Laurens Vanthoor travelled to Sepang as leader in the Intercontinental GT Challenge driver standings. The Belgian took the win in last year’s Motul Sepang 12 Hours, and repeat of that performance would give him the Intercontinental GT Challenge driver title. But the Malaysian endurance race is special for another reason as well.
“This one is my last race for Audi and it’s the end of a big chapter in my life”, the 25-year-old Belgian says. “We have had a lot of nice moments together, but that’s the way life goes. It’s still quite special to work with these people for the last time.”
“Last year was the first time I participated in this race, and it was all about trying to survive the hot and humid conditions. I informed myself a lot on how to prepare for these conditions, and you can get ready for it, but in the end it’s quite different from one person to another. Some people can cope with the heat very well, others don’t, it’s all down on how your body responds to it. I am the type of guy who sweats a lot, so I don’t really like these conditions.” (grins)
“Being able to fight for the title in the Intercontinental GT Challenge is a nice bonus”, the Belgian concludes. “It is always nice to add a new title to your list of accomplishments, so I will do my best to get it.”
The start of the Motul Sepang 12 Hours will be given on Saturday noon (UTC +8), so just after midnight we will know both who will be the winner of the 2017 edition of the Asian endurance classic and who will be the champions of the inaugural Intercontinental GT Challenge. The race will be streamed live on both the Intercontinental GT Challenge and Motul Sepang 12 Hours websites.