Stéphane Sarrazin leaves Toyota but stays in LMP1 with SMP Racing
After six seasons with Toyota, Stéphane Sarrazin will leave the Japanese manufacturer. However, he remains in WEC as he joins SMP Racing.
When Toyota revealed its lineup for 2018, Stéphane Sarrazin was no longer part of the Japanese manufacturer’s plans. The Frenchman was thus forced to find another program, as last season he only participated in the 24 Hours of Le Mans to make room for José-Maria Lopez for the rest of the season.
It’s now done as he has reached an agreement with the Russian team, SMP Racing, allowing him to stay in LMP1. This will be his 17th participation in the 24 Hours of Le Mans but the first time since 2005 that he won’t be behind the wheel of an official manufacturer’s car. He previously raced for Aston Martin in GT, before joining Peugeot and then Toyota.
The Japanese team thus wanted to salute its driver through its president Hisatake Murata: « Stéphane has been one of our main drivers since 2012. We have experienced many emotions together. He brought us experience and determination, significantly contributing to the development of our team and our technology. We sincerely thank him and wish him the best for the future. »
He is currently the only non-Russian driver in this team, which includes former F1 driver Vitaly Petrov, Mikhail Aleshin, Egor Orudzhev, and Matevos Isaakyan. So, there is only one seat left to fill within this team, whose owner also supports Sergey Sirotkin. It is worth noting that the two cars will be operated by the French organization ART Grand Prix.
With the participation of www.racingbusiness.fr
