(English) Pietro Fittipaldi to sub for injured Clément Novalak in the Rolex 24
26 stycznia 2024
Inter Europol by PR1/Mathiasen Motorsport is making a change to its expected lineup for this weekend’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season-opener at Daytona.
Clément Novalak sustained a leg and rib injury* in a pitlane incident in today’s final practice session ahead of the Rolex 24 at Daytona. While the injury is not serious, he will not be able to participate in the remainder of the event.
Pietro Fittipaldi will, therefore, join Nick Boulle, Jakub Śmiechowski and Tom Dillmann in the #52 Inter Europol by PR1/Mathiasen Motorsport. He is well known to the Inter Europol Competition crew, having raced the Oreca 07 with us in the European Le Mans Series in 2022 and helping secure a famous Spa-Francorchamps podium from the back of the field.
The Rolex 24 begins Saturday at 13:40 ET, 19:40 CET with Nick having qualified second in the LMP2 class.
Pietro Fittipaldi
“It’s an unfortunate situation for the team and Clément; they have been doing a great job preparing for the Dayton 24 Hours. I got the call from the team asking me to jump in last minute at Daytona and I’ll be straight into green flag racing. Fortunately, I have experience with this car, and I did the 24-hours last year. It’s not going to be an easy task, but I am looking forward to the challenge, and I’ll do the best job possible for the team.”
*Updated to reflect rib injury