Stephan Gregoire preview

STEPHAN GREGOIRE RETURNS TO THE 24 HOURS OF LE MANS WITH LUC ALPHAND AVENTURES AND HIGHCO.

Paris, May 28th 2009 -- On June 13th and 14th 2009, Stephan Gregoire will be back at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in a C6.R LM GT1 corvette with the Luc Alphand Aventures team. He has recently been selected to co-drive LAA car No. 72 with Luc Alphand and Patrice Goueslard at the 77th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Stephan Gregoire made a name for himself in the world of motorsports in 1993 when he left for the United States to race at the Indianapolis 500. At only 23, he became the youngest starting driver and the Fastest Rookie qualifier at the 1993 Indy 500. In addition to out-qualifying F1 world champions like Nelson Piquet and Nigel Mansell, Stephan Gregoire even led the race in his first Indy participation. Since then, Stephan has raced six more times at the Indy 500. He competed in 46 Indy Racing League races between 1996 and 2007, leading 89 laps in six different races, scoring 7 top five finishes and 17 top ten finishes. His best finish was second to Tony Stewart at Pikes Peak in 1997.

Stephan Gregoire, who lives in Indianapolis, began endurance racing in 2003. He has since competed in about 30 American Le Mans Series and Grand-Am races in the DP class, including 5 Rolex 24 races (24 hours of Daytona).

The same year, in 2003, he competed in the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the first time in a Courage C60. Co-driving with Jonathan Cochet and Jean-Marc Gounon, Stephan Gregoire had a brilliant race and finished the 2003 edition in 7th place overall. In 2008 Stephan came in 11th overall (10th LMP1) in a Rollcentre Pescarolo with Vanina Ickx and Joao Barbosa.

"I am very pleased to join Luc Alphand Aventures for the 2009 24 Hours of Le Mans," stated Stephan Gregoire. "After the successful DUNLOP tests at the end of May at Dijon-Prenois, I am looking forward to driving the Corvette again. Racing at Le Mans for the third time in a Corvette with Luc and Patrice is very exciting," he added.

Stephan Gregoire's 2009 programme at Le Mans is coordinated by Marketing solutions group, HighCo. To quote Olivier Michel, Managing Director of HighCo: "We are delighted to help Stephan Gregoire and the Luc Alphand team in their 2009 race in 24 Hours of Le Mans. This is the most famous endurance race in the world and we are proud to take part in this wonderful adventure with a car capable of taking a podium spot in the GT1 ranking." He also added, "This gives us an opportunity to continue our support and promote the outstanding career of Stephan Gregoire, one of the few French drivers to have competed in the 24 Hours of Daytona, Indy 500 and 24 Hours of Le Mans".

"Stephan brings his wealth of experience and consistent results to the team. He mixed with the team perfectly at the Dijon test days, where he drove the Corvette on DUNLOP tyres for the first time. He has a nice, easy, calm manner and we are really looking forward to working with him at Le Mans", delights Philippe Poincloux, the team manager of Luc Alphand Aventures.

-credit: stephangregoire.net