Barrichello confirmed for Le Mans debut

Rubens Barrichello will add to his expansive list of motor racing accomplishments by taking part in his first 24 Hours of Le Mans with the Racing Team Netherlands LMP2 team.

The Formula 1 and IndyCar veteran will partner with Jan Lammers and Fritz van Eerd in a Dallara P217 chassis powered by a spec Gibson V8 engine. The reunion with Lammers, who won Le Mans in 1988 with the TWR Jaguar program, is a welcome one for the Brazilian.

"I'm very excited and I love to be involved in these situations," Barrichello told RACER. "I never thought of racing at Le Mans, but the invitation came at the right time from my old friend Jan Lammers."

The two have a special connection that dates back to Barrichello's European racing debut.

"When Jan had the Team Netherlands Opel Lotus program, he was the first team I tested with in Europe when I was 16," said the 44-year-old who resides in Florida. "I was very happy when I got the call from him, and since America seems to be shy to invite me for races over here, I have to go to Le Mans and see how it is."

Barrichello spent two days in the yellow Dallara at Sebring in December, and expects to log more testing miles before Le Mans arrives in June.

"I did a couple days at Sebring for the Dunlop tire test, and I might join them in Spain in March and then there's some more testing we'll do," he added. Given the chance, Barrichello would also like to compete in IMSA to fill out his calendar. His last IMSA start came in 2016 with Wayne Taylor Racing at Daytona where the team finished second overall.

"I would love for the team to come over here and race, but even if they don't, I would love to race more in IMSA," he said. "I still race in Brazil and race karts with my kids, but IMSA is a series that interests me quite a lot."