Gilles Magnus (Saintéloc Racing) : "Enjoy and maximum pleasure"

Audi Sport driver Gilles Magnus is splitting his time between WTCR and GT3 this year. A perfect schedule for the 22 year old from Antwerp who almost put an end to his young career, not because of a lack of performance, but because of a lack of budget. 

The Belgian has eaten his heart out and is now back in Touring with Comtoyou Racing and in GT with Saintéloc Racing. The RACB has put Gilles Magnus back on track via the RACB National Team. He had to leave the family business in order to live his career as a professional driver to the full.

After the streets of Pau last week, it's now Magny-Cours that awaits him in one of the two Audi R8 LMS GT3s lined up by Saintéloc Racing for the Belgian team he forms with Nicolas Baert in the Silver Cup. 

How is your debut at Saintéloc Racing going ? 

"I'm still in learning mode. Before the season started, my GT3 experience was limited to a few races in the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint at WRT in 2018. Then I joined the Touring category to come back in parallel this year to Saintéloc Racing where everything is going well. The team has a very professional side while keeping a very family atmosphere. It's in some ways like Comtoyou Racing in WTCR."

Isn't running two programmes with two very different cars a handicap ?

"Absolutely not! My aim was clearly to run both programmes in parallel. I'm delighted that Audi is offering me this opportunity to race at Saintéloc Racing with Nicolas Baert. To have these two programmes at the age of 22 is quite incredible. I'm aware of how lucky I am, I'm making the most of it and I want to enjoy myself as much as possible."

You almost stopped everything ?

"I drove in GT3 at WRT, I was still young and there was nobody to manage my career. My father sells wine and I didn't really know what to do. Then everything came to a halt even though everything was working well on the track. I didn't have the budget to continue. Honestly, I was disgusted by single-seaters (2nd in F4 in 2016) and by this huge financial pressure for those who want to go to Formula 1. I told my father that we were stopping here and that I didn't want any more money to be invested in racing. It was clear to me that I would never be a professional driver and that motor sport would only be a hobby. My career was revived thanks to the RACB."

Isn't going from an Audi RS 3 LMS to an R8 LMS GT3 too confusing ?

"It's true that the two Audis don't have much in common. I've been to Brands Hatch, Pau, Magny-Cours and the Nordschleife. That's also how you learn a lot. I still have the goal of winning a world title one day."

Do you have a dream in motorsport?

"A few years ago, my goal was to go to DTM. That was the dream for me. There is the 24 Hours of Spa and the 24 Hours of Nürburgring that I want to do. At the moment, my two programmes are taking up a lot of my time."