first teams dropped below the 4-minute mark. All drivers had plenty of track time to start the race with confidence. We managed to stay out of trouble and will start tonight to prepare the cars for the race.

Tomorrow is ‘preparation day’; the team already started to remove the engines. Fresh race engines will be installed in both cars and all sorts of other preparation have to be completed before Saturday, the race day. The 76th edition of the 24-hours of Le Mans starts at 15:00.

Regular updates will be published on Spyker Squadrons official website: www.spykersquadron.com and the race can be followed live via RTL7 (Netherlands), Eurosport (Europe and Asia), MotorsTV (Europe) and SpeedTV (USA) or Radio Le Mans (via Internet at www.radiolemans.com or at the track via FM 91.2).
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SNORAS Spyker Squadron Spa 1000 km race report - 11th May 2008

Many visitors arrived early at the paddock this morning, in time for the autograph session and the pit walk. The weather was not comparable with the ‘normal’ Belgium Ardennes conditions that we have seen in so many races: this time the team’s Michelin intermediates and wet tires were fortunately not of use this weekend as the skies were clear and the temperatures were in the mid-twenties.

The race started a bit later than planned, just after 13:00, after a car bumped into one of the Embassy prototypes during the installation lap. As a result the car hit the barriers and the track had to be cleared. Peter Dumbreck started in the #85 SNORAS Spyker Squadron-car from a seventh position in class while the crew of car #94 decided to start from the pit lane. As the car qualified 12th yesterday the team decided to start from the pit lane, avoiding the trouble in the first corner whilst saving two laps of fuel compared to the rest of the field.

Benjamin: “We decided to start out of the pits to save us two laps of full and maybe trouble in the first corner. My first stint was okay although the car was quite unpredictable to drive. We had understeer but it sometimes suddenly turned into oversteer. I decided not to push and maintain a decent race pace. Later we figured that it could have been the tires that I used. They were also used by Chiesa in yesterday’s qualifying. The second stint, with a new set of tires was fortunately much better”.

In the race both cars moved up the ladder and mid race the cars were in a fifth and seventh place in class. Alexey Vasiliev: “The Laviolette was great to drive today although we had some issues with power steering and the alternator. We were able to move forward in the field and so far I am very pleased with our 2008 car”. Unfortunately after almost 2.5 hours in the race the #85 Dumbreck-Kelleners-Vasiliev car that ran in a fifth place had to return to the pit after a collision with a Peugeot LMP.

Ralf Kelleners: “I was driving the car and saw in my mirrors that I was being overtaken on the left side by the Audi driven by Capello. I stayed on the right-side to let the Audi pass me. The Peugeot was right behind the Audi R10 and tried to overtake the Audi from the slipstream. In the maneuver the Peugeot moved to the right from behind the Audi in a gap that did not exist and hit my car on the front left”.

In the same accident the Audi was also hit by the Peugeot, directly or as a result of the Peugeot’s spin, and also had to return to the box with a punctured right-rear tire. The Spyker made it to the pit box with a punctured tire and damaged bodywork. They rejoined the field after quick repairs to return to the box minutes later with a broken alternator.

In the mean time track conditions improved and consequently times dropped as well. In the final stages of the race it was Swiss Andrea Chiesa that improved his quickest time every few laps. With only 15 laps to go before one of the diesel prototypes would hit the 1000 km mark he engaged a fight with the number 88 Porsche to go after a podium position. Andrea was about 2 seconds per lap quicker and tried his best to close to 20 second gap as quick as he could.

After another accident the safety car got out once more, giving Andrea the best possible chance to go after his competitor. With only 4 laps to go, Andrea went after the car as soon as green was given for the re-start but unfortunately he was hit by another prototype. As a result the steering was a bit off an he could not overtake the car. The Chiesa-Leuenberger-Alexander Speedy Racing Team car finished in a fourth position.

