Suffice it to say that he was the first Russian who find themselves in the «Formula 1», however, as the team's test driver Minardi — in 2003. And, although his career in the royal race did not work, his name in the story he wrote. Zlobin also became the first Russian pilot in the famous American marathon «24 Hours of Daytona,» taking part in the race, first in 2001 and then in 2002 as part of the Italian team MasterCar SRL the Ferrari 360.
12 years later, already in 2014, he returned to Daytona as a pilot of the Russian team SMP Racing, also driving a Ferrari — 458 Italia. But now, becoming a sports director SMP Racing, behind the wheel, he almost does not sit in these races — cases enough without it.
In 2016 SMP Racing returns to Daytona, this time with two crew and two cars, one of them — a prototype LMP2 category of Russian production titled BR01, and the second — a brand new Ferrari 488 GTE, which stands in the race's first season.
«When people talk about race, it's a drug, it is Daytona», — says Sergey Zlobin, remembering the past. It must be true, because of his experience and after fifteen years of unusually bright.
— What was your first impression of Daytona, after you went there at the wheel?
— I got out after 15 minutes of exercise and said that I, perhaps, it's time to go home. To be honest, I did not understand. The track is actually in two parts connected to each other — the classic American oval and the inner track on the basis of the usual European routes. The angle of the oval (aka profile) at Daytona is 31 degrees, so when traveling on a speedway, the first feeling that you look all the time from under lba.Posle his first Daytona one year I went to sleep and in a dream was driving on an oval, so that I understand the Americans who suffer from it, but do not understand people who laugh at them: you first sit down and try it yourself.
— What are the nuances and differences are at the «24 hours of Daytona» if, for example, compared to a marathon in Le Mans and Spa?
— Spa — a 24-hour sprint mode where each circle pass as the only or the last. Le Mans — it's a real endurance race car. A Daytona — Race, quite a bit loaded on the art trail is not difficult, the main problem — the speed differential, for example, in the first turn to 320 km / h to 80 km / h, or even lower. Still, of course, an important point that the oval throughout its length exactly the same — as opposed to the same European routes, where the time to navigate different rotations. It's all the same, so when the pilots are going for the first time, they usually ask when traveling boxes say something: for example, «I'm okay.» And as soon as people forget to do it, it just beckoning to the pits to avoid loss of concentration and ability to focus.
— Many pilots, members daily marathons, say they prefer not to go to sleep...
— This is usually the newcomers. When I was first at Daytona, I also could not sleep all the time and wondered how the other pilot returns to the shift falls on the bed and immediately fell asleep. We have experienced nerves atrophied completely. And now I do the same.
— What are the limits for pilots of time spent behind the wheel during the Daytona?
— Not more than 4 hours at a time and no more than 14 hours per day.
— That is, theoretically, the race can drive and two pilots?
— In theory, yes, but it's incredibly difficult. In 2003, we went to the «24 Hours of Daytona» with Andrea Montermini and Vincenzo Polly. We are well qualified, but after that Polly said that his foreboding, and he would not go. We stayed together, shared the day to equal the number of shifts and drove for 2 hours. We were in the lead in the class of 23 hours and 20 minutes before the finish, and then we blew the engine. I was just at the time went to see the «Rolex», which is already trying on myself in the hand as the winner, and then raise my head and see how on our oval flying machine, and then in front of me going on a «Puuuh !!!» — and all. 40 minutes to finish us nothing could help. As for Polly... a month later he was killed in a race, but not on the track and in the «Formula 1» on the water.
— The American races in principle a high percentage of accidents, a lot of injuries and even deaths. At the same time the organizers did not do much to improve the situation. «24 Hours of Daytona» — a dangerous race?
— For example, in the «NASCAR» fighting a lot, and fight to the death. The same thing happens in the «Indy». But I'll tell you a thing that can be perceived as seditious: the race must be dangerous, for the sake of the audience and come. In Daytona, too dangerous, but in fact you can be killed in any race.
— Why do you even engage in Daytona? Far, dangerous...
