Ultimate Cup Series: Pole and victory for Team Virage at Estoril!
After the summer break the Ultimate Cup Series restarted on the Estoril circuit in Portugal between 7 and 10 September. It was a flawless weekend for Team Virage and its #14 Ligier JS P320 driven by Manuel Espirito Santo, George King and Viacheslav Gutak, who clinched pole position and victory.
• Saturday 9th September - The #14 Team Virage Ligier JS P320 of Manuel Espirito Santo, George King and Viacheslav Gutak set the best overall average time of the three qualifying sessions in 1:34.190s.
• The start of the four-hour race was given the next day, on Sunday. The #14 Ligier JS P320 led the race on multiple occasions. It was also the LMP3 which racked up the most laps in first place in its category (113 in total).
• Espirito Santo took the wheel of the #14 Ligier JS P320 to do the team's final stint. At that moment, Team Virage was lying second, several seconds behind the leading car. Despite an increasingly wet track, the Portuguese driver slashed the gap between himself and the driver in first place. He got past him on the last lap just a few meters from the finishing line!
• The #14 Ligier JS P320 snatched its second overall victory of the season and in the LMP3 category by just 0.143 seconds! This is the closest finish in the history of the sport-prototype category in the Ultimate Cup Series.
• The #39 Graff Racing Ligier JS P320 (Vincent Capillaire, Nicolas Chartier and Stephan Rupp) came home second in the LMP3 category.
• “Coming back from 15 seconds behind in six laps to take the lead across the line was incredible!“ said Espirito Santo on the social networks.
The next round of the Ultimate Cup Series will take place on 26 – 28 October 26 on the Nevers-Magny-Cours circuit.
For more information on the Ligier JS P320, CLICK HERE.
Photo credit: Paul Iconic Studio