Jack Duane is preparing for his debut in the ELMS series.

      Jack Doohan is keeping busy this year: firstly, he is serving as a reserve driver for Haas F1, and secondly, he is preparing for his debut in endurance racing. The 23-year-old Australian will compete in the European Le Mans Series (ELMS), which we have previously reported on. All 15 teams in the LMP2 category are equipped with the same Oreca 07 sport prototypes powered by 4.2-liter naturally aspirated Gibson V8 engines. Doohan, along with his teammates from the British team Nielsen Racing, will pilot car No. 24, and the so-called "prologue" already took place on April 6-7 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, while the first race of the season – the "4 Hours of Barcelona" – will take place this weekend.

      "This all inspires me; I'm not too nervous," Jack shared in an interview with Racer. "I think when the preparation is organized properly, the excitement is only related to the anticipation of surprises. But if we talk about the aspects that depend on me, I feel calm in that regard.

      There is a special factor related to the fact that I will be changing drivers for the first time, but I'm in a good mindset. I haven't raced for almost a year, and I haven't had the opportunity to drive racing cars. However, in 2024, before my seven races with Alpine, I also didn't participate in competitions for a year. It's a long break, so it's important to prepare well and gradually achieve stability now."

      Doohan is not the only debutant in the team; for Brit Edward Pearson, this is also his first race in the ELMS, and both worked intensively with engineers before the race in Barcelona. Additionally, they are being actively assisted by the more experienced Roy Nissany, who competed in this series last year but with a different team.

      "I have great teammates," Doohan continued. "I know Roy from Formula 2. I know Edward less well, but he is a good driver, and I remember him from the times when he raced in F2 for Virtuosi Racing, while he was their driver in F4 at that time.

      I participated in tests with Roy when I first drove the Oreca sport prototype in Abu Dhabi, and his experience has been very helpful to me. The team is doing an excellent job helping me and Edward reach the necessary speed levels; the organization within the team is quite good.

      I'm just trying to focus on the upcoming race, on the areas that affect the result. First and foremost, I need to get comfortable behind the wheel of this car, achieve comfortable feelings over long stints, and learn to navigate traffic. It's hard to say what results we can expect. If we do everything right, I think we will do well, but I'm trying not to think too far ahead, as the championship will be long."