Christodoulou returns to Dubai with ProSPORT

Posted By Adam Christodoulou / AMG, Dubai, Endurance, Race Update / AMG, Career, Dubai / No Comments

Adam Christodoulou will kick start his busy 2018 racing calendar at the 24H Dubai this weekend (January 12-13), teaming up with the German ProSPORT; he returns after a year away at the wheel   with the team in the newly-acquired Mercedes-AMG GT3, which will wear the No. 85 and be entered in the A6-AM class. .

Christodoulou has a faultless record finishing on the podium three times in each of his last three starts at the event and charged from 98th on the grid to finish second in 2016.

 
The 28-year-old AMG driver, became the third Briton to win the Nurburgring 24 Hours in 2016 and last year finished second at the Daytona 24 Hours; Adam last raced for ProSPORT at Bathurst two years ago, but has continued to work with team boss Chris Esser as a driver coach and strategist, so was the natural choice to lead the team step up to the GT3 ranks for the first time.

“It’s great to be back at Dubai and racing with ProSPORT, a team I’ve been lucky enough to work and race with since 2012 as a driver, strategist and driver coach,” said Christodoulou.

“In our very first race we finished 3rd in the Nurburgring 24 hours, eventually going on to win the European GT4 teams’ and drivers’ championship in 2013, with multiple wins in the VLN championship and many other races over the years.

 
“I’m really looking forward to being a part of their new AMG GT3 programme, it’s going to be a new challenge for the team but we’re all excited to see what we can do.”

Christodoulou will be joined by 24H Series regulars Joe Foster, Charlie Putnam and Charles Espenlaub, the American trio making their third attempt at Dubai after two previous outings in the 991 class.

Christodoulou is optimistic the team can challenge for a podium finish in a competent  A6-AM class featuring six other Mercedes-AMG GT3s, however, knows that caution will be just as great a virtue as outright speed if the team is to reach the finish on Saturday afternoon in one piece; 94 cars will start on the grid sharing the tight and twisting 5.39km Dubai Autodrome, including Porsche Cup, GT4, TCR and Clio Cup machinery.

 
“It’s always tough at Dubai due to the amount of cars, this year there will be 26 GT3 cars and a huge entry list of 94 cars in total, so we are going straight in at the deep end for ProSPORT’s first outing with the Mercedes-AMG GT3,” he said.

“The team has great spirit and knowledge of the circuit, having worked with all three of my American team mates before I know the speed and consistency is there, but you always have to be realistic in 24 hour races. Anything can happen, but with a little bit of luck, we’ll be fighting at the end of the 24 hours for our first GT3 podium.”

Christodoulou, who will also contest the Daytona 24 Hours in January (27-28) will confirm his full 2018 programme with AMG in due course.

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Christodoulou targeting victory at Daytona 24

Posted By Adam Christodoulou / Daytona, Endurance, Team Update / Daytona, Mercedes / No Comments

Adam Christodoulou has set his sights on victory in the GTD class, ahead of his return to the Daytona International Speedway for the highlight of the American endurance racing calendar, the Rolex 24 at Daytona (January 27-28).

Last year the AMG driver returned to Daytona where the car led 108 laps in the Mercedes-AMG GT3’s US debut finishing third on the podium, just 5.6 seconds off the winner, so this year Adam is determined to put memories of the narrow defeat to bed in the first round of the 2018 IMSA Sportscar Championship.

Christodoulou returns to a largely unchanged Mercedes-AMG Team Riley Motorsports line-up alongside Ben Keating and Jeroen Bleekemolen, joined by Luca Stolz as the fourth driver; the Briton’s team-mate in last season’s Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup.

Adam said; “I’m delighted to be invited back to Daytona with Mercedes-AMG Team Riley

“We had a great debut last year for the Mercedes-AMG GT3 and we had the possibility of winning the race going into the final hour, so I’m looking forward to pushing ustwo places better and win some nice shiny watches!

“I’ve been lucky to race with Luca for the entire 2017 season in the Blancpain Endurance season, he’s a talented and fast but precise driver, so I’m confident we’ve got a bullet-proof line-up that can fight for the win again

“I’m expecting us to be at the sharp end and be the best American AMG Team out there. If there’s anybody that you can rely on to do the perfect job, it’s the Riley boys.”

