Kvamme, Magnussen “Learning a Lot” in Late LMP2 Entry

Mark Kvamme and Jan Magnussen face an uphill battle preparing for the 24 Hours of Le Mans, as their LMP2 Pro-Am entry with Inter Europol Competition came together “only a few days” after initial plans to race in GTE-Am fell through.

Kvamme and Magnussen will share the No. 32 Oreca 07 Gibson with Danish driver Anders Fjordbach, joining the Polish-flagged squad’s full-time FIA World Endurance Championship entry to create a two-car effort.

“We were discussing possibilities very early in the year to do Le Mans together in GT,” said Magnussen.

“But that fell apart and then pretty much last minute this opportunity came. Anders learned about this opportunity.

“He came to me and then we went to Mark and asked if we could do something. We only had a few days to agree that we were going to do it.”

MDK Motorsports team owner Kvamme told Sportscar365 that he initially hoped to race with JMW Motorsport.

The 62-year-old contested last year’s edition of the event with the British team, racing alongside Renger van der Zande and Jason Hart in a Ferrari 488 GTE Evo.

“A couple things just couldn’t come through the way we thought,” said Kvamme.  “I have my own team in the United States now too and I was worried about my schedule.

“It wasn’t on their side by the way; it was more on my side and I couldn’t figure it out.

“Then all of a sudden things got more understood on my side and then Jan gave me a call saying, ‘Do you mind if I drive Le Mans?’ I said, ‘Absolutely, go for it.’

“He goes, ‘Oh by the way, there’s a Bronze seat open as well.’ So I said, ‘OK, let’s go do it.'”

Magnussen revealed to Sportscar365 that the white-and-green car is a brand new chassis.

“I got here last night, just getting to know the team,” said the Dane.

“We’ll learn a lot in the next couple of days. Hopefully we can have a good race, but there’s a lot of new stuff and a lot of stuff to learn very quickly.

“I like driving the LMP2. It’s a great car. This year we’re not well prepared.

“I haven’t driven this car yet. I’ll have to rely on whatever experiences I had in 2021.”

While Magnussen raced the Oreca 07 Gibson with High Class Racing at Le Mans two years ago, Kvamme’s last appearance with the car dates back to the 2019 Rolex 24 at Daytona.

He also secured an LMP2 Am podium in a Rick Ware Racing-entered Ligier JS P2 Nissan during the 2019-20 Asian Le Mans Series.

Despite the limited preparation time, Kvamme pointed to Le Mans’ extensive schedule as a good opportunity to acclimatize to the car.

“I learned this last year; you’ve got a lot of track time before the race,” he said. “You’ve got a lot on Sunday, you’ve got a lot of time.

“Anders has done this so much. I think Jan and I will be taking most of the time in the practice because he knows his car inside and out.

“So I’m pretty confident I’ll have plenty of time.”