Derani’s delight: Pipo’s passion for LMP2

Another fresh face and bright young talent in the WEC paddock this year will be Brazilian talent ‘Pipo’ Derani. The 21 year old Paulista made a serious name for himself in the ELMS last season with assured performances in the Murphy ORECA 03 at Paul Ricard and Estoril.

‘Pipo’, or Luis-Felipe to give him his formal first name, is setting his sights on the WEC with G-Drive Racing with an all-Latin American line-up in the #28 Ligier JS P2. His team mates are Colombian Gustavo Yacaman and Mexican Ricardo Gonzalez this season.

“It feels so good to be here in the WEC paddock,” said Derani. “The competition is going to be very intense in the LMP2 class this season, no doubt about it. But we have had some good tests so far this year and we have formed a close team already between the three of us. The mood in the team is very strong and positive.”

Derani is part of a growing breed of young driver to elect for a career in endurance racing. Supreme talents such as Sam Bird, James Calado, Harry Tincknell, Brendon Hartley, Nick Tandy and Tristan Vautier have come from successful single-seater careers to light up the WEC in 2015.

For Derani the technical and engineering aspects of racing are important and he is much enjoying exploring the all-important evaluation and development of the LMP2 Ligier-Nissan on Dunlop tyres.

“It has been a pleasure to work with Dunlop so far as they are an incredibly committed and professional organisation,” he says. “Tyre management and working closely with their engineers is a very enjoyable part of the job for me. The product that they have brought is very impressive and they will be a vital part of our campaign this year for sure.”