Due to the accident and the problem with the alternator the other car, the Spyker C8 that ran the engine with the new crankshaft layout and new firing order, finished ninth.

Iradj Alexander: “I had to built confidence in the car at the beginning of my stint and I must admit that getting to know the car is a bit of a challenge in these traffic conditions. The car was a bit challenging to drive as a result of the limited time to properly setup the car. Nevertheless I could maintain 2:27’s and did not push to hard. I am really motivated to work with the team at Le Mans. We are in a good position to further improve the car and the guys in the team are great to work with”.

Benjamin Leuenberger: “This is a fantastic result. Thanks a lot to the guys. They have given us a great race car today. We did not have a single problem in the 5 hour race and also the drivers did not make any mistakes. We ran the car like we planned to run it and it is fantastic to finish twice in a row in a fourth place”.

Andrea Chiesa: “I would not have thought to finish fourth. It is really good for team and the atmosphere. Our next race is the most important race of the season, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, so it is great to get there in good spirits. The atmosphere amongst the drivers, mechanics and engineers was great and they all did a great job. It was disappointing that I was hit by an LMP in the final stages otherwise we would have been able to go for a podium”.

Peter van Erp, managing director Spyker Squadron: “Our fourth place is great so close to Le Mans, our most import race this season. It is sad for the crew of the #85 car there was not much that we could do about it. The Peugeot driver eliminated himself and almost took us and the Audi with him. In the last Le Mans Series race at Monza we have also seen a Le Mans Prototype (LMP) causing us trouble. Of course I understand that these cars are quicker but they should not threat us as obstacles. We drive our own race and they should do a better job avoiding contact with the slower GT2 cars. It was an ugly crash and fortunately we came away lucky. The car was almost undamaged with just a punctured tire and some damaged bodywork”.

“The Speedy Racing Team car nicely moved trough the field and the team deserves a lot of credits. They have reinstalled the engine twice to solve a problem and did their utmost to give the drivers the best car possible” said Peter afterwards. “It was another though weekend. We will now focus on Le Mans with the official test day just weeks ahead of us”.

The official Le Mans test day will be held on Sunday June 1. Even for this test day all public roads part of the famous 13.6 km Le Mans track will be closed, giving the teams their first chance to run their new cars before the race mid-June.
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SNORAS Spyker Squadron Spa qualifying results - 11th May 2008

The SNORAS Spyker Squadron cars will start from a seventh and twelfth position on the grid tomorrow. The #94 Speedy Racing Team car with the Swiss trio Andrea Chiesa, Benjamin Leuenberger and Iradj Alexander will start from the 12th place while the #85 car with Peter Dumbreck, Ralf Kelleners and Alexey Vasiliev, qualified seventh.

The weather in Spa was excellent for qualifying - it was hot and sunny today - and, with a bank holiday this Monday, many visitors arrived early for Sunday’s 1000 km race. Amongst the visitors that arrived today a large group of orange colored Dutch race fans found there way to the Spyker pit-box to get a closer look at the team’s new C8 Laviolette GT2R.

Both Peter Dumbreck and Ralf Kelleners have not raced at Spa for respectively 9 and 11 years. For Iradj Alexander it was even the first time in the Spyker Laviolette this weekend. He will drive the Swiss car at the 24 Heures du Mans and got the chance this weekend to learn the car and crew before the 24-hour race mid-June.

Iradj Alexander: “I am really happy to rejoin the team [Iradj tested the C8 Spyder at Valencia last year] and the opportunity they have given me to drive the 24 Hours of Le Mans. My first impression of the car is very positive. After six or seven laps I started to get more confidence in the car and really enjoyed it”.

“Although the car gives you a lot of confidence it is always the same” he said “when you want to go fast you need to explore the limits of the car. I have not driven close to the car’s limits off course - I need to spent more time in the car to do that - but I should be much faster in the race when I have the opportunity to drive a long stint. What is really great about Spyker is the team: the people are very kind and friendly and the crew are real professionals. It really is a high level team and their way of working creates all the conditions for a driver to deliver results”.

