Van der Garte prepares optimally for IMSA championship: ‘expecting to fight for wins’

Giedo van der Garde is heading into 2023 with a bang because in addition to his role as an analyst at Viaplay, the driver is also driving in America. And there are plenty of races on the schedule, including the IMSA Championship next season. F1 max The 37-year-old asks about his expectations.

Next year van der Garde will compete in an LMP2 car for French team TDS Racing, for which he will have to prepare intensively, which fits one description. ‘Practice hard. I am now training for at least an hour and a half every day, six days a week, to be fit again at the start,” begins the driver, who raced in Formula 1 for Caterham in 2013.

Apart from the physical aspect, there are other things that need to be arranged. “The first race at Daytona will, of course, take place at the end of January. I went to the team a few weeks ago, we made the chairs and I have a lot of contact with the team every week,’ explains the Dutchman. “We had an announcement about the fourth driver and that was done. So yes, I’m really looking forward to the new season and racing again in America because I enjoyed driving there last year and I’m happy to be able to do it again next year. , van der Garde is excited.

“I expect we can fight for victory”

The first race of the season will be the 24 Hours of Daytona, a fond memory for van der Gard. Last year he finished second in LMP2 for Racing Team Netherlands, which in previous years was run by TDS Racing. Expectations for January 2023 are even higher. “We want to win. That is definitely the goal and the team is the same as last year. We competed in TDS with Racing Team Netherlands. I’ll be driving there regularly this year, so I know the people, I know the engineers, the mechanics, so for me it’s like coming home. Of course I know the circuit at Daytona.’

As for his teammates, van der Garde will ride with Jaap van Uedert, Francois Heriau and Josh Pearson. “Of course they are all new teammates except one. So yes, it will take some time to get used to, but on the other hand we have a good preparation before the race. We can test for a few days, qualify and next weekend, of course, we have the main race,” continues the driver. “With the leadership strong and the team strong, I expect us to be able to fight for the win. Of course you have to be a bit lucky and stay out of trouble, but if you do that, you can win the race.’

‘United Autosports is a good team’

Van der Garte will drive two more races in the World Endurance Championship for United Autosports, and his goal is to win there as well. Because otherwise I wouldn’t do it, he says. You look ahead anyway: who are your teammates? What kind of team is that? What kind of energy is behind it?’ As for his teammate, things are going well as he will be riding alongside sixteen-year-old American Pearson. “Of course I will do two races with United and I have already done two races with Pearson in the IMSA Championship: Daytona and Sebring. Of course we have that race together in Portimão, so we know each other and have already worked together for two races.

Van der Garde has a good feeling about potential. Of course United are a great team. In principle, he’s already won the championship there, they’ve won Le Mans, there’s Oliver Jarvis, he’s an experienced guy, I think Pearson is a fast guy with a lot of potential, so I expect we can compete. For podium places and maybe wins,” concludes the Dutch driver, who has good expectations for his 2023 season.