Motorsport has a long tradition in the Alméras family, and team principal Philippe Alméras has continued it successfully in the Porsche Supercup for years. For the 2023 season, he will once again be focusing on young talent – with two rookies. Allez-y!
In the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, young racing talents regularly deliver top performances – and make the leap into factory motorsport. Ayhancan Güven, for example, who won the series' Rookie Programme under Philippe Alméras in 2019, became a Porsche Junior in 2020 and now competes for Porsche in the DTM with Team75 Bernhard. Whether Alméras' two new Rookies, #21 Yves Baltas (USA) #22 and Alessandro Ghiretti (FRA), will be able to build on this success in 2023 remains to be seen. In any case, Philippe has provided them with two experienced Supercup veterans: #20 Roar Lindland (NOR) and #23 Jukka Honkavuori (FIN). He shared his vision with us at the series' Official Season Test.
A few questions for the team manager.
Salut Philippe!
Congratulations to Martinet by Alméras for winning the Team Classification in the Porsche Carrera Cup France last season. What do you think were the key factors that allowed your team to come out on top?
Thank you very much! In the Porsche Carrera Cup France the goal is always to have two fast drivers. And last year our line-up was really fast. It always helps to have a mix of experienced drivers and young talents that we can develop to help them on their next step, the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup.
How will you build on this success heading into the 2023 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup season?
For one thing, the national Porsche Carrera Cups are a great preparation for the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup. Some of the circuits are on both calendars. This is one of the key factors for success. What also works well for us is that we make guest appearances in the series – for example at Spa-Francorchamps in 2021 with Alessandro Ghiretti.
This season, there will be no ProAm Classification in the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, where you celebrated many victories. How does this change the team's line-up?
The fact that we do not have a ProAm Classification this season obviously changes the line-up and we have gone with the two rookies we have in the game. In the past we have had a lot of success in the Rookie Classification with many titles from Julien Andlauer, Mathieu Jaminet or Ayhancan Güven – just to name a few. So it's nice for us to welcome new rookies to Martinet by Alméras. It's also a good way to build the future of the team with young, highly motivated drivers.
Which of your drivers do you have the most confidence in for 2023?
It's a mix between Jukka Honkavuori, who has already had some experience in the championship, and Alessandro Ghiretti, because he is competing in two championships and will have some more time in the cockpit. He also showed us at the Season Test here in Imola that he has good pace. So, yes, it's the mix of experienced guys and rookies that will be successful.
What do you think will set Martinet by Alméras apart from the rest of the field in 2023?
The team's main objective has always been to develop young drivers, and this is what we are doing this season with our two talented rookies and the support of the more experienced drivers. This is what Martinet by Alméras has been known for in the past, taking young drivers to the top.
Thanks a lot for the talk, Philippe!
