RDV Competition has announced that Frédéric Gabillon and Paul Jouffreau, who switched teams from SpeedHouse, will drive the team’s No. 3 Chevrolet for the 2023 EuroNASCAR season.
Veteran EuroNASCAR team RDV Competition will be back for the 2023 NASCAR Whelen Euro Series season with a new driver line-up of Frédéric Gabillon and Paul Jouffreau, the team announced on 25 March.
For Gabillon, the 2023 EuroNASCAR season is shaping up to be a historic one. The recent announcement meant that Gabillon, who became the first driver to made 100 starts in EuroNASCAR PRO at Zolder last year, will be the first driver to compete in 10 EuroNASCAR seasons.
The three-time series runner-up has won 12 races and scored 45 podium finishes in his storied EuroNASCAR career, but he has been winless ever since he scored his last win at Brands Hatch in 2019.
Gabillon – who will turn 47 on 30 March – had considered retiring at the end of the 2021 season, but Gabillon’s desire to fight for the title that eluded him for so many years has inspired him to stay for both the 2022 and 2023 seasons.
“I want to be back at the front and fight for podiums,” said Gabillon, who will be entering his eighth season with RDV Competition in 2023.
“I love the old school car with no electronic aids because it’s so much fun to drive and we have amazing battles on track in the championship. I’m really looking forward to getting back on the track and trying to take the #3 car back to the front where it belongs.”
Joining Gabillon in the No. 3 RDV team is Paul Jouffreau, who made a shocking switch to Franck Violas’ team. Jouffreau had previously signed a two-year contract with Lucas Lasserre’s SpeedHouse team and was set to stay in SpeedHouse’s No. 33 team before he made the switch to RDV.
Jouffreau made his EuroNASCAR 2 debut last year after graduating from EuroNASCAR’s regularity-based Club Challenge division. Jouffreau impressed on his debut year as he scored six top-10 finishes, including a podium finish at Vallelunga after he fended off challenges from Ulysse Delsaux – whom he replaced in RDV’s No. 3 team – and Alberto Naska.
“Every racer wants to win and that’s my goal,” said Jouffreau in the official announcement. “I’m preparing myself physically and mentally to be 100 percent. The team is already working very hard on the car to make it as competitive as possible.”
“My expectations are high. I love everything about EuroNASCAR: the powerful V8 engine, the amazing sound and the high cornering speeds. The atmosphere during a race weekend is just incredible and the battles on the track are amazing.”
RDV Competition, the longest existing team in the EuroNASCAR and the only team to have competed in the series since the first season under NASCAR sanctioning in 2012, are glad that they’re able to secure their 2023 entry as the team is aiming to return to the heights that they achieved in the years past.
“I’m delighted that RDV Competition will be back in the NWES in 2023,” said Franck Violas, RDV’s founder and team principal. “It’s not for nothing that we have been competing in this championship for over twelve years now. It was in 2010 and at home in Le Mans that we tested this incredible car for the first time.”
“This season, we will do everything we can to stay at the top of both championships. To do this, we are committing Frédéric to EuroNASCAR PRO. He is an extremely talented driver with incredible experience. Experience that will benefit our newcomer Paul, who will share the #3 car with Frédéric.”
“Paul is a very young and promising driver who already has a solid level of performance and I’m sure he will quickly exploit all the potential and experience of our team.”
Disclaimer: Credits for all photos are listed underneath each image.