Alexander West is one of many drivers that have headed east this winter to try their hand in the Asian Le Mans Series with a hope of winning a Le Mans entry. Driving with Spirit of Race in the series’ strong LMP2 class, the Swede has made a strong first impression in what is his first try at P2 racing, winning on his debut with teammates Come Ledogar and Pipo Derani back at the tail end of last year in China.
Unfortunately for him, skipping the most recent event at Buriram due to other commitments have eliminated him in the battle for the LMP2 title and therefore an automatic Le Mans entry later this year. But, his drive in Asia, he told DSC at the end of last year, is all part of a greater plan to race at Le Mans in the future.
DSC spoke with West, who one of the most successful gentlemen GT3 racers from recent years, at length for the first time in the Asian Le Mans paddock this season and discussed his thoughts on prototype racing, his future plans in GT3, and what it’s like to own and drive some of the most incredible pieces of modern F1 machinery in his spare time.
Let’s start by talking about your programme in Asia. What’s the aim here?
“One of the ultimate things on anyone’s bucket list is to do Le Mans, and you can do it in GTE, or a prototype. But I decided that if I want to do it, I want to do it in the prototype. We were supposed to do this last year, but I had a bit of an off, so I am doing it this year instead.
“It’s a very different car to what I normally drive. It’s fun driving new things, and this feels more like a proper race car compared to GT3 cars. I just miss the fact that normally I’m in a McLaren or Ferrari, and chasing down a Lamborghini. These cars are all the same, really, but I guess we don’t have to worry about BoP issues. That’s page 1 of every driver’s excuses, and I like driving without ABS as it makes you better, though I might regret that if we have a wet race!
“I want to do this because I want to push myself.”
“Last year it would have been easier to get a Le Mans entry with fewer cars, but there are a number of really strong entries this year. It’s only four races, so if you get a DNF it’s really not good.
“You can go about this two ways, you can do a pure Am set up, but it’s an expensive enough hobby that if I’m going to do it, I might as well do it right. You want the best possible chance. So to be able to have a good team, I know the Ferrari guys (behind the Spirit of Race prototype effort) reasonably well, which is great too.”
This is a big change for you, after years racing GT3 McLarens in GT Open and Blancpain. Does this change mark the end of your GT commitments?
“Unless something very strange happens, I will do Blancpain this year in GT3. Blancpain, SRO does overall a very good job, they have the most consistent BoP of any championship, with multi-class, multi-manufacturer racing. We all complain about it but they do it best. When you have 20 cars from eight brands within a second you can’t complain too much, they’re doing something right.
“I enjoy GT3 racing, and I’m very new to prototypes as before this Asian Le Mans season I did just one LMP3 race.
“It’s been a challenge getting up to speed really, it’d be nice to have like a rearview camera because fighting while in traffic is really hard in a prototype. And in Asia, the speed difference between the old LMP2s and the LMP3s isn’t that much different. The newer LMP2 cars are a lot quicker, but I think it makes for much safer racing because we are so much quicker only through fast corners so you need to plan ahead and sit there waiting behind a slower car. If they had more horsepower it would make our lives a lot easier.”
Do you feel that Stephane Ratel is still doing a good job keeping Amateur drivers such as yourself wanting to come back for more?
“Stephane does a really good, job still, especially for Ams, yes, he knows that the manufacturers might leave, things can happen, like in DTM and LMP1, where manufacturers come and go, but he gets that gentlemen drivers and private teams are the backbones of the industry. He finds a good balance and makes us feel a big part of everything.
“Some of the rules still go against you though, which I think needs a look.
“The pit stop rules are odd, I don’t like that you can’t change tyres and refuel separately. That takes away so much strategy.
“Also, Going from full-course yellow to a safety car often ruins peoples races. In Barcelona I was battling for the lead in Am, we needed to win to have a chance at the title, and I let the leader past me, he didn’t get past the car I was battling and the FCY came out, it turned into a safety car, and the leading car gained a lap because he was able to drive round to the back of the train. It’s frustrating sometimes.
“And I wish SRO would change tyre supplier, I much prefer Michelin for GT3 racing. The 2018 tyres were an improvement but the 2017 tyres were just horrible. Not consistent at all.
“But overall he does a good job.”
So this year do you have your eye on the 720S GT3? You spent years honing your skills in the 650S GT3, is it a natural progression for you to become one of the first customers for the new car?
“No, I don’t think so. I’m undecided.
“I think CRS who developed the 650S GT3 did a brilliant job, the 12C was a work in progress but the 650 was a much better car. It’s not the easiest car to drive as an Am but I didn’t know any better when I started racing it, so it’s natural to me. It’s been really cool racing a McLaren, but I’m ready for a change.”
You are known to be very passionate about McLaren and Ferrari in particular as brands, and I hear you have some F1 cars in your garage that you take out occasionally?
“I was born in Finland and I used to cheer on Mika Hakkinen in those black and white West sponsored McLarens (no, he isn’t the man behind the West McLarens, it’s a coincidence!), and so when it came time to do the P1 GT-R and race the 650S GT3 I ran cars with a similar livery. I really have a big affinity for the brand, I’m lucky enough to own a 2000 McLaren F1 car, in that livery too. It’s a Coulthard car that I bought recently, and I love it.
“I have a 2008 Ferrari, Massa’s car that was World Champion for five seconds too! I wanted both a V8 and V10. So I’ll run the McLaren for the first time this year, but I’ve driven the Ferrari before during Corsa Clienti events.
People often ask me why I still bother racing, because it’s hard work to race.
“In bad weather, you hate taking them out, but on a Sunny day at Paul Ricard, they are the easiest cars on the planet to drive at 90-95 per cent. The problem right now is that you have to push to keep tyre temperatures up. If you don’t have the experience, you don’t have the confidence so you don’t push which means it’s a vicious circle. But when it’s a hot day you can just drive these cars.
“Compared to prototypes the visibility is so different, in an LMP2 you can hardly see anything, in an F1 car you can look over to each apex and steer the car to it without any obstruction. It’s fun, though, and it’s something I love. I love doing track events with my own F1 cars and going racing. People often ask me why I still bother racing, because it’s hard work to race. I don’t just drive around, I chase times and try to win, so it can be stressful as opposed to taking out a normal track car, which is just a fun day out.
“Sometimes I’ll think when I’m racing: “why do I do this?” before a race, but I do love it!”
