Last Sunday (18), Hugo Cibien raced in two events for the Stock Series in Cascavel, in the West of Paraná. This Thursday, the 22nd, the 40-year-old driver from Espírito Santo will be driving an AJR prototype in the first practice for the third stage of the 2023 Endurance Brasil season, which takes place on Saturday, with the start of the Three Hours of Velopark, in Greater Porto Alegre.
In this short period of four days, a quick stop at home in Vila Velha, little physical rest, and almost no mental rest, since the switch between categories requires a 'flip of the switch' for a completely different competition: it is a long-duration race during the Endurance weekend, against three very short-duration races in the Stock Series, which significantly changes the strategy and driving style; the Endurance car is lighter, more powerful, and has more aerodynamic downforce; and in Endurance, three drivers share the car.
In the Velopark stage, Cibien will share the wheel, in addition to veteran driver Alexandre Finardi from Santa Catarina, with Nicolas Costa. The 31-year-old driver from Rio de Janeiro is leading the Porsche Carrera Cup in 2023.
'The switch from Stock to Endurance is easier for me than the other way around. Besides being more accustomed to prototypes, both in terms of the car itself and the more cerebral and less aggressive driving style, switching from the less powerful to the more powerful is smoother due to the weight and greater downforce. You can trust the car more, which corners better, brakes harder. So, you push the limits, and in just a few laps, you’re completely at ease,' says Cibien, who races with sponsorship from Novaforma, Placas do Brasil, and Supermercados Locatelli, and support from the Government of the State of Espírito Santo.
In the first two stages of 2023, the AJR V8 with 590 horsepower from the Power Imports team, 'a car that is designed not to break,' as the driver explains, did break. The first time was a failure of the drive shaft, and the second time, a stone damaged the alternator belt, which is located in a hard-to-reach place in this car, making it impossible to replace during the race.
On the 2,278-meter track of Velopark, the shortest of the season, the challenge, besides, of course, finishing the race, is to have a strategy to compete against the other AJR prototypes and against the Ligier prototype, which entered the P1 category last year and has proven to be a tough rival.
The Endurance Brasil race starts on Saturday (24) at 11:30 AM and will be broadcast on Band Sports and the YouTube channel of Imperio Endurance Brasil.
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