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Mathias Beche

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Mathias Beche
Beche at the 2016 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers parade
NationalitySwitzerland Swiss
Born (1986-06-28) 28 June 1986 (age 38)
Geneva, Switzerland
European Le Mans Series career
Debut season2010
Current teamRichard Mille by TDS Racing
Racing licence FIA Gold
Car number29
Former teamsHope Polevision Racing
Applewood Seven
Matech Competition
Inter Europol Competition
TDS Racing x Vaillante
Nielsen Racing
Starts42
Wins11
Poles10
Fastest laps2
Best finish1st in 2012
Previous series
2011
2010
2009
2008
2008
2007–2008		FIA GT1 World Championship
European GT3
Formula Le Mans
Formula Asia 2.0
Formula V6 Asia
Asian Formula Renault
Championship titles
2014
2012		FIA WEC (LMP1-L)
European Le Mans Series (LMP2)

Mathias Beche Aussel (born 28 June 1986 in Geneva) is a Swiss-French professional racing driver who currently competes in the European Le Mans Series for Richard Mille by TDS. He is a former ELMS champion in the LMP2 class, as well as an LMP1-L champion and overall race winner in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Rebellion Racing.

Career

[edit]

After starting in karting, Beche began racing in single-seaters in Asia in 2007 when he contested the Asian Formula Renault Challenge, finishing fifth overall with one win.[1] The following year he took part in Formula Asia 2.0 where he ended up runner-up to Felix Rosenqvist.

2009 saw Beche switch to sportscar racing, finishing third in Formula Le Mans. In 2010 he contested four Le Mans Series rounds; three in the FLM class and one in GT1 in a Ford GT. He then entered the last two rounds of the FIA GT3 European Championship, also in a Ford.

In 2011 Beche competed in the full Le Mans Series season in an LMP2 Oreca 03 for TDS Racing with Pierre Thiriet and Jody Firth. The trio won the rounds at Spa and Estoril and finished fourth in the final drivers' standings. Beche also drove in the FIA GT1 World Championship round at Zolder in a Ford.

Beche at the 2014 6 Hours of São Paulo

For 2012, LMP2 became the top class of the renamed European Le Mans Series. Partnering Thiriet at TDS, Beche won the opening round of the season at Paul Ricard and the season finale at Road Atlanta, securing his first major championship victory. For that year's 24 Hours of Le Mans they were joined by Christophe Tinseau, finishing second in class.

Beche remained in the ELMS with Thiriet by TDS in 2013, though he would also progress to drive in the FIA WEC's top class, piloting a Lola B12/60 for Rebellion Racing.[2][3] Despite missing the opening ELMS round, the Swiss driver took two victories alongside Thiriet, leading the team towards second place in the standings. In the WEC, Beche scored two podium finishes on his way to fifth in the championship.

Rebellion's LMP1 programme would become the permanent home for Beche during the next two seasons, which started with an LMP1-L class win (for non-hybrid powered teams) at the 24 Hours of Le Mans alongside Nico Prost and Nick Heidfeld and the eventual LMP1-L title in 2014.[4][5] The team withdrew from the opening two races of the 2015 season to finalise work on their new Rebellion R-One, but once they entered, Beche and Prost took two privateer class wins to become champions.[6] At the end of the year, Beche was part of a shootout for a reserve seat at Toyota Gazoo Racing, though that seat eventually went to Kamui Kobayashi.[7]

In 2016, Beche returned to the ELMS with Thiriet by TDS, driving an Oreca 05 alongside Pierre Thiriet and Ryō Hirakawa.[8] He took pole for the opening race at Silverstone, though an early crash by Thiriet forced the team out of the race.[9][10] The trio bounced back by winning a weather-affected event at Imola, before Thiriet/TDS won again at the Red Bull Ring.[11][12] Beche then took a convincing pole at Le Castellet, paving the way for the outfit's third successive victory.[13][14] Another podium finish at Spa was not enough to win the title, as Beche and the team suffered electrical troubles in the final race, which was won by eventual champions G-Drive Racing.[15]

Beche returned to Rebellion on a full-time basis in 2017, competing in the LMP2 class of the WEC.[16] His #13 entry was hampered by disqualifications at Le Mans, where a miraculous overall podium (and second place in class) was taken away by the team's "unnecessary modification of approved bodywork", and Fuji, which saw a heated battle between Beche and Jean-Éric Vergne come to a head before Rebellion were excluded for a drive time violation.[17][18] Despite taking three podiums from the final four races, the Swiss driver and his teammates finished fourth in the teams' standings, whereas the sister #31 entry won the LMP2 title.[19]

For the 2018–19 WEC "Super Season", Beche and Rebellion returned to LMP1 with the R13, with the Swiss driver partnering Thomas Laurent and Gustavo Menezes.[20] The team started off with two third places, including a class podium at Le Mans, before a disqualification for both Toyotas earned Beche and his teammates victory at Silverstone.[21][22] However, Beche moved to the sister car for the round at Sebring and left the team with two races to go, meaning that he finished sixth in the championship — three places behind Menezes and Laurent.

