In Conversation with Asian Le Mans Series LMP 3 Champion Fabrice Rossello

Fabrice Rossello is a French Endurance Racing Driver.

After starting out in GT Racing over a decade ago and considerably later in life than many other racing drivers, he’s worked his way up through the ranks reaching the Asian Le Mans Series earlier this year in the LMP3 category. But it wasn’t all easy and there were some rather challenging periods for the Frenchman in his motorsport career so far.

But with his recent success at the Asian Le Mans series, it looks like things might just be turning a corner for Fabrice as he’ll be competing in the centenary edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June.

We discussed all of this recently when we caught up, as well as talking about why Endurance Racing was the series for him, what he wished he was great at but isn’t and much more!

I hope you enjoy our conversation.

What first got you interested in Motorsport?

I have always been passionate about both mechanics and high-level sport. Failing to have been a professional footballer, which would have been the logical continuation of my school career, I became a mechanical engineer, and the return to my passion for motorsport only began at 31 years old. This sport combines physical performance, strategy, speed, and teamwork, enough to stir up passions.

Why did you choose to get into Endurance Racing and what has made you stick with it ever since you began?

I officially started racing in 2013, on the GT TOUR, in an AUDI R8 LMS GT3, with one-hour race formats for two drivers; but what really marked my debut in motorsport was a 24-hour amateur race organized by Audi in 2011/2012, with Audi A1. I immediately loved the main issues of endurance, regularity, strategy, preparation, teamwork… these are the same values that still attract me so much after having climbed the different categories.

2016 was a good year for you racing wise, tell us about that from your perspective.

2016 was my first year in LMP3 prototype. I had done a few test kilometers before the first race, but I didn’t expect it to happen at the Bugatti circuit!

For my first race in a Ligier JSP3, I was sent to the track on slick tires (without a warming blanket), in the rain, and with 2°C of temperature on the track… we had to stay on the track, and we finally won!

We had missed the first race due to lack of budget, and despite this we ended up vice-champions, with 2 wins and two 2nd places.

To end the year, we had participated in the 12h Gulf, which we were leading at 9h of the race with 2 laps in advance before losing the engine…

Indeed the year 2016 remains a very good memory for me.

The next few years were challenging, what did you learn during that time that has helped you to improve as a driver?

Indeed I was a little cut off in my tracks by two major back operations in 2017 and 2018

It was an opportunity to rethink the importance of sport in my life, and to devote much more time to my physical preparation, but also to better structure the economic part of my sporting career with better sponsor relations.

You competed in the Asian Le Mans Series the past two years and won the LMP3 category this year with Graff Racing – what was that like and how much does it mean to you?

We already had a crew last year that could play for the win, but technical problems decided otherwise. We therefore arrived this year with a clear objective of victory, especially since we knew that this was the last year in which the LMP3 champion would win an invitation to the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

This season has just been perfect. In addition to having an extraordinary atmosphere with my teammates and the entire Graff team, we have rolled out our strategy to perfection.

Winning such an international championship of this level marks a milestone in my career, especially in a year when many teams came to seek an invitation, the fight was fierce.

Your lowest finish this season as a team was 4th, what was the key to your consistency and how satisfying was it to win the final race?

We knew the champions would be the most consistent team. We weren’t the fastest over a lap, but we were able to develop a set-up that limits tire degradation, and above all, gives an easy-to-drive car. Result, we finished after more than 50 hours on the track without a scratch on the car.

Even in the first race in Abu Dhabi, which we finished 4th, we were playing for the win until the chance of the red flag pushed us back almost a lap from our competitors.

The final was epic… we knew that we absolutely had to win to be champions, but also that the rest was not up to us, since MV2S could not finish better than 3rd. They were 2nd until two laps from the finish… The rest is obviously an explosion of joy in the team, rewarded for all the work accomplished for several years.

Have you got any other racing plans for 2023?

I had other projects in mind, but our victory in the Asian Le Mans Series, and the invitation to the centenary of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, changed my plans a bit…

Are there any other Endurance Races on your bucket list?

Yes of course ! mythical places and races like Le Mans, but also Daytona, Bathurst, Spa, and many others…

Is there one thing you wish you were great at, but aren’t?

Knowing how to be satisfied with the course I have already completed… I am often frustrated by the difficulty of setting up ambitious programs, limited by the financial means available, and the difficulty of maintaining sustained programs every year to keep up the sporting pace.

Stéphane Ortelli wrote to me after the final in Abu Dhabi: “I don’t know if you realize how far you’ve come! you can be proud of yourself”

And indeed, when I look at the results so far, it’s not so bad for an amateur, it will already be a few anecdotes to tell my grandchildren!

Would you rather have two extra legs or two extra arms?

I have always made sure to do the maximum with the means at my disposal, a sure way of never having any regrets; give me two legs or two arms, whatever, I’ll find something to do with it

Thanks again to Fabrice for taking the time to chat and best of luck for the rest of 2023.

Author: Thiemo Albers-Daly