The FIA World Endurance Championship has added a new track to its calendar for the 2024 season. The Lusail International Circuit in Qatar hosts the first round of the world championship series over the weekend of 2-3 March. Prancing Horse official driver Davide Rigon held a record on this track for twelve years, achieved with single-seaters. “I vividly recall that accomplishment from 2009 in the GP2 Asia Series,” said the 37-year-old driver, currently competing in this year’s World Endurance Championship with the Vista AF Corse team, driving the Ferrari 296 LMGT3. “Qatar was one of my first GP2 races. I was very young and set a record lap time of 1'38”699. The remarkable thing is that no driver beat that time until 2021.”
We had to wait for Formula 1's arrival to better Davide Rigon's achievement, attained while driving for the Italian Trident Racing team in the 2009 season of the Asian series. The first Grand Prix held in Lusail was in 2021.
Thus, Rigon was the driver to “beat” for twelve years. “I have always had an excellent rapport with this circuit,” he said, “and I have also felt comfortable on this track with the 296 LMGT3. Of course, over the years, from 2009 to now, the track has been resurfaced, but one feature hasn't changed: Lusail offers good grip, although grip levels can vary dramatically over a race weekend. It all depends on the wind, which can carry a lot of sand from the nearby desert onto the track.” Rigon offered a technical analysis of the track: “Lusail is a track that alternates between high-speed turns and two particularly slow turns. The key to performing well is optimal use of the kerbs. Avoiding the track limits is crucial since it's easy to stray off the track here and pick up penalties that might decide the race.”