Hampshire's Justin Keen joins forces with former winner Christian Vann for the first round of the FIA Sportscar Championship in Estoril this weekend.

A podium place is seen as a realistic starting point for this new, yet highly-experienced, outfit Taurus Sports.

Having produced a creditable performance at Sebring against a world-class field (16th from 54 starters), the team's Lola Judd B2K/ 10b, racing on Dunlop tyres and in the hands of two quick and accomplished drivers, is expected to have the reliability and pace to be a championship front- runner.

Vann, 28, is a previous winner in FIA Sportscars, and brings considerable know-how to the team having raced in sportscars since 1997, driving for Marcos, Chamberlain and Kremer, among others.

Keen, pictured, from East Boldre in the New Forest, made an impressive sportscar debut for Ferrari in the Daytona 24-hour race in February after a successful career in single-seater racing, in which he chalked up wins in Formula Ford and Formula Palmer Audi.

Last week at Snetterton, the Norfolk-based team undertook its final shakedown before heading for Portugal and Team Proprietor Ian Dawson was pleased with the performances of the car and both drivers.

He said: "From our experiences in Florida, we know that the Lola Judd is a competitive and reliable car. We've rectified our Sebring electrical 'gremlins' and introduced several technical modifications to improve the performance of the car.

"At Snetterton, both Justin and Christian were able to familiarise themselves with the new set-up and both were on the pace.

"They have the combined talent to help us achieve our goal of a podium finish in Estoril."