After a scattergun racing programme in 2019 and 2020, where the Swiss made his Super GT debut for arto Ping An Team Thailand, Beche returned to the rostrum in 2021, winning the final race of the Le Mans Cup as well as the LMP2 Pro-Am class at the 8 Hours of Portimão with Realteam Racing.[23][24][25]

Beche would make the LMP2 Pro-Am category his home in 2022, driving for TDS Racing x Vaillante alongside rookie Tijmen van der Helm and amateur driver Philippe Cimadomo in the ELMS.[26] He took two overall pole positions during the year, though this was only enough for fourth in the Pro-Am standings.[27] The team also finished fourth at the Le Mans 24 Hours, where a pre-race exclusion for Cimadomo for insufficient driving standards forced the team up to compete as a Pro entrant with new driver Nyck de Vries.[28] Beche switched to Nielsen Racing for the 2023 ELMS season, where he, Ben Hanley and Rodrigo Sales finished fourth in the Pro-Am classification with three class podiums.[29] At Le Mans, the trio retired early when Sales crashed at Dunlop corner.[30]

Going into 2024, Beche teamed up with LMP2 rookie Grégoire Saucy and the returning Sales at Richard Mille by TDS in the ELMS.[31]

Racing record

[edit]

Complete Asian Formula Renault Challenge results

[edit]

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Rank Points
2007 Asia Racing Team ZHU1
1
6 		ZHU1
2
6 		SEP
1
4 		SEP
2
5 		BEI1
1
2 		BEI1
2
2 		SHA1
1
5 		SHA1
2
Ret 		ZHU2
1
15 		ZHU2
2
11 		BEI2
1
4 		BEI2
2
Ret 		SHA2
1
4 		SHA2
2
1 		5th 190

Complete Formula Asia 2.0 results

[edit]

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Rank Points
2008 Champ Motorsport SEP1
1
1 		SEP1
2
2 		SEP1
3
2 		SEP2
1
4 		SEP2
2
5 		BIR1
1
3 		BIR1
2
3 		BIR2
1
5 		BIR2
2
4 		2nd 190
Asia Racing Team SHA1
1
1 		SHA1
2
2 		SHA2
1
Ret 		SHA2
2
3 		SHA2
3
2 		SHA2
4
2

Complete Formula Le Mans Cup results

[edit]

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Rank Points
2009 Hope Polevision Racing SPA
1
3 		SPA
2
2 		LMS
2 		PRT
1
4 		PRT
2
2 		NÜR
1
2 		NÜR
2
8 		SIL
1
2 		SIL
2
1 		MAG
1 		3rd 146

Complete European Le Mans Series results

[edit]

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant Class Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 Rank Points
2010 Hope Polevision Racing FLM Oreca FLM09 General Motors 6.3 L V8 LEC
2 		13th 28
Applewood Seven ALG
Ret 		HUN
Ret 		SIL
Matech Competition LMGT1 Ford GT1 Ford 5.3 L V8 SPA
2 		6th 15
2011 TDS Racing LMP2 Oreca 03 Nissan VK45DE 4.5 L V8 LEC
Ret 		SPA
1 		IMO
7 		SIL
Ret 		EST
1 		4th 38
2012 Thiriet by TDS Racing LMP2 Oreca 03 Nissan VK45DE 4.5 L V8 LEC
1 		DON
2 		PET
1 		1st 94
2013 Thiriet by TDS Racing LMP2 Oreca 03 Nissan VK45DE 4.5 L V8 SIL IMO
1 		RBR
1 		HUN
6 		LEC
8 		6th 62
2016 Thiriet by TDS Racing LMP2 Oreca 05 Nissan VK45DE 4.5 L V8 SIL
Ret 		IMO
1 		RBR
1 		LEC
1 		SPA
3 		EST
8 		2nd 96
2019 Inter Europol Competition LMP2 Ligier JS P217 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 LEC MNZ CAT SIL SPA
12 		ALG
Ret 		35th 0.5
2022 TDS Racing x Vaillante LMP2 Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 LEC
10 		IMO
10 		MNZ
13 		CAT
11 		SPA
12 		ALG
11 		22nd 4
2023 Nielsen Racing LMP2 Pro-Am Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 CAT
4 		LEC
4 		ARA
2 		SPA
Ret 		ALG
2 		ALG
3 		4th 75
2024 Richard Mille by TDS LMP2 Pro-Am Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 CAT
2 		LEC
1 		IMO
3 		SPA
Ret 		MUG
1 		ALG
5 		4th 94

Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results

[edit]

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant Class Car Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Rank Points
2012 ADR-Delta LMP2 Oreca 03 Nissan VK45DE 4.5 L V8 SEB SPA LMS SIL SÃO BHR FUJ SHA
7 		35th 6
2013 Rebellion Racing LMP1 Lola B12/60 Toyota (RV8KLM 3.4 L V8) SIL
6 		SPA
6 		LMS
13 		SÃO
3 		COA
4 		FUJ
3 		SHA
4 		BHR
Ret 		5th 63.5
2014 Rebellion Racing LMP1 Lola B12/60 Toyota (RV8KLM 3.4 L V8) SIL
4 		SPA
7 		LMS
4 		COA
7 		FUJ
12 		SHA
7 		BHR
7 		SÃO
8 		10th 64.5
2015 Rebellion Racing LMP1 Rebellion R-One AER P60 2.4 L Turbo V6 SIL SPA LMS
19 		NÜR
16 		COA
15 		FUJ
7 		SHA
7 		BHR
14 		14th 14.5
2016 Rebellion Racing LMP1 Rebellion R-One AER P60 2.4 L Turbo V6 SIL SPA LMS NÜR
17 		MEX COA FUJ 41st 0.5
Manor LMP2 Oreca 05 Nissan VK45DE 4.5 L V8 SHA
Ret 		BHR 33rd 0
2017 Vaillante Rebellion LMP2 Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 SIL
9 		SPA
4 		LMS
DSQ 		NÜR
4 		MEX
5 		COA
2 		FUJ
DSQ 		SHA
3 		BHR
3 		8th 85
2018–19 Rebellion Racing LMP1 Rebellion R13 Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 SPA
3 		LMS
3 		SIL
1 		FUJ
Ret 		SHA
5 		SEB
Ret 		SPA LMS 6th 73
2021 Realteam Racing LMP2 Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 SPA ALG
7 		MNZ LMS BHR BHR 22nd 9
2022 ARC Bratislava LMP2 Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 SEB
13 		SPA MNZ
11 		FUJ
 BHR
13 		25th 0
TDS Racing x Vaillante LMS
4†
2023 Prema Racing LMP2 Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 SEB ALG SPA LMS MNZ
7 		FUJ BHR 19th 6

† Non World Endurance Championship entries are ineligible to score points.

24 Hours of Le Mans results

[edit]
Year Team Co-Drivers Car Class Laps Pos. Class
Pos.
2012 France Thiriet by TDS Racing France Pierre Thiriet
France Christophe Tinseau 		Oreca 03-Nissan LMP2 353 8th 2nd
2013 Switzerland Rebellion Racing Italy Andrea Belicchi
China Congfu Cheng 		Lola B12/60-Toyota LMP1 275 40th 8th
2014 Switzerland Rebellion Racing France Nicolas Prost
Germany Nick Heidfeld 		Rebellion R-One-Toyota LMP1-L 360 4th 1st
2015 Switzerland Rebellion Racing France Nicolas Prost
Germany Nick Heidfeld 		Rebellion R-One-AER LMP1 330 23rd 10th
2016 France Thiriet by TDS Racing Japan Ryō Hirakawa
France Pierre Thiriet 		Oreca 05-Nissan LMP2 241 DNF DNF
2017 Switzerland Vaillante Rebellion Brazil Nelson Piquet Jr.
Denmark David Heinemeier Hansson 		Oreca 07-Gibson LMP2 364 DSQ DSQ
2018 Switzerland Rebellion Racing United States Gustavo Menezes
France Thomas Laurent 		Rebellion R13-Gibson LMP1 376 3rd 3rd
2019 Denmark High Class Racing Denmark Dennis Andersen
Denmark Anders Fjordbach 		Oreca 07-Gibson LMP2 356 16th 11th
2022 France TDS Racing X Vaillante Netherlands Nyck de Vries
Netherlands Tijmen van der Helm 		Oreca 07-Gibson LMP2 368 8th 4th
2023 United Kingdom Nielsen Racing United Kingdom Ben Hanley
United States Rodrigo Sales 		Oreca 07-Gibson LMP2 18 DNF DNF
LMP2 Pro-Am
2024 France Panis Racing United States Scott Huffaker
United States Rodrigo Sales 		Oreca 07-Gibson LMP2 293 23rd 9th
LMP2 Pro-Am 4th

Complete IMSA SportsCar Championship results

[edit]

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant Class Make Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Pos. Pts
2017 JDC-Miller MotorSports P Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 DAY
5 		SEB LBH COA DET WGL MOS ELK LGA 24th 49
Rebellion Racing PET
8

