Tatuus iMagazine

30 Interview/Robert Peyrano Tatuus, a guarantee Robert Peyrano, a senior consultant for theUltimateCup, explains tous howthe 2020 seasonunfoldedandwhat are the futureprogrammesof the series, featuring theT‐318 carsalreadyused in the Regional EuropeanandEurocupRenault championship by Mattia Tremolada Talking with Robert Peryano, the series' Senior Consultant, we took a look at the 2020 Ultimate Cup Series season. Launched last year, the new creature of Vincent Vigier, head of the VdeV championships for years, had a positive debut in 2019. Then, the financial crisis following the Covid‐19 pandemic had a severe impact. The series, however, plans to relaunch in 2021, with a calendar concentrated almost exclusively in France and with a new attractive collaboration with Peugeot. "After the end of VdeV, Vincent Vigier and Michelin decided to join forces to create a new championship, the Ultimate Cup Series ‐ Peyrano says ‐ Vigier, to whom I have been linked for several years now, asked me to return into action. Actually, at the end of the VdeV, of which I was responsible for communication and relations with the press and sponsors, I had obtained early retirement. So starting from that point, we created a team, calling back a large part of the VdeV staff which we knew really well, and by settling in Paris. However, this year we had to close all the offices following the pandemic." How did the 2020 crisis impact on the championship? “It came perhaps in the worst moment for us. The first season was certainly not easy. Launching a new championship from scratch always requires a lot of work and it takes two or three years to get into gear, even with a prestigious partner like Michelin on your side. However, the signs were encouraging at the end of 2019, and we were preparing to restart for our second season when we had to stop. The pandemic obviously required deep changes to the calendar, preventing any type of competition from March to July. We were able to get back on track only in September at Dijon, then we moved to Magny‐Cours, but the second wave of infections forced us to review the calendar again, leaving us with only the last round at Le Castellet". How did the teams and drivers react? “The situation is obviously very complicated for our participants too