UNITED AUTOSPORTS FINISH 2021 MICHELIN LE MANS CUP SEASON FIFTH AND SIXTH IN CHAMPIONSHIP
United Autosports ended the 2021 Michelin Le Mans Cup at Portimao on a high with two top-ten finishes in the championship standings for the #23 Ligier JS P320 of John Schauerman and Wayne Boyd and the #22 of Gerry Kraut and Scott Andrews. Daniel Schneider and Andy Meyrick also brought the #32 Ligier JSP320 across the line to finish within the top-ten at the final race in Portimao, an impressive result for what has been a mixed season for the pairing.
John and Wayne were awarded with fifth place in the championship standings after a podium finish in Barcelona at the third round, and a second-place finish at Paul Ricard in their 2021 season together. John qualified #23 Ligier in 18th and had a great start to his race, confidently working his way through his competitors, making up two places within the first lap before handing the car over to Wayne who managed his stint well, dealing with a damaged nose, and ultimately crossed the line in 11th.
The #32 Liger JSP320 of Daniel and Andy lined up 17th, after a red flag in the last five minutes of qualifying disrupted Daniel’s lap and proved difficult to get another lap in, with subsequent traffic caused by the red flag. Daniel made great progress, working through the field and handing the car over to Andy under an FCY, where he was able to move the #32 Ligier JS P320 up to eighth, with ten minutes remaining. Daniel then finished the race, after fulfilling his required driver stint time and crossed the line in eighth. After a difficult season for Daniel and Andy, it was a great season finale to finish within the top ten.
Gerry in the #22 qualified 22nd but immediately after the race started pulled off a great first lap and sat 18th, fighting hard against the other competitive Ligier’s on track. Scott took over from Gerry and managed to fight his way up to cross the line in 18th. Gerry and Scott in #22 have had a brilliant first season in the Le Mans Cup, getting their first podium in the opening round at Barcelona, finishing second. They were then able to secure the win at Monza, which put them first in the championship standings. An unfortunate DNF at the Road to Le Mans second race took the championship lead away from them, but for Gerry’s first season in the Le Mans Cup, both drivers and the team are extremely pleased with sixth place in the championship.
Car 22
Gerry Kraut:
“It’s been a great final round to the Le Mans Cup season. Portimao has been a great track, which I have enjoyed learning. The race was hard, but I enjoyed it, as I have the whole season working alongside my teammate Scott and the whole of the team at United Autosports.”
Scott Andrews:
“It’s been a really fun season with United Autosports and we’ve had the #22 car looking strong all year. We were able to achieve a win, two podiums and a couple of fastest laps of the race which has just been great to do that with Gerry and the guys and girls here at United. I have to say a big thank you to Gerry for the opportunity to be here and to race with him, I know he’s enjoyed his time here which is great to hear. Gerry has gone from strength to strength as a driver, fighting hard and keeping up with drivers half his age on track so I’ve really been honoured to drive alongside him as a teammate.”
Car 23
John Schauerman:
“This race season has been absolutely amazing. The team have helped me so much, with their choice of teammate for me, with the car set up, strategy debriefs and coaching so I have to say a huge thank you to everyone. To finish fifth at the end of the year is fantastic and maybe next year we can finish another place higher.”
Wayne Boyd:
“I’m really happy. The improvement from John and my side from last year I think has been great and the team have been awesome with helping us fight at the top with the #23 car. I want to thank John for making this season so enjoyable and successful.”
Car 32
Daniel Schneider:
“We’ve finished the season on a high which I’m very happy about. To go from 17th to seventh is a great result. We’ve had a rather inconsistent season as a whole, unfortunately, but I want to thank the team and Andy for an enjoyable year nonetheless and I am already ready to race again next year.”
Andy Meyrick:
“Daniel and I have had a tricky season, with some races just not going our way but it’s been a good end to the season, going from 17th to Daniel finishing the race in seventh. A huge thank you to everyone at United and especially to Daniel for this season and hopefully we can be back for more.”
Zak Brown
“Our Le Mans Cup team has performed brilliantly this season and I’m so pleased all the drivers have enjoyed their year with us.”
Richard Dean
“Another season of Le Mans Cup over. This marks our sixth season into the Michelin Le Mans Cup and we’ve had some of our best results this year with our drivers and it’s been great to see how much they’ve enjoyed racing with us. We are already looking forward to next year and the chance to fight for more podiums and wins.”
Source. United Autosports
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