ASP’s Title Defense “More Difficult” With Adjusted Lineup

The team principal of Akkodis ASP says the French squad is focusing on achieving consistency from its lineup this year after adding a Silver-rated driver for its Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Europe Endurance Cup title defense.

ASP clinched last year’s title with Mercedes-AMG factory aces Raffaele Marciello, Jules Gounon and Daniel Juncadella, winning the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa along the way.

Juncadella has not returned to defend his title as the Spaniard focuses on other series, while ASP has brought in Silver-rated Timur Boguslavskiy to partner with Gounon and Marciello in the No. 88 Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo.

Boguslavskiy won the combined GTWC Europe championship with ASP in 2020, which was the last time he contested the Endurance Cup season.

The Russian driver, who competes under the neutral FIA flag, finished second in last year’s Sprint Cup standings alongside Marciello.

ASP boss Jerome Policand acknowledged that it will be harder for the No. 88 entry to defend its Endurance title when it goes up against all-factory driver lineups from other teams, but hopes to extract the most performance from Boguslavskiy to stay in the mix.

“Dani had a deal to race in IMSA, and also [NLS],” Policand told Sportscar365.

“He was happy to do Spa with us, but Timur wants to do the full program, so it was difficult to mix the drivers. Since five years we have run Timur and I wanted to give him a real chance with two AMG drivers to see how he performs.

“We know that sometimes he can be quick and competitive, but he has to be more consistent. To give him the chance to do both Endurance and Sprint, we will see if we are able to compete for the title.

“For sure it will be more difficult. We know that. But some drivers, when they have to push for the last two-tenths and beside them there are two factory drivers, they can improve. That’s the goal.”

ASP is fielding two Mercedes-AMGs in the Pro category this year, with the No. 87 machine set to be driven by Thomas Drouet, Lorenzo Ferrari and Maximilian Goetz.

Policand explained that due to commercial reasons, it was not possible to retain an all-factory lineup in the No. 88 car by having Goetz partner with Gounon and Marciello.

“We have support from AMG, but we have to play with our own sponsors and the drivers’ support,” he said.

“You have to mix everything. Last year we ended up with two championship wins, which was great. But you also have to consider the economic way.

“To do a full AMG lineup was possible on one championship but not on two. And my choice was to say, OK, if you swap a driver [such as Boguslavskiy] between two championships, it’s a driver who is running very few miles compared to the Pros. They have no chance.

“If you look at Gounon, Marciello and Dani… they drive the car every week. To be competitive against these guys, you need to have decent mileage.

“We know it will be tough because it’s crazy how many competitive cars there are in Sprint and Endurance.”

Policand reckons that having a Silver driver in the No. 88 car could be less of a detriment at Spa, which carries the most weight in terms of championship points.

A potential benefit for ASP is the Endurance Cup’s introduction of a wave-by during safety car periods, which is set to enable more cars to stay close to the leader.

“At Spa, it turns around the championship,” Policand indicated.

“I would say the ‘sprint’ [Endurance Cup] races of Monza and Barcelona, we know it would be very difficult to win because you have to be perfect with three Pro drivers.

“But a top-six finish would still be valuable points for the championship. And then for Ricard and Spa, it’s completely open. We won last year but we were also super quick the year before.

“It’s impossible to say before the race how competitive you will be. The most important thing for us is to score some points, and then at Spa it’s still possible to win, even with a Silver driver in the car.”

It is rare for lineups with Silver-rated drivers to win Endurance Cup races, although Sainteloc Junior Team achieved it at Hockenheim last season with Lucas Legeret.