Peter van Erp, managing director Spyker Squadron: “The weekend has been though so far although our pace is good. This morning, in the third free practice session, the car was already 0.7 seconds quicker than last year’s qualifying time while there is still a work to do. Spa is a ‘drivers-track’ and you need to know the track well to be able to be quick. Famous corners like Eau Rouge and Blanchimont are seriously challenging for the drivers and the team has the task to deliver a setup that gives our drivers confidence in the car”.

“I must say that Iradj did a great job today and he is learning quickly. We have been running a new engine-configuration in the #85 car. Both the crankshaft configuration and the firing order have been modified. The new engine is definitively better. Based on our tests this weekend we will decide if we will use the engine at Le Mans next month. I think our pace should be good tomorrow and if we do our job properly and stay out of trouble we should be able to finish in the top-5.

Andrea Chiesa: “Off course I am a bit disappointed about my qualifying time. At the beginning of the weekend we started working towards a setup that we thought would work best for us. Based on the knowledge gained in previous races we worked on improving the car but I guess we have taken the wrong route and it did not work in qualifying. We have also lost valuable time in the setup process due to the many red flag situations and a small oil leak that had to be solved. Although I am disappointed at the same time I am happy with the results of the other car. Peter did an excellent job and the new engine proofed to be well”.

Peter Dumbreck: “The seventh place does not really mean so much to me, it’s the time that matters. I wanted to do a mid-2:23 because I did a 2:24 this morning. We made some changes to the car before qualifying to try to improve it but I am not convinced they were a good move. We were trying to stiffen the rear and give it less of a roll. I was probably the wrong way so we will go back for tomorrow’s race”.

The race will start tomorrow at 12:50 and can be followed live on MotorsTV and Eurosport.
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SNORAS Spyker Squadron Spa-Francorchamps 1000 km preview - 8th May 2008

With three European endurance races in just six weeks, in a season full of national bank holidays , the last weeks have been time wise challenging for the team. Time was not only spent on the preparations for the Le Mans Series events but also on the ongoing development of the new cars and the essential but time consuming preparations for the upcoming 76th run of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Peter van Erp, managing director Spyker Squadron: "It is a bit sad that a high-profile race such as the 1000 km of Spa-Francorchamps will be seen by many teams as a mandatory event. With only two weeks till the official Le Mans test day, the goal for many will be to simply return the car unharmed to the finish line. We have started the season with encouraging results and I hope that we can continue that line this weekend".

Swiss driver Iradj Alexander has been selected by Alexandre Pesci to reinforce the Speedy Racing Team entry at Le Mans and therefore he will join the team in Belgium. Last year in Valencia Iradj already tested the old car but the race at Spa is a good opportunity for him to get acquainted with the team and the new car.

The 1000 km or six hour race will start this Sunday at 12:50 and will be broadcast live by Eurosport and MotorsTV.
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Fuji 500km - 5th May 2008

The weekend started well with me setting the fastest time of the first practice session until the very last minute when I was pushed down to second by one of the Hondas. When qualifying arrived on Saturday so did the rain but thankfully my car was equally as good in the wet as the dry so I managed a top 5 spot going into the afternoon’s Super Lap qualifying. The weather improved as the day went on which meant I had a good chance to improve my grid in the sunshine. I managed a pretty sound lap to put myself 3rd less than 1 tenth of a second from pole position.

With this race being 500km long my team decided to put me in the car for the first 2 stints and let my team mate finish the race with a single 39 lap run. The race started well with me being able to drive away from the 4th place 36 Lexus and stay in close contact with the 18 Honda and 38 Lexus in front. With surprisingly few incidents in the race it became clear that the race would be won by consistency and strong lap times.

