Barely out of G-Drive Racing's Ligier JS P2 with which he finished second in LM P2 at the 6 Hours of Nurburgring in the World Endurance Championship, Julien Canal got behind the wheel of a kart to participate in the official test sessions for his participation in the KZ World Championship next weekend.

The transition is no piece of cake for the Le Mans native since he hasn't raced in karting for...nearly 15 years! "I had a day to rest a little during the return trip and I didn't drive during the first two KZ morning test sessions. It's really hard to get used to it again since it's completely different. And I haven't done karting this way with a good outfit and team since I left karting back in 2001."

For this one-time return to karting, Canal has chosen to participate in the KZ World Championship, the head class boasting the elite in the discipline. But the race car driver intends to call upon his past experience in karting and current in auto racing to do well. "I started karting at the age of 12, I was vice-champion of Ligue Maine-Bretagne. I was also ninth in the championship of France. A few years later, when I was barely 15 years old, I was junior champion of France, then I raced in the European championship and in the championship of France in the Elite class, wherein if I remember correctly I finished third or fourth. Lastly, I did World Championships for two years. The drivers of my generation are Kubica, Rosberg, Hamilton, who all ended in F1! Two years later, we all went into Formula Renault between 2000 and 2002. The world championships took place in Le Mans so it was an opportunity for me to get back in the saddle. I had been wanting to train seriously and do another race for several years. I hadn't taken the steps yet as I am often away for auto races, and with work it's complicated. It's true the return is very demanding, directly in the World Championship! Not a local championship, not the championship of France, I'm jumping into the deep end."

Nonetheless, Canal cannot be counted out, as evidenced already by his times. While the top players in the discipline find themselves around 51.9 second per lap, he clocked a time of 52.5 seconds during the test sessions. With this result, he should be able to reach his goal: "I would like to be in the middle of the field. If I'm in the top 15, that for me will be a win. We will be 36 at the start, I hope to be between 10 and 20. I'm sure that with some more training, I will achieve a higher performance level in karting than I had reached when I left karting 12 years ago, thanks to experience garnered racing cars."

Let's wish this local star good luck in his participation next weekend, prior to heading to the fifth round of the World Endurance Championship in Austin, Texas the following week. He will be at the wheel of the JS P2 in hopes of clinching the LM P2 World Champion title between now and the end of the season."Physically it's good training for our race in Austin (counterclockwise circuit, editor's note). The impression of speed is greater in karting, which will surely put me more at ease in the car for the race in Austin." 

Hélène DAGOREAU / ACO - Translation by Nikki Ehrhardt / ACO

Photo: LE MANS (SARTHE, FRANCE), CIRCUIT INTERNATIONAL DE KARTING, 24 HOURS OF LE MANS, TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 1 2015, OFFICIAL KZ TEST SESSIONS. After several years of absence from karting competition, Julien Canal got back behind the wheel at the official KZ test sessions for his participation in the World Championship on September 12th and 13th.