The 2006 FIA GT Championship Continues in France at Dijon-Prenois

The next round of the FIA GT Championship gets underway next weekend at the French circuit of Dijon-Prenois. Balfe Motorsport, a sponsored race team of K&N Filters (Europe) Ltd., is hoping to have more luck at the track where its 2006 FIA GT campaign began last April.

A mechanical problem plagued the team two weeks ago, and the squad struggled at Paul Ricard near Bandol in the south of France. Shaun Balfe and Nigel Taylor had minimal track time before the race.he World Championship by heat 15 when Greg Hancock broke down at the start of the race, ensuring that Crump’s lead at the top of the standings could not be beaten.

Balfe Motorsport Team Saleen S7R
Balfe Motorsport Team Saleen S7R
“We had a problematic weekend at Paul Ricard,” said Shaun Balfe. “We had hopes of finally mixing it with the front runners there, but had a problem during the very first free-practice session and we were unable to get to the bottom of it until qualifying. It meant that I only got nine laps and Nigel didn’t even manage a full flying lap. It definitely put us onto the back foot for the race.”

Balfe was able to keep one of the Maseraiti’s at bay after a solid start in the race. He was in 8th place when Taylor took over. With no track time it was a baptism of fire, but he managed to bring his lap times down until more bad luck left the team sidelined.

“We had some sensors go off in the car as Nigel was right at the end of his time,” said Balfe. “The guys took a look at the data and it was decided that we couldn’t continue.”

The Balfe Motorsport team drives a Saleen S7R. The Grand Tourer is powered by a 7-L, V8, all aluminum engine with more than 750BHP and 700 lb/foot of torque. The S7R can reach speeds in excess of 200 mph. The team uses K&N Engineering products.

The team will continue to work on upgrades to the S7R, to get back on track in time for the next race at Dijon.

Follow the Balfe Motorsport Team throughout the racing season at the K&N news site.  Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.