April 13, 2026 – Duqueine Team kicked off its season this weekend with the opening round of the European Le Mans Series (ELMS) in Barcelona, Spain. After a shaky start, the #30 LMP2 quickly established itself in the PRO/AM category. Following a superb pole position, the trio of Pin / Verschoor / Roda secured a third-place finish. A look back at a highly positive opening weekend.
This season, Duqueine Team has fielded a strong driver lineup in its bid for the LMP2 PRO/AM title: French driver Doriane Pin, reigning F1 Academy champion; Dutchman Richard Verschoor, an experienced Formula 2 racer; and Italy’s Giorgio Roda, a seasoned bronze-rated driver and regular podium finisher.
As every year, teams took part in pre-season testing ahead of the opening round, with four sessions spread over two days.
It was a difficult start for the #30, finishing P12 and P9 on day one. Results improved the following day with a P4 in the morning session, before slipping back to P12 in the afternoon.
“The start of the week was tough in terms of performance. But the engineers and mechanics worked tirelessly to arrive at the race weekend with much stronger pace.” Fabien Lavergne, Team Manager
Performance clearly improved in free practice. The #30 finished third in FP1. Later that afternoon, Giorgio Roda topped the bronze driver collective test with a 1:31.703 lap. The following day, results dipped slightly with P6 in FP2.
On Saturday afternoon, Giorgio Roda delivered a flawless qualifying session to claim pole position with a 1:30.332 lap—nearly a second faster than the rest of the field.
“We have a very strong lineup and worked hard over the winter. Now the most important thing is tomorrow’s race. I have full confidence in the team.” Giorgio Roda
The 4 Hours of Barcelona got underway at exactly noon on Sunday. Despite a chaotic start with multiple on-track incidents, the #30, driven by Giorgio Roda, emerged unscathed. The race was red-flagged before resuming half an hour later.
At the restart, Roda expertly navigated traffic, running 10th overall while maintaining the PRO/AM lead and gradually extending the gap.
After 45 minutes, the #30 made its first pit stop for fuel and retained the lead upon rejoining. Shortly after, Roda briefly dropped to second before reclaiming the top spot.
With 2 hours and 50 minutes remaining, the #30 pitted again for a driver change, with Roda handing over to Doriane Pin. Soon after, a Virtual Safety Car (VSC) was deployed following an LMP2 going off track.
At the restart, Pin defended her position strongly and built a gap of around 15 seconds over her closest rival.
Just after halfway, the #30 pitted again under VSC conditions. Racing resumed 30 minutes later, with Pin still leading the category and running eighth overall.
With 1 hour and 20 minutes to go, the French driver found herself wheel-to-wheel with a competitor and dropped to second place.
Shortly before the final hour, the #30 made its final driver change. Richard Verschoor—making his LMP2 debut this weekend—took over. With 30 minutes remaining, the Dutchman reclaimed the class lead. Fifteen minutes later, the #30 made its final fuel stop.
Verschoor crossed the line in second position, but a post-race penalty ultimately dropped the #30 to third on the podium.
“We proved we have the pace to fight with the best. Doriane was outstanding, battling among the best LMP2 drivers in the world. Richard also did a very strong job on his LMP2 debut and showed he belongs at this level. We came from a long way back, but we turned things around, and this great team effort was rewarded with a well-deserved podium.” Fabien Lavergne, Team Manager
“When I decided to partner with R-ace GP—a highly competitive team but new to the ELMS PRO/AM category—I expected a period of adaptation for this first race in Barcelona. The result: pole position and a podium finish! While we know there’s still plenty to improve, this result highlights the exceptional performance of both the crew and the entire team. Congratulations!” Gilles Duqueine, Team Owner
“We’re very pleased with this first podium. It’s a strong start not only to the season, but also for a team that has been completely rebuilt this year. We’ve been pleasantly surprised by the enthusiasm around this project. Both on the staff and driver side, we’ve brought in experienced LMP2 staff, which is a real asset.
The whole team has worked hard to establish procedures and working methods to ensure everything runs smoothly and efficiently. The results this weekend in Barcelona are the outcome of months of hard work. There are still areas to improve, but we’re looking ahead with great optimism.
Our drivers have also played a key role. They understand this is a new project and that everything isn’t perfect yet, but they immediately embraced the team spirit. This weekend, all three were both fast and flawless.” Thibaut de Mérindol, Team Principal, R-ace GP
This opening race weekend ends on a very positive note for Duqueine Team.
The championship will resume on May 3 at Circuit Paul Ricard in France for the 4 Hours of Le Castellet.
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