There is so much to unpick in the aftermath of Sunday’s 4 Hours of Mugello. It was yet another ELMS race that featured high drama and reached a crescendo in the final hour when battles raged for key positions in all four classes with time running out.
The post-race column from this one could have gone in a number of directions. It could’ve centred around the significance of Iron Lynx Proton’s win, which stemmed from standout performances from Jonas Ried and Maceo Capietto. A deep dive into Kessel Racing’s last-gasp LMGT3 victory would also have been worthwhile. What about the ramifications of AF Corse’s tough day in LMP2 Pro/Am, or Iron Dames’ continued struggles? They might require a second look, too.
But on this occasion, the nail-biting conclusion to the LMP3 battle and the individual effort from Team Virage’s Gillian Henrion en route to victory stole the show.
Over the past three seasons, the 21-year-old Frenchman has become the poster child for the ACO’s racing ladder. After coming close to calling time on his budding career due to a lack of finance behind him, he turned to the Ligier European Series and won the title in his debut year.
From there, he has carved himself out a career, using the prize pot for winning the LES to step up to the Le Mans Cup. That led to yet another title win, springboarding him to the ELMS for 2024. And after another successful campaign with Virage, will gun for a third title in three years next month at the Algarve International Circuit.
Yet despite his run of success, he remains humble, taking each race as it comes.
“Not that long ago I thought my career might be over,” he told DSC after the race. “I had no plan in 2021, but in 2022 I went to race with Ligier and I have shown that the ACO package works. I wouldn’t be here without it, and I am so grateful for it.”
That leads us to yesterday’s race in Mugello. The sixth safety car appearance gave Team Virage a shot at a fuel save run in the run to the flag. It was a long shot, but a shot nonetheless and the gamble was taken.
In a bid to win the race from eighth on the grid, Henrion was tasked with stretching the envelope on fuel. The final hour saw a flurry of stops from the contending cars, including the #15 Ligier from RLR M Sport, which pitted from the lead. That handed Henrion the advantage, but he would need to lift and coast furiously to have any chance of making it to the end.
Remarkably, with Gael Julien reeling him in by multiple seconds a lap, he managed it. No sixth stop was needed, despite the fact that Henrion and Julien were forced to complete an additional lap at the end when the Iron Lynx Proton ORECA took the chequered flag right behind them.
“He was saying on the radio on the penultimate lap, ‘there’s no coughing, there’s still fuel’, so we told him to push right on the final lap to hold on,” his teammate Julian Gerbi revealed.
He came home with his lead down to under a second. All in all, he had stretched that final tank of fuel to almost 80 minutes, a truly astonishing feat. It not only secured the victory, it also propelled himself and Gerbi into title contention, putting them just a single point off Eurointernational’s drivers with four hours of racing remaining.
“It was so tight, I have no idea how much fuel was left, but it’s not a lot I can tell you!” Henrion remarked.
It’s performances like this one that have caught the eye of some of the higher-ups in the paddock. In the background, he was selected by Ligier to help develop the JS P325 over the summer, and earlier this month, he was chosen to drive the LMGT3 title-winning Porsche in the FIA WEC post-season Rookie Test in Bahrain by the ACO. It will be his first chance to drive a GT3 car.
“I had a feeling I’d get the chance, but I didn’t assume anything,” he said. “I was in school when they called, I had to ask my teacher if I could step outside as I had lots of messages from the WEC and a missed call. When they told me I didn’t scream out loud, but I really wanted to! It’s a perfect opportunity and I am impatient to be there.”
It’s still relatively early days for Henrion, and once the ELMS season concludes, he may still be searching for a drive. But he looks the part and looks poised to take further steps forward should he be given the chance.
“I’m just out there doing whatever I can,” he admitted. “I am not sure what I will be doing next year. Unfortunately, it’s not because I am waiting to reveal something, it’s because I may not have enough money to fund next season.
“So I’m hoping wins like this will be big for my career and I’d love to be back in LMP3 for another year or get my chance in LMP2.”
The next two months look set to be crucial for Henrion and his future in the sport. Here’s hoping there’s still a lot more to come…
Images courtesy of ELMS/Team Virage
