Hexis AMR: Ready to take on the world!

HEXIS AMR, the runner-up in the 2010 FIA GT1 World Championship, is the first team to announce the two driver line-ups for the team’s Aston Martin DB9s in the highest echelon of Grand Touring racing this season. Clivio Piccione, already a member of the French squad in 2010, will team up with Dutch F3 driver, Stef Dusseldorp, while the reigning European FIA GT3 Champion, Christian Hohenadel, will share the other car with one of the most sought-after drivers in the championship, Italian Andrea Piccini.

Team manager, Philippe Dumas, is particularly happy to have achieved his first objective: “We’re proud to announce two complete driver line-ups so early in the season. It confirms our sense of team spirit, and shows that we firmly believe in the future of this world championship. Stéphane Ratel and the whole SRO team have worked very hard to make the second year of the championship a big success. In the wake of our encouraging results in 2010, it’s clear that we’re tackling this new challenge with greater ambitions.”

The four HEXIS AMR drivers in 2011 have not only signed their contracts, they are also ready to take to the track! “Clivio did the first shakedown yesterday at Lédenon,” said Dumas. “Stef will be with him this Tuesday, and we’ll put Christian and Andrea in the car at the end of the week.” The following Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, all four drivers will continue testing at Nogaro. The French team is not doing things by halves, and hopes to have racked up 4000-kms testing in the eight days to come. The winter break has been pretty short as the cars only returned from Argentina on 11th January, and they will be sent to the Middle East on 21st February for the first round of the 2011 championship in Abu Dhabi on 25-26 March.

To help you get to know the four musketeers better, here is some further information.

Clivio Piccione (Monaco)
The man from Monaco made a big contribution to the success of the team in 2010. Hardly had he stepped down from the San Luis podium when he said he would like to continue with HEXIS AMR. Clivio will be able to take advantage of the experience he gained last season, which was his apprenticeship year in GT after a prolific career in single-seaters that almost propelled him into F1.

Clivio Piccione’s bio:
Born 24th February 1984
Karting: 3rd in European Championship and World Championship runner-up (1999); Formula 3: British vice-champion (2002); GP2 Series: 1 race win + 2 podium finishes (2005-2006); World Series Formula Renault 3.5: 2 podium finishes and 1 pole position (2007); Euroseries 3000: 1 podium finish (2008); A1 Grand Prix: 1 podium finish and 1 pole position (2008/2009); 12th in FIA GT1 World Championship with HEXIS AMR, 1 podium finish (2010).

Stef Dusseldorp (The Netherlands)
21-year-old Stef will be the youngest member of the team, and the tallest as well as he measures 1.90m! He had a successful career in F3 with several victories, and he filled the runner-up spot in the 2009 German ATS Cup. He took on the cream of international F3 drivers in the Macao Grand Prix and on home turf in the Zandvoort Masters. HEXIS AMR is determined to help him make a success of his debut in Grand Touring Car racing, as he has a lot to learn.”

Stef Dusseldorp’s bio :
Born 27th September 1989
Karting: European Championship finalist (2004-2005-2006); Formula Renault 2.0: 5th in Northern European Cup, 1 race win (2008); Formula 3: ATS Cup vice-champion, 2 race wins, 15th in Macao Grand Prix (2009), 4th in ATS Cup, 2 race wins (2010).

Christian Hohenadel (Germany)
The German has something in common with HEXIS AMR, a European FIA GT3 Championship title, which the team scored in 2009 and its new driver in 2010. The two parties got to know each other during the German Championship, the ADAC GT Masters, in 2008. At the wheel of the HEXIS AMR Aston Martin DBRS9 GT3, Christian set pole at the Lausitzring followed by two podiums shared with his new team manager, Philippe Dumas. Christian then won the Sachsennring round with Fred Makowiecki on the day of his thirty-second birthday, and scored another podium finish the next day. Last year, in addition to his title, he won the Michelin Trophy rewarding the quickest driver in the European FIA GT3 Championship-winning team to help him move up a step to the FIA GT1 World Championship.

Christian Hohenadel’s bio:
Born 20th September 1976
Formula Palmer Audi: Junior Vice-champion (2000); Touring cars: 3rd in Alfa 147 German Cup (2003), 5th in Seat Leon Super Copa Germany (2005-2006); GT cars: 5th in ADAC GT Masters, 1 race win (Aston Martin GT3 HEXIS Racing, 2008), 4th in ADAC GT Masters, 1 race win (Corvette GT3, 2009), FIA GT3 European Champion, 4 race wins, Michelin Trophy winner (Corvette, 2010).

Andrea Piccini (Italy)
For the first time an Italian will defend the HEXIS AMR colours, and not just anyone, as Andrea Piccini has accumulated an exceptional set of results at the wheel of the most prestigious GT coupes: GT2 Ferrari F430, Maranello F550 and F575s, Audi R8 LMS, Porsche 997 GT3R, Lamborghini Murcielago, Lister Storm Jaguar and the Maserati MC12, without forgetting the Lola-Judd LM P2 prototype and the Corvette he drove in last year’s FIA GT1 World Championship. Aston Martin, though, has a special place in his heart as he drove the English car to second place overall in the Spa 24 Hours, and he also came second in the GT1 category in the Le Mans 24 Hours. He filled the runner-up spot in the FIA GT International Championship in an Aston Martin DBR9, the forerunner of the current FIA GT1 World Championship. All he lacks is a world title!

Andrea Piccini’s bio
Born 12th December 1978
3rd in Formula Opel Lotus Euroseries (1998); Formula 3000 (1999-2000-2001); Minardi F1 test driver (2001); 4th in FIA GT Championship, 4 race wins (Ferrari 550, 2002); 4th in FIA GT Championship (Lister Storm, 2003); 2nd in Le Mans 24 Hours’ LM GT1 class and FIA GT championship runner-up (Aston Martin, 2006); 4th in Le Mans 24 Hours’ LM GT1 class (Aston Martin, 2008); 5th in Le Mans Series LMP2 championship, 1 race win (Lola Judd, 2009); FIA GT1 World Championship, 1 podium finish (Corvette, 2010).

The ten rounds of the FIA GT World Championship will be held in Asia, Europe and South America between March and December 2011. Watch this space!