Alphand entry takes it steady.

The Ferrari 550 Maranello GTS of Luc Alphand Aventures/Solution F has enjoyed a solid start to its Le Mans campaign, and the Care Racing-owned car has run steadily in the top three for most of the opening quarter of the round-the-clock event.

All three drivers have now taken their turn at the wheel of the Ferrari, which started the race with a new Prodrive-built engine, which was installed overnight, and new Carbone Industrie brakes which were tried for the first time in the practice/qualifying sessions. Star driver J?r?me Policand, who was praised by Solution F boss, Eric Chantriaux, as having turned in 'perfect stints', confirmed that the changes had improved the car.

"The car is very stable in a straight line and very safe under braking," he said, "At this kind of rhythm, it will be very easy for the drivers, which is great news. We decided with Michelin to play safe and limit ourselves to double stints on the tyres, and we set ourselves a target of 4:02/4:03 per lap in order to look after the car and be safe in the traffic. I am very happy with the set-up and the overall performance of the car."

Fr?d?ric Dor, the founder of Care Racing making his debut at La Sarthe, was also happy after his first stint in the car. He quickly got into a good rhythm, causing Solution F technical director Hugues Baude to comment that "throughout all of his stint, Frederic gradually lowered his lap times, and steadily found it easier to deal with the traffic. He did very well."

Team co-owner Luc Alphand had a more uncomfortable time during his time behind the wheel, however, as, during the second half of his stint, his drinks bottle failed and the heat and humidity hanging over Le Mans began to take its toll.

"I suffered a bit because of this, but I still managed to maintain the rhythm of my first stint," the former downhill skier commented.