— Such races, in fact, very little. Daytona, Le Mans and Spa. Unfortunately, this year we did not go to the spa. But going Daytona. I even had the idea of gathering a separate crew to different marathons just to rent a car and drive. But it has not turned.
— You like sports director involved in the organization process. You have a team strategy for the race have thought? And do I need the strategy in the long race?
— «24 Hours of Daytona» is very different from other marathons. Here, 23 hours have to go so to stay on a circle with a leader — no matter who he is — and not damage the machine. But the most interesting thing is always in the last hour. Besides, traditionally, all participants in predgonochnyh tests never go in full force, so as not to get the weight handicap before the race. For 23 hours, all teams will try to go about the same, but then at the last hour — suddenly! — Will be a miracle!
— Who are the pilots will go to the race as part of your crews?
— The prototype BR01 travel Mikhail Aleshin, Kirill Ladygin, Maurizio median and Nicolas Minassian, a second car — Ferrari 488 GTE. She Shaitar manage Victor, Andrea Bertolini, Gianmaria Bruni and James Calado.
— All drivers will travel equal to the number of shifts at the wheel? It has planned some sequence of their shifts?
— Last time, nearly all went to 4 consecutive shifts — it's about three hours. How will this time — is not clear. Everything rests on the fact that is not ready to seat tab for Cyril Ladygina. Then we will think. As a rule, all such algorithms change pilots based on the most ordinary things, such as how to be more convenient and faster guys sit in the car and then change each other. The problem is that we have all the pilots of different sizes. Misha almost 190 Minassian, on the contrary, very small. Kesha (Ladigin) and the median about the same height, but the average Italian's legs are much shorter than in proportion to the body, and therefore, even the two pilots of the same size will not sit in one seat. So we go out, that the main tab seats — Aleshin, it is inserted into the seat median, and in it — Minassian. It turns out a kind of sandwich. And then all three tabs are removed and inserted one Ladygina. You can drive in an uncomfortable chair an hour, but four drive impossible.
— Prototypes, which are involved in the European series, undergo some design changes to America?
— Yes. Daytona technical requirements differ from European homologation and there is another, so we have to refine them slightly. We add a little power to the engine (about 50 hp) and hang the other aerodynamic package. In the GT class have additional requirements, they relate to security. For example, the need to install additional arch on each side of the car. This is dictated by the very high speed.
— Are there any specific problems for drivers at Daytona?
— Oddly enough — the weather, which creates a lot of inconvenience! At night, here the temperature may drop to below zero. Once, for instance, during training thermometer showed —2 degrees. It was January 2, 2014.
The first round is usually active braking begins somewhere in the 200 meters, I was at around 300 meters start to slow down and realize that foods like skiing — just slide, and no inhibition was observed. Well somehow I managed, but it was unpleasant. And what is most unpleasant — the fact that there warm up the rubber, leaving a circle of at least 4.
During the same exercise was another funny situation. At night, in the cold, I sit behind the wheel and start to swear: Who changed my seat? I say: Sergei, nobody changed! It turns out, gel seat, automatically takes the size of the pilot, and the gel shrank in the cold and stood, taking the form was riding in front of this smaller median. When it is warmed under me, everything became normal. And in the morning the first to have started the median and also cursed because his seat was great.
Another time, in 2001, on the contrary, day and night was hot, but at night it began to rain. In the car defog all, no ventilation could not cope. Moreover, the 360th Ferrari tumbler ventilation was attached to the right on the center console, along with other buttons and levers. It was necessary to include the touch, and once I pressed the wrong button, and nearly turned a lot. I had to remove the gloves and wipe their windshield to anything in sight.
— What are your prospects for the race this year?
— We are aiming to win, and we have a chance. But time will tell. Especially the class GT — the most numerous, there will be difficult. But during testing we showed a good time on the basis of two sessions fall into the top three. On the last day Kirill Ladygin showed the result in terms of 1.39.899, so we were one of the six crews who managed to overcome a mark at 1:39. But long race unpredictable. Especially interesting.
