Belicchi Confirmed at Rebellion, R-One Set for Spa Debut

Photo: Rebellion Racing

Andrea Belicchi will continue with Rebellion Racing in the FIA World Endurance Championship, it was confirmed Tuesday.

The 37-year-old Italian driver joins the team’s previously announced lineup of Nicolas Prost, Nick Heidfeld, Mathias Beche and Dominik Kraihamer, with reigning GP2 champion Fabio Leimer set to finalize his contract with the Anglo-Swiss squad in the next week.

“This will be our seventh year together, so we know each other very well,” team manager Bart Hayden said. “He has been and remains a key member of the team.

“He is quick, reliable, loyal and he shares our great team spirit. Andrea’s efficient driving style will fit well with the new regulations and we are confident that he will help us to achieve the very best results.”

Hayden, meanwhile, confirmed that the first roll-out of the new Rebellion R-One will take place following this week’s “The Prologue” FIA WEC pre-season test at Paul Ricard, where the team will field its two 2013-spec Lola B12/60 Toyotas.

The ORECA-built LMP1-L car, which has faced delays, is now due to complete a two-day test in early April.

“It became apparent at the beginning of this new year that it was going to be tight to have all the parts when we wanted them and as the season has moved ever closer and the demands of F1 increased ahead of their first events, the supplier base just couldn’t cope,” Hayden added.

It’s understood the grandfathered Lola-Toyotas will be used for the season-opener at Silverstone, with the R-One set to start from the second round of the season at Spa-Francorchamps on May 3.

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John