Complete Super GT results

[edit]

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team Car Class 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 DC Points
2020 arto Ping An Team Thailand Lexus RC F GT3 GT300 FUJ FUJ SUZ MOT FUJ SUZ
19 		MOT
23 		FUJ
26 		NC 0

References

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  1. ^ "Mathias Beche career statistics". driverdb.com. Driver Database. Retrieved 17 June 2012.
  2. ^ Watkins, Gary (14 August 2013). "Neel Jani to leave Rebellion team after Petit Le Mans". Autosport. Haymarket Media Group. Retrieved 15 August 2013.
  3. ^ "Imola Entry list". European Le Mans Series. 18 May 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-09-10. Retrieved 18 May 2013.
  4. ^ Dagys, John (11 February 2014). "Heidfeld, Beche Return to Rebellion for 2014". Sportscar365. Retrieved 11 February 2014.
  5. ^ "2014 24 Hours of Le Mans". Racing-Reference. Archived from the original on 10 September 2014. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  6. ^ Dagys, John (25 March 2015). "Rebellion Racing Confirms 2015 WEC Lineup". Sportscar365. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  7. ^ Dagys, John (2015-03-26). "Kobayshi Lands Toyota Test/Reserve Driver Role – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  8. ^ "4 Hours of Silverstone Free Practice 1 Classification by Class" (PDF). European Le Mans Series. April 15, 2016. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
  9. ^ "ELMS: Silverstone, Qualifying, Beche, Kaiser & Stanaway Take Poles". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  10. ^ "ELMS: Silverstone, Hour 1 Report, Game Over For Polesitter". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  11. ^ Kilshaw, Jake (2016-05-15). "TDS Wins 4H Imola Behind Safety Car – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  12. ^ Kilshaw, Jake (2016-07-17). "TDS Overcomes Adversity to Win 4H Red Bull Ring – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  13. ^ Kilshaw, Jake (2016-08-27). "Beche Storms to Paul Ricard Pole – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  14. ^ ACO. "4 Hours of Le Castellet 2016 - Final Classification" (PDF). elms.alkamelsystems.com. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
  15. ^ Dagys, John (2016-10-23). "G-Drive Wins Estoril; Steals LMP2 Title from TDS – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  16. ^ Dagys, John (9 January 2017). "Heinemeier Hansson, Canal Complete Rebellion WEC Lineup". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 11 January 2017.
  17. ^ Klein, Jamie (19 June 2017). "Rebellion LMP2 squad stripped of overall Le Mans podium". Motorsport.com. Archived from the original on 13 November 2017. Retrieved 19 June 2017.
  18. ^ "The High & Low Points Of A(nother) Very Unusual WEC Race At Fuji". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  19. ^ Smith, Luke (2017-11-18). "Rebellion Claims LMP2 Title After Bahrain Fightback – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  20. ^ Kilshaw, Jake (10 February 2018). "Rebellion Reveals LMP1 Driver Pairings". Sportscar365. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
  21. ^ Dagys, John (17 June 2018). "Toyota Dominates 24H Le Mans; Alonso Wins on Debut". SportsCar365. Archived from the original on 16 July 2019. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  22. ^ Dagys, John (2018-08-19). "Both Toyotas Disqualified; Rebellion Inherits Win – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  23. ^ "Mathias Beche & Sean Walkinshaw Set For 2020 Super GT Debuts At Suzuka". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  24. ^ "Noble & Wells Take 2021 Le Mans Cup Title For Nielsen Racing". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  25. ^ "2021 8 Hours of Portimão Race Classification" (PDF).
  26. ^ Mercier, Laurent (2022-02-11). "TDS x Vaillante, le nouveau projet LMP2 qui allie sport et BD". Endurance Info (in French). Retrieved 2022-02-11.
  27. ^ "Monza : Et de deux poles pour Beche et TDS Racing x Vaillante". Endurance Info (in French). Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  28. ^ alicedionneholloway (10 June 2022). "De Vries to Replace Cimadomo in TDS Racing x Vaillante". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
  29. ^ Goodwin, Graham (6 February 2023). "European Le Mans Series Confirm 42 Car Full Season Entry". Dailysportscar. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  30. ^ Kilbey, Stephen (10 June 2023). "LM24, Hour 2: Cadillac ahead of the chaos". Racer. Archived from the original on 20 June 2023. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
  31. ^ Mercier, Laurent (2023-12-01). "Un programme ELMS LMP2 pour Richard Mille by TDS". Endurance-Info (in French). Retrieved 2023-12-01.
[edit]
Sporting positions
Preceded by European Le Mans Series
Champion
2012
With: Pierre Thiriet 		Succeeded by
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