Xavier Maassen to compete with Luc Alphand Aventures in 2009

2008 Luc Alphand - Corvette C6R

After winning the Monza round last year with SRT, Xavier Maassen will be back in the FIA GT Championship in 2009, racing a Corvette C6R entered by French team Luc Alphand Aventures, with French driver Guillaume Moreau as team-mate. "We are aiming for an optimum result," Maassen said. "Along with Luc Alphand Aventures and Guillaume Moreau, we are aiming for the top three in the FIA Gt, with our highest ambition being the title."

Xavier Maassen

"Over the winter period, one of the priorities was to remain in GT1. Not only is the FIA GT a high-level championship on the sporting front, but the commercial and marketing aspects of the promoter, SRO, are extremely professional. We will have more TV coverage in Belgium this year, an important argument for entrants and their commercial partners. Also, I know the format and the circuits now, which is very important in order to go forwards and win races."

Luc Alphand Aventures is one of the top French GT teams, led by former Olympic Skiing Champion and Dakar winner Luc Alphand. The team took the LMS GT1 title in 2008 and has had strong finishes at Le Mans. "The team has been active on many fronts, with high ambitions," Maassen continued. As for his new team-mate, Maassen has known him for many years, as they have followed similar career paths and raced against each other in the World Series by Renault. "We are both very ambitious and I think people will have to take account of us," Maassen said.

As for the car, Xavier was clear : "The Corvette is quite simply one of the best GT cars around at the moment. Why change our weapon of choice ?"

Xavier took part in a successful test with LAA at Portimao in Portugal, and is now working on his preparation for the new season.

[Source : FIAGT ; Images : RaceExpress]