After the first round of pitstops on lap 35 I battled my way up to second and held on as close as I could to the leading Lexus who was around 5 seconds up the road. By the time I pitted again for my second stop and driver change I had a clear second place to hand to T.K, my team mate.

Sadly after a good opening few laps T.K began slipping back into the hands of the chasing Lexus and Hondas behind. In the end he could only manage 5th position but the plus side is that we won’t have any success ballast on the car like the top 4 get so we should be in good condition for the next round of Super GT in Sepang, Malaysia at the end of June.
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SNORAS Spyker Squadron Monza Race report - 28th April 2008

In great conditions the two SNORAS Spyker Squadron cars appeared at the start this afternoon for the second round of the Le Mans Series. It was only three weeks ago that the Dutch team finished fifth in its first race ever with their new GT2 racer, the Spyker C8 Laviolette GT2R. After the first race this season the SNORAS Spyker Squadron crew spent their time well on new developments and arrived in Monza with a new radiator exit duct.

The cars qualified in ninth and eleventh position for today’s 1000 km of Monza but the race director penalized the number 85 car for too high cockpit ambient temperatures. Instead of starting from the back of the field the team decided this morning to start from the pit lane. This gave the team the advantage to start the race on warm tires and save two laps worth of fuel.

At 12:50 the race started in sunny and warm conditions and a fair crowd filled the grandstands. In the early stages of the race there were two full course yellow situations. As the field of 44 cars compressed behind the safety car, car number 85 was able to join the field and was soon running in a seventh position in class. In the first hours of the race the other Spyker, the Speedy Racing Team C8, ran trouble-free except for a bit of understeer.

After about three and a half hours in the race Andrea Chiesa called the team over the radio to report a problem with the car and shortly after he returned to the pit box. The car was pushed in the box and the mechanics found that a faulty wheel drive pack was the cause. It took a few minutes to fix the problem and Andrea could join the field still running in sixth position.

Both cars gradually moved forward in the competitive GT2 field and at one point the Kelleners-Vasiliev-Dumbreck car ran in fourth position. Four hours in the race the safety car went out for the third time after a major accident with one of the prototypes. Unfortunately car number 85 was just behind the leader and was caught by the safety car. The car it was chasing, the number 99 Ferrari 430, was fortunate as it was waved by the safety car and therewith got an advantage of a lap. The Speedy Racing car missed the two lap fuel advantage of starting from the pit lane and came in under yellow for the necessary splash and dash to finish the race.

After almost five hours of racing the leading Peugeot was in its final race lap when Peter Dumbreck called the the team over the radio that there was a problem with the engine. While the Peugeot 908 LMP1 crossed the finish line Peter could just made it to the pit box. Peter Dumbreck: “I had a good stint, we set the quickest time at the end so our speed was good and then in the last lap the engine let go in the second chicane”. The car could not be restarted to do another lap and regulations say that a car needs cross the finish line to be classified in the results and the car’s fifth position was lost.

The Speedy Racing Team Spyker driven by Benjamin Leuenberger and Andrea Chiesa was one place behind Peter Dumbreck’s car and now finished in fifth place. Benjamin: “We finished in P5 and that is what we hoped for. We knew that with a good race pace and without too much problems we could finish in top-5 and that is what we did today. We had one small problem in our third stop but the crew fixed it very quickly. The setup was quite good and Andrea also drove brilliant today. I hope for another top-5 finish at Spa in two weeks time”.

Peter van Erp, managing director Spyker Squadron: “We had a good race today. We have had one problem with the 85 where we had to reset the fuse of the fuel pump after a pit stop and lost about a minute. And then, right at the end of the race, in the last lap, the camshaft chain went. This is really disappointing and I cannot understand why it happened this way”.

“Our decision to start from the pit lane was good” Peter continued “but unfortunately we lost a lap on the 99 car with the safety car. It was a tough weekend; although our cars are 1.7 seconds quicker than last year at Monza the field of 12 GT2 class is of very high quality and sometimes it was a though battle”.

