Successful event for Thomas Nepveu in first round of Porsche Carrera Cup

The first round of the Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup North America, which took place on March 16th at Sebring International Raceway, was very satisfying for Thomas Nepveu. The Oka native was driving the #24 All Rem | Richelieu | Cromwell car in the Pro class, prepared by McElrea Racing.

Both races were held on Thursday, March 16th, with the first in the morning and the second at the end of the day. Prior to that, on Wednesday, Thomas took to the track for two practice sessions followed by a qualifying session, in which his best lap time secured his position on the starting grid for the first event, while his second best lap time counted for race 2.

He started the first race in 12th position, then from 9th in the second race. "We had solid speed in qualifying, the car was great," said Thomas. "I was able to set two lap times that were relatively good. I think we left a little bit on the table, I probably could have picked up a few tenths in some places on the track."

"I was conservative in the first race for my first few laps. I lost a few positions at the beginning, then I fought with some other competitors. I avoided a few crashes on track, as there was a lot of pushing and shoving. In the end it was a good race, McElrea gave me a good car, but I think there is some room for improvement in my driving approach."

Later in the afternoon, Thomas started the final race of the event in 9th position on the inside line. "We had a very good start, I gained two positions," he explained. "However, I had a lot of trouble moving up the field. I was faster than the competitor in front of me, but I wasn't able to pass them."

"I had some pressure from behind and made some small mistakes that I shouldn't have made, which cost me some positions and ultimately led me to finish just outside the Top 10. For the next time, I want to focus on finding the right opportunities to overtake and how to best navigate my way through the field, as the Porsche Carrera is much bigger than I'm used to. It's all about adaptability and I need to minimize my mistakes."

With over 40 cars on track, and 22 cars entered in the Pro class, Thomas quickly had to acclimate to competing in the field. "It's a very competitive series. These are drivers who have a lot of experience, especially in terms of overtaking and running longer races. I have a little bit of catching up to do, but I can learn from this and it wasn't a bad way to start the season."

He concluded by saying that, "the owner of Allrem and Evirum, Julien Rémillard, came here just to see me compete. I am really happy to be able to share my journey with my partners who are involved in my career. I would also like to thank Richelieu for supporting me, as well as GFL and Cromwell."

Thomas will be back on track at the Long Beach Grand Prix in mid-April.