Keating, who is the team’s mandated Bronze-graded driver, set the foundations for victory last year with a superb triple stint from the start of the race, Christodoulouis confident that the Texan will again prove to be the team’s ace in the pack;

“Ben was amazing last year, he qualified the car for us, we threw him straight into the deep end and he smashed out a triple-stint from the start of the race putting us into a strong position

“He’s got to be one of the fastest, if not the fastest AMdriver out there, so I’m looking forward to working with him again.”

Preparations start with the Roar before the 24 this weekend as Christodoulou re-familiarises himself with the intricacies of the 5.73 km layout, part of which uses the famed Daytona banking.

The 28-year-old first raced at Daytona in the Grand-AM series in 2011, finishing sixth in a SpeedSource-prepared MazdaRX-8, and has since seen the event grow into one of the biggest in the world; with the likes of two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso, former F1 racer Paul di Restaand reigning European F3 champion Lando Norris all set to make their endurance racing debuts in the LMP2 class.

Christodoulou concluded; “It is a very special event, it’s one that everyone wants to be involved with and it’s on every drivers bucket lists

“There’s some massive names that are going to be involved this year and that’s brilliant because you always want to compare yourself against the best in the business.”

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Christodoulou wins Pro-Am class in VLN 6

Posted By Adam Christodoulou / AMG, VLN / AMG, Career, VLN / No Comments

Adam Christodoulou led Team Black Falcon to a Pro-Am class victory in the seventh round of the VLN Endurance Series at the famed Nürburgring Nordschleife.

Sharing his usual Mercedes-AMG GT3 with Abdulaziz al-Faisal and Erik Johansson, the 2016 Nurburgring 24 Hour winner navigated changeable conditions to secure class honours and a creditable sixth place overall in the 17-car SP9 field.

The Pro-Am win capped off a positive weekend for Christodoulou, whose primary focus was to develop a further understanding of the Dunlop tyre and welcome new teammate Johansson.

“Erik tested with us in the previous VLN but only on the Grand Prix circuit, so this was his first ever GT3 race on the Nordschleife and I thought he did a great job,” explainedChristodoulou.

“Like everybody else, he’s out there to make a name for himself and I think he did himself extremely proud.

“Aziz did a great job as well, his best times and race pace were right in the ball park. It was one of his best performances yet, which was really encouraging. Unfortunately during the race there was some minor contact that damaged the steering and allowed the Muecke car to take fifth on the final lap, but we still ended up sixth overall and it didn’t affect our Pro-Am win which was our ultimate goal for the weekend.”

Christodoulou was left frustrated during qualifying by a Code 60 in qualifying which cost him a clear lap when track conditions were at their best. The 27 year old had been second earlier in the session running on intermediates, but as the track dried and times tumbled,Christodoulou’s best lap was stymied by oil left from Brunchen to the Stefan Bellof Curve.

Rather than a potential front-row grid slot, he would instead have to make his way forward from 12th, turning the race into a recovery exercise.

“Qualifying was disappointing because I was set for being in the low 8 minutes on the predicted time but ended up losing eight seconds with the oil – I was just concerned with keeping it on track,” he said.

Tasked with getting the team back into contention, Christodoulou drove a committed opening double stint up to fifth position and was impressed by the Dunlop consistency underneath him despite the typically tricky Eiffel weather.

“It’s the second time I’ve been on the Dunlop and it really does transform the car,” he reported.

“I found that I was able to rotate the car a lot better although it felt a little looser, so you have to have the confidence to push it and to know that it’s going to stick.”

Although he narrowly missed out on the honour of being the first Mercedes home by 0.52 seconds, Christodoulou was pleased with the final outcome.

“All in all everyone is extremely happy to bring home a win in class,” he added.

“Both of my team-mates did an awesome job, the strategy from Black Falcon was the correct one throughout the day and we showed really good pace compared to what we’ve had before this season, which is very positive and shows we’re heading in the right direction.”

Next up for Christodoulou is the final British GT round of the season at Donington Park (23-24 September), where he will again team up with Richard Neary and the Team ABBA by Rollcentre Racing outfit in pursuit of a first British GT podium of the season.

