September 13, 2021 RNW Staff 0

PENULTIMATE ROUND OF ELMS AND LE MANS CUP AT SPA FRANCORCHAMPS NEXT STOP FOR UNITED AUTOSPORTS

United Autosports head to Spa Francorchamps this weekend for the penultimate round of both the European Le Mans Series and the Michelin Le Mans Cup.

The LMP2 team head to Belgium lying third in the championship with the #22 crew of Phil Hanson, Jonathan Aberdein and Tom Gamble. The trio have scored three podiums so far this year but are aiming for the top step of the podium at a circuit that has given United Autosports great success in the past. The #32 crew of Nico Jamin, Job van Uitert and Manuel Maldonado will also be looking to get on the top step of the podium at Spa after missing the last round at Monza.

United Autosports LMP3 team will also be aiming high after a disappointing start to their championship defence. The #2 team of Wayne Boyd, Rob Wheldon and Edouard Cauhaupe will be hoping to get on the top step of the podium after some unlucky races to start the season. After two podiums this year, the top step is where they want to finish at the end of the Spa weekend. The #3 crew of Jim McGuire, Duncan Tappy and Andrew Bentley will also be hoping for better luck in the AERO Ligier JS P320, with both Jim and Duncan taking part in the Road to Le Mans event last month.

The Michelin Le Mans Cup team head to Spa after a mixed weekend at Le Mans. Gerry Kraut and Scott Andrews in the #22 Ligier JS P320 now lie third in the championship standings, with John Schauerman and Wayne Boyd in the #23 just 1.5 points behind them in fourth. Daniel Schneider and Andy Meyrick finished fourth in the opening race of the Le Mans weekend, with all three crews firmly aiming for the podium and race wins at Spa.

Spa Francorchamps is certainly one of United Autosports’ favourite tracks, with the team having won the last six consecutive events they have entered there. The LMP2 team have won every race in both ELMS (three) and the FIA World Endurance Championship (two) since September 2018. Earlier this year, United Autosports won the FIA WEC race and the GT4 European Series race at Spa. The team are hoping to continue their run of success in Belgium this weekend.

The Michelin Le Mans Cup race begins at 15:55 on Saturday 18 September, with the European Le Mans Series race beginning at 11:00 on Sunday 19 September. Both qualifying sessions and races will be live streamed on the Le Mans Cup and ELMS websites.

Car 22

Phil Hanson:
“Spa is always a highlight of my season. I have had a lot of success there winning five times in the last five races at Spa, but I’m looking at making it six this weekend.”

Jonathan Aberdein:
“Driving at Spa is always one of the highlights of the season for me. It’s a great track which almost always produces fantastic racing. I think the weather will definitely have something to say come race week. At the moment we are third in the championship, the clear goal is to make a step toward the championship leaders.”

Tom Gamble:
“I can’t wait for the penultimate round of the European Le Mans Series at one of my favourite circuits, Spa. The team had an amazing result there earlier in the year at WEC and have also performed well in previous years in ELMS so I’m very confident we’ll have a strong car underneath us. We’ve not stood on the top step of the podium yet, so we’ll be pushing hard to get our first victory of the year.”

Car 32

Car 2

Wayne Boyd:
“I always look forward to racing at Spa. It’s one of my favourite tracks on the calendar. Last year we had a great race there scoring pole position and the race win, so there’s no reason why we can’t go ahead and do that again this weekend. The season has been a bit tricky for us. Luck hasn’t been on our side. We’ve had two podiums in the last two races, and we would like to get back to winning ways, hopefully at Spa and then at Portimao to finish the season strong.”

Rob Wheldon:
“I’m Iooking forward to heading back to Spa. It’s been a tough year with more than our fair share of bad luck so far. We were strong last year at Spa, so there’s no reason we can’t expect the same again. It’s time to get back onto the top step of the podium.”

Edouard Cauhaupe:
“I love Spa and I can’t wait to be back behind the wheel of the LMP3 after the summer break. We have not had the beginning of the season we would like with no victory at the moment. So, we will do our best to score our first victory and score the maximum points for the championship at Spa.”

Car 3

Jim McGuire:
“It’s amazing to go from Le Mans to Spa in less than four weeks. Two of the highest speed and most challenging circuits in the world. It will be great to get back in the car with Duncan and Andrew to see how well we can do in our AERO Ligier. Spa is a great place, with such history. I can’t wait to get back behind the wheel.”

Duncan Tappy:
“Heading back to Spa is always epic. The circuit demands full commitment, it’s so much fun to drive. We had a good race there last year in the #3 car so hopefully Jim, Andrew and myself can build on that this year and have another good result.”

Andrew Bentley:
“I’m really looking forward to getting back to Spa. We had a good run last year and it’s one of the highlights on the calendar. The summer break for ELMS has just made me even more keen to get back in the car and I know Jim and Duncan will want to push as hard as me to finish the year on a high.”

Le Mans Cup

Gerry Kraut:
“Scott and I have had mixed results this season, but we have been leading the championship at various points. We are hoping for a better performance at Spa, but anything can happen there. We are now lying third in the championship, but we are aiming to get ourselves back on track in Belgium.”

Scott Andrews:
“I’m looking forward to racing at Spa again. It’s one of my favourite circuits – last time I was there it was with United in 2018 in the ELMS and we managed to get the win. In Le Mans Cup, Gerry and I are aiming to enjoy ourselves and have fun. I think we will have a strong package and let’s see what happens.”

John Schauerman:
“Spa is my favourite track, and I can’t wait to race there again. United has given us an excellent car and set up, and the whole team has been doing a great job all year. We just missed a podium last year at Spa, finishing fourth and will be working hard to make the podium this time. Our season has been strong with two podiums and consistent results. Also, Wayne is coming back after a great result at the Le Mans 24 Hours. With two races left this season, every point towards the championship will count. It should be an exciting weekend.”

Wayne Boyd:
“I’m looking forward to getting back to racing with John. I missed the last race with doing the Le Mans 24 Hours, but we’ve had some good results this year. The team have been doing a fantastic job and John has been driving brilliantly so we’d like to continue that momentum. I believe we can get that race win. Spa was our strongest race last season and we’ve improved a lot since then so that’s our aim for the weekend.”

Daniel Schneider:
“Racing at Spa is always special. It’s a long lap with so many corners that even when you make a mistake you can get it back. I love the flowing middle sector and Pouhon is definitely one of my favourites. After the good performance at Le Mans, I hope that we can keep the momentum going throughout the last two races.”

Andy Meyrick:
“I’m really excited for the upcoming race at Spa. Entering into the latter half of the season we will be looking for some strong results after being so close to a podium at Le Mans. We had a successful test at Spa a few weeks ago and it would be nice to be challenging for podiums out there.”

Zak Brown

“Spa has always been a good venue for the team so I’m hoping that this time out is no different. We will be aiming to add more points to the board ahead of the final round of the season next month.”

Richard Dean

“As a team, we love Spa as it has been very good to us in the last few years, and we have a very strong record around Spa that we are very proud of. We had a great race here for WEC a few months ago and our GT4 team also won here as well so fingers crossed our ELMS and Le Mans Cup teams have the same success and we can continue our record.”

Source. United Autosports