The first sportscar racing effort from single-seater powerhouse Carlin Racing will see the already confirmed Jack Manchester share the team’s Dallara P217 with Ben Barnicoat and Harry Tincknell.
As part of the team’s driver announcement, it also revealed that it has partnered up with British tech company Thunderhead, which will serve as the team’s title sponsor for its ELMS campaign. The deal will see the team race under the banner of Thunderhead Carlin Racing.
Tincknell, Barnicoat and Manchester will not race together at every round this year, however, as Tincknell (who has yet to race a Gibson-powered current-gen P2 car) is set to miss the season opener.
For the ELMS Prologue next week and 4 Hours Paul Ricard that follows, the 2014 Le Mans 24 Hours LMP2 class winner and 2016 ELMS Champion will be unavailable due to clashing IMSA commitments with Mazda Team Joest.
He’ll be replaced in France by fellow Chip Ganassi Ford UK man Olivier Pla, the Frenchman, therefore, becoming the second driver to have raced either an LMP2 or DPi version of each of the four available forms of LMP chassis (Riley Multimatic, Oreca, Ligier and Dallara).
“I can’t wait to get started with Thunderhead Carlin Racing at Monza,” Tincknell (featured) said.
“Jack and I are good friends and he’s really going places in sportscars, while Ben is already very established. As a trio, and with Carlin’s pedigree, we have an exciting year ahead! It’s great to be back racing with the team that guided and coached me back in my Formula 3 years, I wouldn’t be where I am now without them.
“I am sure Carlin’s debut sportscar season will be the start of something very special.”
While this programme will be Tincknell’s first in a current-gen Gibson-powered LMP2 chassis, it will be the first-ever prototype programme for 22-year-old McLaren factory driver Barnicoat meanwhile (below).
“I’m delighted to be joining Thunderhead Carlin Racing for the 2019 European Le Mans Series season,” Barnicoat said.
“I’m extremely grateful to both Thunderhead and Trevor Carlin for giving me this opportunity to test my skills in the Dallara LMP2 machinery against some of the best drivers out there. I’ve been close with Carlin for many years but never had the opportunity to represent the team, I am extremely excited.
“I have great teammates in both Jack, who are progressing rapidly, and Harry, who I am a big fan of and greatly respect, so I’m confident we will be a force to be reckoned with.”