The trailers are already on their way home; all time will be required to prepare the cars for the next race in two weeks time at Spa, Belgium.
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SNORAS Spyker Squadron Monza qualifying report - 26th April 2008

The GT2 team of Dutch luxury car manufacturer Spyker Cars, SNORAS Spyker Squadron, qualified in 9th and 11th position for tomorrow’s Le Mans Series Monza round. The 1000km race, the second round in a series of five, will start this Sunday at 12:50 and can be seen live on MotorsTV and Eurosport.

Conditions were excellent for qualifying this afternoon with a temperature in the mid-twenties, a light breeze and clear skies. Immediately after green light was given for the 20 minute GT qualifying session both Spyker’s left the pitlane to set their quickest time. The lap times of the 12 GT2 cars were much closer than in the free practice sessions but both drivers managed to find some time and got closer to the leading car.

It was Swiss Benjamin Leuenberger, in his first qualifying session ever with the Spyker C8 Laviolette, to set the 11th time in the #94 Speedy Racing Team car. “Qualifying did not go very well” said Benjamin afterwards. “I asked to change the front splitter to win a bit more top speed but unfortunately it did not work out as planned. According to the data we have just reviewed the engine was also a bit down on performance but nevertheless I am looking forward to tomorrow’s race. If we can finish without any problems we should be able to run in a top-5 position”.

The other car, the #85, was qualified by German Ralf Kelleners. Ralf: “Everything worked out well for us today. Unfortunately we will start from a ninth position but I am happy with the distance between us and the pole car. We are much closer to the competition than in Barcelona and we have less track issues with the car then in Spain. I enjoyed driving the C8 Laviolette there but here in Italy I like it even better: the car is well balanced, we have more grip and you can really squeeze the last bit out of it and drive it more aggressively. I think from a driver’s perspective the race will be a lot more fun as we are able to fight for positions instead of having to drive strategically, keep our act together and stay out of trouble as we did in the 1000 km of Catalunya”.

Peter van Erp, managing director Spyker Squadron: “So far we have been able to improve our times in all sessions. Nevertheless it is a bit disappointing to see that it is not enough to gain grid positions. I am very pleased with the performance of Andrea Chiesa and Benjamin Leuenberger but also Alexei is doing an excellent job in the other car. If in tomorrow’s race our strategy and pitstops work out well and we can manage to stay out of trouble we will be able to advance into a top-5 position and claim a few valuable championship points”.

Immediately after qualifying the mechanics started to prepare the cars for the race; both will get a fresh race engine for tomorrow’s 1000 km race. Andrea Chiesa and Ralf Kelleners will start the race tomorrow.
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SNORAS Spyker Squadron ready for Italian Le Mans Series round - 23rd April 2008

After a thorough shakedown last Saturday, both Spyker C8 Laviolette GT2R's have left the manufacturers workshop in Zeewolde, the Netherlands, and are on their way towards the famous track of Monza, Italy.

This weekend SNORAS Spyker Squadron will again enter two factory backed GT2 cars in the Le Mans Series to compete in the second 1000 km race in the five-round series. Due to its high speed nature Monza is of high importance in the essential preparations for this June's 24 Hours of Le Mans. A well balanced aerodynamics setup plays a key role to finish on the podium in La Sarthe this summer and if a good setup for this weekend’s race has been found and time permits the Dutch team plans to test setups that might work well at Le Mans.

Peter van Erp, Managing Director Spyker Squadron: "I hope that this will be another good weekend for us. Our agenda is packed with three 1000 km Le Mans Series races before the 24 Hours of Le Mans and its official test-day in June but fortunately we managed to clear the list of To-Do's that we brought back from Barcelona after completing our very first race with the two new C8 Laviolette's. Last Saturday we successfully finalized several functional tests at the RDW test track in Lelystad, the Netherlands, and I can confidently say that some of the startup problems we have experienced in Spain are eliminated. Therefore I think we will have much more valuable time to work on the setup for the race and if we have sufficient time left we will test some setups for Le Mans".

