Robichon: Heart of Racing on “Bad Side” of Luck in LMGT3

Photo: Andrea Lorenzina/DPPI

Zach Robichon believes that Heart of Racing’s No. 27 Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo crew has been on the “bad side” of luck this year, with only one representative finish to its credit despite showing pace at nearly every FIA World Endurance Championship race.

The Canadian and co-drivers Ian James and Mattia Drudi have a runner-up LMGT3 class finish at the 6 Hours of Spa to their credit, as well as a second consecutive pole at the 24 Hours of Le Mans for Drudi, although were unable to convert that into results.

“There’s certain years where you find yourself always with good results, yet you don’t really know how you got there,” Robichon told Sportscar365.

“This year is the complete opposite, where sort of feels like we’re always there with the speed yet we don’t have that many results to show for it.

“At Imola, we were probably tracking for at least a top-five and then we had that suspension issue.

“Spa, we finished second and Le Mans we obviously had the gearbox let go.

“The last race [in Sao Paulo] it was unfortunate with the tire pressures. We weren’t the quickest car but we would probably have had a good points finish.

“I think it’s just a matter of being disciplined and making sure that we get a clean race, and we’ve seen that in WEC, so much that sometimes your pace matters less than just not making mistakes, and unfortunately we’ve been on that bad side of it.”

Returning to the site of the team’s first, and only, WEC win to date at COTA in 2024, Robichon has high hopes for this weekend.

“It usually plays in the favor of the car,” he said. “The car likes it. The Aston generally likes high speed, high grip [tracks], which COTA is.

“If we can have a clean race, I think anything’s possible.”

Despite having hit a rough patch of results this year, the 34-year-old Canadian, who is in his third full season of the globe-trotting series, said he still very much enjoys being able to compete in a world championship.

Robichon also has the ‘best of both worlds’ in dovetailing his WEC commitments with a full IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup program with the squad.

“I think WEC’s got so much going for it,” said Robichon. “Obviously it has the crown jewel of Le Mans that everyone wants to be a part of.

“I wouldn’t necessarily say I enjoy the racing more than in IMSA, it’s just very different.

“But it’s super exciting to be able to race and compete around the world. I’m very happy to be able the Michelin Endurance Cup races. It sort of feels like coming home.

“The racing [in the U.S.] is what we grew up with, so it somehow feels a little more up our alley.”

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