The European Le Mans Series again served up a quite amazing season finale at Estoril with three of the four class titles still to be settled.
It saw three first time ELMS race winners, a trio of runs from the back of the grid to victory and, we believe, the first time since LMEM took over the now buoyant ELMS that a GTE podium has not featured a Ferrari.
Lets deal with the race for the overall win and the title first.
It started with the title very finely poised, Jota leading Greaves by 2 points, that gap doubled by the single point for pole by local boy made good Filipe Albuquerque. Thiriet by TDS Racing meanwhile had shuffled the pack and brought ex Peugeot and Toyota factory driver Nico Lapierre into the mix, they were 10 points back and needed a win and misfortune elsewhere to make their title run stick.
Add in a degree of weather-related chaos and uncertainty and the stage was set for what would stay an open book until the last few minutes of the season’s final 4 hour race.
The day started badly for the #41 Greaves effort as they were dealt a post qualifying penalty for improving under yellows that saw the Kairos backed Gibson Nissan start from the back of the 10 car LMP2 field.
It would leave starting driver Bjorn Wirdheim in the midst of some early race chaos as first tracy Krohn then Leo Roussel and James Winslow spun, Krohn managing to recover before again running wide, this time into the gravel at T4.
“Well it woke me up I can tell you,” said the Swede “and once I’d avoided them it got me in a pretty good position too!”
Along the way though there was contact between the #41 and Maurizio Mediani’s #20 BR01, the #20 half spinning, the Gibson continuing seemingly unscathed.
Two runners effectively out of contention early on were the #29 Pegasus Racing Morgan and Algarve Pro Ligier, engine failure pitching Roussel into the gravel, the team now having a race against time to prepare for their planned outing in the WEC in a fortnight’s time at Shanghai, with the engine that they lost here!
Algarve Pro already had a 2 minute stop go to serve after an engine change with Winslow then getting caught up with Peter mann as he attempted to recover up through the GT field.
In the mix in the early running, Murphy Prototype’s awful run of luck continued. Michael Lyons had the #48 Oreca 03-R Nissan into the top three on pace and the car was still well in contention when Nathaniel Berthon pulled off the track into retirement with oil pressure woes just after half distance.
The #33 Eurasia Oreca 03R Nissan was also in the chasing group early on but struggled to match the lead groups pace as the weather hit, it would finish a respectable, 6th, but two laps down.
All of that left us with a lead group comprising the three title contenders and the pair of increasingly impressive AF Racing BR01 Nissans.
From the off Albuquerque was attempting his trademark heading for the hills charge in the #38 Jota Gibson and it worked too, in particular as the chasing pack got involved in their own squabbles.
The advantage stretched throughout the Portuguese Audi factory driver’s stint, the top three in the Championship eventually filling the top three positions as Wirdheim and Badey got involved in a tussle for third.
It stayed that way until the lead car made a driver change to Simon Dolan when, not for the last time the #38 refused to restart cleanly.
That cost the team c.20 seconds and the race lead as the #21 AF Racing squad opted not to take tyres at the first stop and leapfrogged the leader, Shaytar having passed the #41 and #46 after a minor on-track clash.
The BR01 was fast, but not as fast as a Gibson on fresher rubber. Dolan harried and then passed the AF Racing car.
Greaves were back into the mix too as newly installed Gary Hirsch won out in a battle with Murphy’s Michael Lyons and Pierre Thiriet doing likewise as the Englishman’s stint old tyres faded.
Hirsch was soon past Shaytar too but then the rain came and first to fall foul of a track that went from dry to very wet in seconds was Simon Dolan, the #38 Jota Gibson sliding into the gravel and out of the lead as Full Course yellow was called.
By the time the Jota man was towed clear the car had fallen to seventh, Hirsch now led for Greaves with Shaytar again attacking, this pair 50 seconds clear with Dolan 90 seconds back.
More rain, and tyre choice as the race swung into and out of periods of varied adhesion was beginning to take a toll. The #21 continued to lead desite a slide off track, Hirsch second, despite a spin and Thiriet closing in third – with Dolan by now mounting a fine recovery drive in fifth, Jota though needed their Championship rivals to stumble!
#21 was next to pit for Kirill Ladygin to climb aboard and that saw the Hirsch/ Thiriet scrap now a battle for the lead with Dolan trying to catch and pass Markozov in the second #20 BR01 for fourth, now 68 seconds back from the lead.
By now the track had dried to such an extent that slicks were the only sensible option, TDS pitted to get Nico Lapierre aboard, he was soon with Dolan who pitted for Harry Tincknell to go to the finish aboard #38, the Gibson again though lost time refusing to fire up, 20 seconds again lost that would prove to make a Championship defining difference!
Lapierre by now was showing his class, reeling in Ladygin, still on intermediates, very quickly – the race was lost for the Russian team in this phase and the hurt at the lost opportunity showed post-race.
With Jon Lancaster now in the Greaves Gibson and Tincknell by now charging hard in the Jota car, but from a way back, into the final hour and Lapierre’s charge had made a telling difference, TDS led Lancaster by 53 secs with Ladygin, now on slicks almost 30 seconds back, Minassian 4th +16 secs and Tincknell closing again around 10 seconds in arrears.
On pace the race looked done, but it’s never that simple is it? Tincknell was still closing, 45 seconds back from his primary target, Jon Lancaster, and the Greaves Team Manager was in for a chat with Race Control after a reported pitstop infringement! Then the Jota team manager was summoned too, something reported to be loose at the rear of the #38.
Still further down came the gap, 33 seconds between the Gibsons, and 40 minutes to run, and now Lancaster responded.
Fuel only stops for both Gibsons after another quick splash of rain meant the title would be decided by to cars racing on stint old rubber with the TDS Oreca well clear and the two BR01s still in play.
Then the message flashed up, a stop-go for the #41, Gary Hirsch had released his safety belts before the car had fully stopped at the driver change, the gap was 39 seconds with Aleshin, now aboard the #21 still separating the Gibsons.
Lancaster took the penalty immediately and when the #41 came around again the gap between the three was just 14 seconds, with 20 minutes left.
The Jota car though seemed unable to push and Harry Tincknell later explained: “Something on the rear wing broke costing me a massive amount of time later in my stint.”
That was effectively the last act, no further attack possible and Jota would finish fourth on track, third in the points.
Lapierre’s charge would net Thiriet by TDS the win they needed, but they needed both Gibsons to finish off the podium, a second race win was a reason to smile, but they fell short in the title race to Greaves.
Second place for the #41 Gibson saw the Greaves take the teams title, Hirsch add the overall LMP2 drivers title to his LMPC title of 2013 and the first titles in sportscar racing for both Bjorn Wirdheim (after two near misses in Super GT!) and Jon Lancaster. It was one hell of a season long fight.