The team will bring two Laviolette GT2R's to the start in Milan, both with an upgraded radiator exit duct. The new exit duct results in a more effective radiator air-flow but will also improve the down force on the front axle.

The C8 number 85 will be driven by Russian Alexey Vasiliev, Ralf Kelleners from Germany and Scotsman Peter Dumbreck. Peter Dumbreck will join the team from Saturday morning on due to test obligations in Japan. For the second car, the Swiss dealer car with number 94, it will be their home race. The car will be piloted by Milan born Andrea Chiesa and Swiss Benjamin Leuenberger.

The six-hour race this Sunday can be seen via various media; online via the Eurosport website or via Radio Le Mans and on TV via Eurosport and MotorsTV.
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Okayama - 15th April 2008

Following on from our good result at Suzuka’s opening round of Super GT last month, we’ve been able to improve our car’s set up and start to move closer to the top Lexus in terms of pace. My team mate, Tatsuya qualified the car in 13th - relatively close to the highest placed SC430 in 10th.

Race day is usually our stronger day so by the time I got into the car just before the half way point of the race TK had managed to get us up into the top 10. With another very fast pitstop turn around from Team Kraft I was able to start challenging for 7th within a few laps of our stop. Rain was always on the forecast for Sunday so I was not surprised when I saw the first spots on my windscreen. Thankfully it was a passing shower so lap times only dropped by a couple of seconds. It did make the kerbs quite slippery, causing a few “moments” for me when my car snapped sideways after touching one.

I decided to take a lot more care when I saw the 6th place Honda right in front of me slide wide onto a wet kerb then turn sharp left into the wall as the car lost grip. With just 2 laps left and looking certain for 6th my engine suddenly started faltering, then a no fuel warning came on my display. Team Kraft’s very fast pitstop was partly due to not putting so much fuel in the car but this also meant that I lost 20 seconds in the last 2 laps trying to get to the chequered flag. In the end I crossed the line 2 tenths of a second in front of the 7th placed no38 car.
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SNORAS Spyker Squadron Barcelona race report - 6th April 2008

SNORAS Spyker Squadron completed its first race of the season today: the Le Mans Series 1000 km of Catalunya. It turned out to be a day of extremes for the Dutch; one car retired early in the race due to technical problems while the other car managed to finish in a fifth position - better than the team could wish for. After all the car turned its wheels for the first time this weekend and many small problems had to be resolved.

The day kicked-off with a 20 minute warm-up session where the mechanics finalised the race-setup of both cars. Just like the last few days it promised to be another sunny day in Barcelona and thousands of spectators filled the paddock ready for the autograph session or the pitwalk.

Just after 11 o’clock the engines were started and the cars left the pit lane towards the grid for the start procedure. Two cars were entered in today’s race; the first one, number 85, was driven by Alexey Vasiliev (RUS), Ralf Kelleners (GER) and Peter Dumbreck (GBR) and the number 94 car will be piloted this season by Andrea Chiesa (SUI) and Benjamin Leuenberger (SUI). For some reason the car entered under the Swiss Speedy Racing banner lost its wheel on the way to the grid and got stuck in the gravel trap. With the help of the organisation the team managed to quickly get the car back to parc ferme and fortunately the car was not badly damaged. Four laps later Andrea Chiesa could join the field to be retired almost an hour later with a broken exhaust pipe.

Andrea Chiesa: “What can I say, the mechanics did a great job and they did their utmost to prepare the car for today’s race - I can not blame them that we lost the wheel. We have a brand new car and knew the race would be difficult. In the race the car was a bit more challenging to drive then in qualifying yesterday. It is sad that we could not fix the problem so Benjamin could spent some time in the car as well.”

