Short-lived victory for the #36 Eurasia Motorsport Ligier JS P217 in the 4 Hours of Sepang

14-15 February 2020, 4 Hours of Sepang, round 3 of the 2019-2020 Asian Le Mans Series: a bittersweet weekend for the Ligier clan. In qualifying, Ligier took three pole positions with the #1 Eurasia Motorsport Ligier JS P217, the #25 Rick Ware Racing Ligier JS P2 and the #13 Inter Europol Competition Ligier JS P3. In LMP2 Pro, the #36 Eurasia Motorsport Ligier JS P217 ran away from the field for the win with a 25-second margin of victory before being demoted to second place following a post-race penalty. The #52 Rick Ware Racing Ligier JS P2 was victorious once again in the LMP2 Am category and clinched the category title and its invitation for the 2020 24 Hours of Le Mans. In LMP3, the #13 Inter Europol Competition Ligier JS P3 bounced back after an early-race mechanical issue to finish third in the category. The team takes the lead in the provisional classification with a three-point lead.

In action at round three of the season, four Ligier JS P217s, two Ligier JS P2s and four Ligier JS P3s in a field totalling 9 LMP2 and 8 LMP3 entries. The Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia was host to the first race of the Asian Le Mans Series to finish under the lights.

Ligier got the weekend off to a flying start with three pole positions. The #1 Eurasia Motorsport Ligier JS P217 of Nick Cassidy, Daniel Gaunt and Masataka Yanagida took the pole with a lap of 1:53.094s ahead of the K2 Uchino Racing Oreca 07 and the G-Drive Racing by Algarve Aurus 01. In LMP2 Am, the #25 Rick Ware Racing Ligier JS P2 of Guy Cosmo, Anthony Lazzaro and Philippe Mulacek led the way. In LMP3, the #13 Inter Europol Competition Ligier JS P3 in the hands of Nigel Moore and Martin Hippe was quickest. The team scored a point. At the start of the race it was all square in the provisional classification with the Nielsen Racing Norma.

The race was scheduled to start at 5 in the afternoon. The cars lined up on the grid. But nothing went according to plan. A violent and sudden lightning storm battered the circuit. The start was delayed for 45 minutes. The cars remained on the track but the crews and drivers headed for shelter. Finally, the skies cleared and the race began behind the safety car after a one hour and 40-minute delay. Ten minutes later the race went green.

The #1 Eurasia Motorsport Ligier JS P217 of Aidan Read, Roberto Merhi and Nick Foster pulled away from pole. After leading for the first 19 laps it had to return to the pits with a hub problem in the left-front wheel and was forced to retire. Another disappointment for the #1 Ligier JS P217 that was on its way to victory at the last race in Australia only to suffer a mechanical problem six minutes from the chequered flag.

Its sister car, the #36 Ligier JS P217, ran error-free. But it too fell victim to a terrible bit of bad luck. Starting fifth, it moved up the order and took the lead of the race at the 1h43 minute mark of the race. At half-distance, it had a 17-second lead from the #45 Dallara. The team widened the gap. With six minutes to go, the taillights of the Ligier JS P217, which until this never skipped a beat, cut out. The team crossed the finish line with a 25-second advantage, but it wasn't enough to hold on to first place which fell to the #45 Dallara. The Race Direction imposed a 36-penalty to the #36 car for not changing the taillights. The sanction was harsh and left the team gutted.

“We totally deserved to win today”, said Aidan Read. “We ran a perfect race in difficult conditions and led pretty much all the way, to lose like this is really unbelievable”.

 This is its third consecutive podium result (three second places). The team, which was second just until now in the provisional general classification, scored 18 points. It is now third. Trailing by 10 points, it is still in contention for the title.

The #34 Inter Europol Competition Ligier JS P217 of Jakub Smiechowski, James Winslow and Mathias Beche finished fifth. Starting fourth, the team had a run of bad luck. The #34 was very fast and ran at the sharp end of the order early on the race. A lighting problem on the right side of the car dashed the team's hopes when it had to make three stops to fix the issue. The team also received a drive-through penalty for exceeding the speed limit under Full Course Yellow conditions that dropped it even further back.

“The beginning of the race with the heavy rain coming down and with 100 minutes delay, it was crazy”, commented Jacub Smiechowski. “We changed to slicks during the first Full Course Yellow and though tough in the first couple of laps, the strategy worked. But we had problems with the lighted side panel which ruined our race. But still a good job from James (Winslow) and Mathias (Beche)”.

The #33 Inter Europol Competition Ligier JS P217 entry finished sixth. Behind the wheel it was John Corbett, Nathan Kumar and youngster Danial Frost from Singapore, who is on the verge of competing in Indy Lights, in his first maiden prototype race. Starting behind the LMP2 Pro car, the #33 marched forward through the field and briefly into the lead, before losing positions following a penalty for causing a collision.

“It was my first time in a LMP2 and actually the first race not in a single seater”, shareded Danial Frost. “Even with the little time we had in car, we made it work. We came from last to first. I am happy with the pace we had. It could have gone better, but then things happen and that is racing. It's nice to have team mates, and good to help each other. Next stop Buriram, let's see what we can do there”.

In LMP2 AM, the #52 Rick Ware Racing Ligier JS P2 driven by the duo of Cody Ware and Gustas Grinbergas took the win and category title as well as their invitation for the 2020 24 Hours of Le Mans.

“Insane weekend, insane conditions, insane struggles, exclaimed Cody Ware. But in spite we come away with a win & the LMP2 AM title of Asian Le Mans Series before the Finale in Thailand”.

The team's #25 Ligier JS P2 didn't finish the race due to a communication problem in the final corners of the race.

In LMP3, the #13 Inter Europol Competition Liger JS P3 finished third after what was a hectic race. Starting on pole, the #13 suffered an electrical short in the opening laps that cost it 30 seconds. A few laps later, it was forced to stop to change a mechanical element that got wet on the grid. It lost another three laps and went back out behind the LMP3 cars. It would take more than that to stop the crew that overtook its competitors one by one to finish third. A third podium result that sees the team take the lead in the provisional classification.

“We had a pretty good race”, commented Nigel Moore. “We had a problem at the beginning of the race which didn't help us but we made a very good comeback from three laps down”.

The #12 ACE1 Villorba Corse Ligier JS P3 of David Fumanelli, Alessandro Bressan and Andreas Laskaratos finished in the LMP3 top five. A strong showing for the team that too had its share of woe. Following a blown engine in qualifying, the team just barely had enough time to get the car repaired for the start. David Fumanelli explained:

“Engine broke down in qualifying and the team made a miracle to let us race, but we had to start from the pit lane with 1 lap down. After a faultless job by everyone, we ended up fighting for the podium in the last hour, until a back-marker hit me causing a puncture in the final lap…”

The second Inter Europol Competition Ligier JS P3, the #18 car of Dan Wells and Philip Kadoorie finished sixth ahead of the #65 Viper Niza Racing Ligier JS P3 of Douglas Khoo and Dominic Ang.

While the #25 Rick Ware Racing Ligier JS P2 has clinched the LMP2 am crown, the LMP2 Pro and LMP3 titles will be up for grabs in the season-finale at the Chang International Circuit in Buriram, Thailand from 23-24 February 2020.

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Credit Photo: Eurasia Motorsport