After a two month break the 2014 European Le Mans Series blasts back in to life at the Red Bull Ring this weekend. After two sensational races at Silverstone and Imola, the 35 car provisional entry is set to unleash a special Sound of Music at the scenic Styrian venue.
Many of the regular runners will have wiped the Le Mans champagne from their eyes, as they now concentrate on the remaining three races, starting in Austria. It is fair to state that all bar one of the eight entries in LMP2 could have won one of the two races held so far. The competition is heady and intense, making for unmissable racing and more of the same is expected on Sunday afternoon. There are no favourites in the ELMS this season.
Jota Sport has deservedly quaffed more bubbly than their rivals over the last two months. The Sam Hignett managed team first hauled themselves back in to ELMS title contention with a thrilling win at Imola in May, before achieving the biggest win of their 14 year history by taking the LMP2 crown at Le Mans, after that unforgettable cameo from Oliver Turvey supported superbly by Messrs Tincknell and Dolan.
The crests of waves still keep getting surfed down in Kent and Jota Sport has unleashed a future endurance star in Tincknell. He was superb at Imola, laying solid foundations for victory and holding off a feisty Nelson Panciatici to cast aside doubts that anyone may have about his relative lack of endurance racing experience.
For the first time since Imola 2013 a coupe LMP2 takes to the track in the shape of the impressive TDS by Thiriet Ligier-Nissan. For such a new design to be in with a chance of victory in any 24 hour race, let alone Le Mans, was a massive achievement for everyone involved in the JS P2 project, particularly Head of the Research Department at Onroak Automotive, Nicolas Clémençon and Technical Director, Thierry Bouvet.
Having just being beaten at Le Mans by Jota Sport in those thrilling final hours when a clutch problem lost them valuable momentum, TDS had to draw upon all their professionally pragmatic assets to softened the blow of relinquishing a crack at the victory.
Now they will focus on successive Red Bull Ring victories, with the intense pace of Tristan Gommendy, stealthy speed of Pierre Thiriet and the solid and safe pair of hands that Ludovic Badey possesses. Heading the LMP2 driver points standings, the Montpellier based team will arrive in Austria intent on expanding their eight point lead over Jota Sport’s trio.
Making it a clean sweep of ELMS protagonists on the Le Mans podium was the rejuvenated Signature Plus team. After a tough start to the year the reigning champions quickly found their newly Dunlop-shod feet at Imola and they are very capable of mounting a strong title defence from Austria onward. Oli Webb, Nelson Panciatici and the growing pace of Paul Loup-Chatin sees the team not wanting for pace and talent on the driving side as the season matures.
Probably the most significant change since Imola has come from New Blood by Morand Racing where Pierre Ragues takes over the seat vacated by the steady but circumspect Roman Brandela. Teaming up with Christian Klien and Gary Hirsch, Ragues ensures a very strong looking trio of drivers at the Swiss team, who I am sure could believe their eyes (and luck) when they saw Ragues was a silver categorised driver.
Christian Klien, racing on home turf, will be looking to banish the living nightmare of Imola where an oil pump problem stopped him with just three minutes of the race remaining. Klien, keen to get back on the radar of works LMP teams in 2014 will be ably backed up by Hirsch, who seems to get better and better every time he gets in the Judd powered Morgan LMP2 car. The Swiss racer won the LMPC class at Red Bull Ring last year and will be hungry for more silverware this weekend.
Murphy Prototypes have suffered more than most when it comes to bad luck this season. The Greg Murphy fronted outfit know they have the pace to win races but have so far seen points, podiums and certainly a challenge for an outright win slip through their collective fingers.
Some of the issues have been self-inflicted with Rodolfo Gonzalez damaging the Oreca-Nissan at Imola during an erratic early race display. The Venezuelan appeared to smooth things out at Le Mans though and the team are confident that along with the quick, slick presence of Karun Chandhok and the searing pace of recently announced Caterham F1 development driver, Nathaneal Berthon, they can be serious contenders once again.
Just as this paragraph was completed we received word that Murphy had withdrawn from the Red Bull Ring due to the cessation of the team’s deal with Rodolfo Gonzalez and too short a time to find an adequate replacement. A sad situation for the popular Dubliners.
Greaves Motorsport return with their brace of Nissan powered Zytek’s at Red Bull Ring after running a single entry at Imola last time out. Joining Tom-Kimber Smith and record breaker Matt McMurry in the #41 car will be Mark Patterson. With Chris Dyson managing the Bentley GT program in the Pirelli World Challenge, Patterson is in the cockpit this weekend with a view to him partnering McMurry in the final two rounds at Paul Ricard and Estoril.
The second Greaves Motorsport car sees Mark Shulshitskiy return to the team that he made his LMP2 debut with in Shanghai last season. The 2012 Nissan GT Academy Russia graduate was mightily impressive at Le Mans where he was desperately unlucky not to have scooped what would have been a deserved victory along with team mates Alex Brundle and Jann Mardenborough in the G-Drive Ligier-Nissan. He is joined by 2012 Formula 2 Champion, Luciano Bacheta.
After an excellent start to 2014, Race Performance have fallen away from their early season form, despite the often frantic efforts of Franck Mailleux. Their old faithful Oreca-Judd was never in real contention at Imola and a disappointing Le Mans means that a strong showing in Austria for the friendly team will be needed to revisit the early season optimism that saw them fight back gallantly from a serious pre-season testing shunt at Paul Ricard.
Pegaus Racing bounced back from their Di Grassi/Grassy/Concrete outrage at Le Mans to register a deserved finish for the tiny French team. Regular trio Julien Schell, Jonathan Coleman and team owner Nicolas Leutwiler are, as usual, in action for the ‘Flying Horses’ this weekend.
Sebastien Loeb Racing had achieved good momentum with its new Oreca-Nissan, driven by Jan Charouz and Vincent Capillaire. As the only Michelin-shod LMP2 car in the field the Franck Tine managed squad took a surprise but excellently judged second place last time out in Imola after keeping their collective noses clean and benefiting from consistent if unspectacular pace. Unfortunately that momentum has been stymied as they have elected not to compete this weekend. Come on Seb…..get in the thing!
Sadly there will be no Larbre Competition Morgan-Judd at Red Bull Ring which is a shame because in the hands of Gustavo Yacaman and Pierre Ragues at Silverstone the car showed it can be there or thereabouts. It remains to be seen if the team return at Paul Ricard with suitably budgeted drivers.
THREE KEY TALKING POINTS TO LOOK OUT FOR AT THE OSTERREICH-BULL RING
- The track temperature. The absence of Michelin in LMP2 means that Dunlop will be concentrating on making their new spec soft tyres last comfortable double stints. Initial forecasts indicate high temps, so all eyes will be on the performance of the new profiles of the rears.
- The signs were ominous at Le Mans but will a higher downforce spec Ligier JS P2 be as quick at Red Bull Ring.
- Pierre Ragues completes a very strong team at Morand. Motorsport doesn’t owe you anything but the Swiss team will be out to lay the ghost of Imola to rest.
Sam Smith