In the meanwhile the other car ran like a swiss made clock and performed well. It gradually moved forward on the grid although it happened several times that the car ran in fifth position and returned in seventh after completing a pitstop. But in the end the team pulled it together a managed to win valuable seconds. After almost six hours of racing the number 85 Spyker C8 Laviolette GT2R crossed the finish line in a fifth position.

Peter van Erp, Managing Director Spyker Squadron: “I could not have dreamed of this result the last few days when we were still finalizing the cars - I am very pleased with our fifth place although it is a pity that the other car could not finish the race. It was simply not possible to fix the exhaust. There were quite a few accidents especially in the last and curve part of the track where the difference in speed between the LMP’s and GT’s was huge and mistakes were easily made. We try to return to return to Zeewolde as quickly as possible, Le Mans is approaching fast and there is plenty to do!”

Victor Muller, CEO Spyker Cars: “This is a very good start of the season. Although we need to find a few more seconds the car is without doubt competitive and I am sure that Peter and his team will find the missing seconds in the next months to come. It is sad that the other car did not finish, bad luck, there is nothing you can do about it.”

Peter Dumbreck: “I think our end-result was a good result. We brought the car back in one piece although I had a Porsche hit me. He just lost control at the end of the straight. On the way trough he hit my car right on the side but we got away lucky with that. After the collision it was just a case of keep consistent and make sure we got to the end and I think all three of us drove well to do that. It is a good base point and from here we need to work on improving the car and try to go to the podium”.

Alexey Vasiliev: “It was a new experience for me. The car was great and easy to learn although we had some understeer problems. It was quite an achievement to get the car ready in time for the race and I think we can solve some of the smaller problems before our next race in Italy in three weeks time”.

Ralf Kelleners: To build a car from scratch, go straight into a 1000 km race, and finish the race, is really really great. It is something that big manufacturers such as Porsche dream of and we have just done it. Unfortunately we did not have enough time to test before this event so we have to improve during the season and work towards better lap times. Obviously our fifth place is already very good and I am looking forward to the next race”.

The next round of the Le Mans Series will be held at Monza, Italy, the 27th of April.
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Top six finish for new look Houzan Toyota Team Kraft - 16th March 2008

Peter scored sixth place with his new team mate Tatsuya Kataoka in the Super GT season opener at Suzuka on Sunday 16th March. A wet test day on Friday produced a difficult dry qualifying session on Saturday where set up was compromised. In the end with a difficult handling car Kataoka could only manage 15th on the grid for Sunday’s 300km race.

After some drastic changes to the car set up overnight Kataoka started the race well moving up to 11th position during his 25 lap stint. Team Kraft’s pitstop was one of the fastest of the day elevating Peter straight up into the top 10 on track as he took over the driving. A very quick out lap on cold tyres made it possible to be challenging for the 8th position of No18 Honda NSX within 3 laps. One lap later Peter passed for 7th and set about chasing down the No3 Nissan GTR. Around lap 44 of the 54 lap race the Nissan slowed coming out of the hairpin corner handing 6th to Peter which he brought home to the chequered flag and a happy Team Kraft crew.
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Dumbreck to race in Nurburgring 24

Peter will race in this May’s Nurburgring 24 Hours for the works backed Falken Nissan 350Z. The race takes place on the famous Nordschleife 28.2km race track in the Eifel region of Germany. This will be Peter’s 5th attempt at the race – last year finishing 34th of 250 entries after an engine change around the 8 hour into the race.
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Spyker agreement continues

Peter will again drive for the Spyker GT2 team in the Le Mans Series 2008. In a relationship now going back 3 seasons Dumbreck is happy to be invited back to drive the rapid little GT2 machine. Last year Peter was able to help the team to it’s first podium of the season in the Silverstone 1000km when he and team mate Mike Hezemans managed 3rd position against the might of the Ferrari’s and Porsche’s. Combining his driving duties in Japan with those of Spyker Peter will race in selected 2008 LMS races as well as Le Mans 24 hours.
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