Canadian Formula Renault Racer to Debut with Fortec Motorsports

Toronto, Ontario – The opening round of the 2015 Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup (NEC) kicks off this weekend at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza in Italy, Friday 10th – Sunday 12th April, with Canadian open-wheel racer Luke Chudleigh ready to make his debut with Fortec Motorsports.

The 20-year-old from Milton is set for a dual campaign this season with the Daventry-based team. In addition to contesting the NEC series Chudleigh’s primary focus will be competing in the Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup Series – part of the prestigious ‘World Series by Renault’ race package.

After a long off-season, Luke’s understandably keen to get back to racing following pre-season test days with Fortec last month at the Le Mans Circuit in France and at Spain’s Motorland Aragon Circuit. This weekend’s NEC start, a double-header event, will see the Ontario driver return to Monza, a track he’s familiar with following two seasons competing in the Formula Renault 2.0 ALPS Series in 2013 and 2014.

Chudleigh suffered a Bennett’s fracture to his right thumb on his last visit to the Italian circuit in July 2014. A hard run over a kerb did the damage but despite the pain inflicted Luke raced to the checkered flag to score a sixth place finish, one of several top-ten finishes scored last season.

“I’m just pumped to get back racing this weekend,” enthused Chudleigh en-route to Italy. “I’m excited to experience a full race weekend as part of the Fortec Motorsports set-up. I really feel the team has embraced me. I have a great relationship with my engineer Martin Young. We worked well together during pre-season testing and I’m looking forward to translating that into a solid first race weekend together at Monza.

“When I raced there in the ALPS series it was always an epic race. The track really lends itself to daring drivers. If you’re prepared to risk it all on the brakes, you can really set yourself apart racing there. I believe there’s around thirty-five entries confirmed for the NEC race so it’ll be a packed grid. Naturally our goal is to have a strong qualifying session and go from there. I ran well at Monza last season, despite sustaining my thumb injury, and it’s a track I enjoy so I can’t wait for the weekend’s first session.”

The prize package for winning the Formula Renault 2.0 NEC series includes a test in a Formula Renault 3.5 car along with a 50% discount on entry into the 2016 Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup Series.

This weekend’s opening NEC round at Monza sees the series support the acclaimed Blancpain Endurance Series. Saturday’s opening 25-minute race will see Luke in action at 2:05pm local time / 8:05am EST. Sunday’s 25-minute race is set to start at 10:30am local time / 4:30am EST. Further details available via – www.necup.eu

Luke Chudleigh is supported by Chudleigh’s, Adidas, Bohten, Mio, Sony and PRIME/Wickens Management.

About the 2015 Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup Series:

The 2015 Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup Series forms part of the prestigious ‘World Series by Renault’ package headlined by the Formula Renault 3.5 Series – a proving ground for Formula One™ talent. This season’s Eurocup will comprise of 17 races held across seven events at tracks as famous as Belgium’s Spa-Francorchamps, Great Britain’s Silverstone, Germany’s Nurburgring and France’s Le Mans Circuit. The prize on offer to this year’s Eurocup Champion is €500,000 to put towards a budget to graduate up to the Formula Renault 3.5 Series and move a step closer to Formula One™.   

Chudleigh Partner Links:

Chudleigh's - www.chudleighs.com
Adidas - www.adidas.ca
BOHTEN - www.bohten.com
Mio - www.mioglobal.com
SONY - www.sony.ca

Team Link:
Fortec Motorsports: www.fortecmotorsports.com / @FortecM

Series Links:
World Series By Renault: www.worldseriesbyrenault.com / @WSR_Live
Northern European Cup: www.necup.eu / @FR2NEC