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Christodoulou takes determined top 10 finish in Spa 24 Hours

Posted By Adam Christodoulou / AMG, Blancpain, Endurance / Career, Mercedes, news / No Comments

Adam Christodoulou banished the painful memories of his late DNF from the 2016 Total 24 Hours of Spa by taking a top 10 finish on his return to the Belgian endurance classic with Mercedes-AMG Team Black Falcon.

Joined by regular team-mates Yelmer Buurman and Luca Stolz for the pinnacle of the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup, the 2016 Nurburgring 24 Hour winner starred in the changeable conditions of the early morning to put the No. 4 Mercedes-AMG GT3 into podium contention, but eventually came home eighth after cutting a tyre on debris which forced the team into making an unscheduled stop.

Nevertheless, 28-year-old Christodoulou was pleased to equal his best result in the world’s oldest endurance event, first held at Spa-Francorchamps in 1924, and register points in the world’s toughest GT3 series for just the second time this season.

“After last year where we managed all but the final 26 minutes, to finish the 24 hours is an achievement in itself and to finish eighth is a great achievement as well,” saidChristodoulou.

“It equals my highest finish in the 24 hours from 2013, but the championship has grown a lot since then and the competition is three or four times harder.

“With around eight hours to go, it looked like we have had a shot at getting to the podium, but it just slipped through our fingers with safety cars that didn’t play into our hands, and we had a puncture as well which dropped us down a lap. But in the end there were only 35 cars that finished, which shows just how hard it was.”

Christodoulou focused on race setup in Qualifying on Thursday, but despite this only narrowly missed out on a place in the Superpole, as a record 36 cars were separated by less than a second. However, a productive warmup on Friday evening suggested the Mercedes-AMG GT3 would be a force to be reckoned with over the longer runs and meant he was high on confidence heading into the race.

From 22nd on the grid, Buurmann had gained 11 places by the end of the first hour and handed over to Stolz on the fringes of the top ten. Stolz, who celebrated his 22nd birthday on Saturday, kept the team on the lead lap before Christodoulou climbed in for his first of four double stints approaching nightfall.

More consistent, mistake-free driving from his team-mates lifted the Mercedes-AMG to seventh by Christodoulou’s next stint in the early hours, which proved the most difficult of the entire race as the heavens opened in the Ardennes.

The Briton was one of only three drivers who elected not to come in for wet tyres in the worsening conditions, but his instincts proved to be correct as the track soon dried, saving the team an extra pitstop and raising the possibility that a podium could be on the cards.

“It was awesome fun to be out on slicks in the wet,” Christodoulou reflected.

“I knew from previous experience that Spa is quite grippy when it does rain and it tends to dry quickly as well. In GT4 a few years ago I started a wet race on slicks and at the end of the half-hour race, we were the quickest car on track.

“It was about weighing up risk – every pitstop will cost you almost a full lap at Spa, so it’s weighing up whether coming in to put on the rain tyres gains you that lap back. We took the gamble to stay on slicks and we also used the opportunity to do our mandatory technical stop during that period while everyone was circulating at a reduced pace, which was definitely the right strategy at that time.”

Although the puncture had thwarted any hope of a podium by sunrise, Christodoulou was proud of Team Black Falcon’s effort and application at the finish, with one round of the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup remaining at Barcelona on October 1.

“All the guys in Black Falcon and AMG did an awesome job, Yelmer and Luca were on fire all weekend and did a perfect performance,” he said.

“The same goes for the crew, every pitstop was executed perfectly. You can really see where everyone has been fine-tuning and working hard to get the best out of every opportunity.”

Christodoulou reserved special praise for the Pro-Am winning No. 16 Black Falcon Mercedes-AMG GT3 of Oliver Morley, Miguel Toril, Marvin Kirchhoefer and Maxi Goetz.

“I’d also like to give a huge congratulate to Oliver, Miguel, Marvin and Maxi on their Pro-Am win, it’s a really special achievement,” he added.

“I’ve worked with Oliver the last few years doing bits of coaching, we’ve been here to Spa a few times and it’s great to see all the hard work pay off for them boys, well deserved.”

There’s no rest for Adam Christodoulou as this weekend is the next round of the British GT at Brands hatch 5th – 6th August.

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