With a podium finish from Portugal still fresh in his mind, Pierre Ragues is looking to consolidate that level of performance at this weekend's first Hungarian Le Mans Series event at the Hungaroring.

The event is the penultimate race on the Le Mans Series calendar and takes place at the 4.381km long Hungaroring circuit in Mogyorod near the Hungarian capital of Budapest. It is a circuit that is used only infrequently during the year, but which held its Formula One round just a few weeks ago. Even so, Le Mans Series teams will inevitably face the usual low grip that tends to characterise the tight and twisty circuit.

Although Hungaroring is a step into the unknown for the Le Mans Series and its teams, a number of the more established drivers will recall the challenges of the track from their time in Formula 1, an advantage that Signature Plus and Pierre will not have. The challenges of learning a new circuit will be made even tougher by the track's narrow layout which makes overtaking practically impossible so a good grid position and efficient pit strategy will make all the difference for Sunday's day-night race.

The weather is usually extremely hot at this time of the year, even at night, so all drivers will require exceptional fitness levels to adapt to the conditions. Pierre has been using his passion for karting to maintain his fitness levels in between Le Mans Series events, but in the process he has also made a return to winning ways, having won the pre-final and final at the recent GPO karting weekend in Lyon.

Those victories also followed Pierre and Signature's first podium result of the season in Portugal last month, so the bar has been truly raised with heightened expectations for this weekend's Hungary event.

Quick Q+A with Pierre Ragues

Pierre, you've been busy since Portugal winning races, is that right?
"Yes! I am a big karting fan and I have been taking part in the GPO karting series this year alongside LMS. I find it great physical preparation for the Le Mans Series races and so after the last LMS event, I raced in Lyon and won two races which was great timing after our podium in Portugal. The karting helps keep my racing skills fresh and that is important when we are heading to Hungary, a new track for the championship and for me personally."

What do you think of the track?
"I have only seen it on paper and of course from the F1 races but it looks like it is going to quite tight and difficult to pass on. We will have a big task list in the first practice sessions to find quickly a baseline balance for the car and then to find improvements to the set-up as we learn more about the track. We have continually made good steps forward with Aston Martin and with Dunlop this year, so I hope we can get another result like in Portugal and to build up some good momentum as the season comes to a close."

For more information on Pierre Ragues, please visit www.pierreragues.com or www.quadrasports.com