Rain soaked the circuit but not the spirit of Drayson Racing in today’s first official action of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Wednesday’s six-hour free practice in preparation for the 77th running of the classic French endurance event was the first time that the No. 87 Drayson Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT2 had turned a lap at Le Mans. For driver/owner Paul Drayson (London/Gloucestershire, UK) and season-long co-driver Jonny Cocker (Guisborough, Yorks, UK) it was a dream come true as neither had driven at Le Mans before. For Marino Franchitti (London/Edinburgh, UK), the event will be his second here but he was no less enthusiastic to turn a lap in the V8-powered car of the Official Partner Team of Aston Martin Racing (AMR).
The Circuit de la Sarthe, on which the race is run, is a mix of purpose-built race course and public roads. Therefore, it is impossible to test on the full 13.629 Km/8.468 mile-long facility prior to official sessions. For Drayson and Cocker, this was their first experiences on the full track. Franchitti has a 2005 start behind him but modifications to the track since have left sections of it new to him as well. The rain-soaked conditions made for a unique challenge that each driver and the crew quickly rose to.
By regulation, each driver had to turn ten laps “at speed” to earn their clearance to compete in the 13-14 June event. That was accomplished with Cocker then Drayson and Franchitti making quick work on a track that ranged from damp at the 18:00 (local) start time of the session to wet and cold at its midnight conclusion. After a brief break to make minor corrections to the car, team manager Dale White (Bozeman, MT, USA), a two-time 24 Heures du Mans winning manager, made the call to put each driver - first Drayson, then Franchitti and ended by Cocker - in for only their required three night laps and no more. The car was parked at 23:00 (local) with all three drivers qualified to compete in the 2009 edition of the LM24. Attention now turns to turning a qualifying time to determine grid position.
Drayson Racing is set to make its 24 Hour premiere representing the great British marque on the occasion of its overall victory 50 years ago (1959). The Michelin tyre-shod Aston Martin Vantage GT2, the only Aston in the class, will turn its focus to practice/qualifying Thursday beginning at 19:00 (local). That two hour session will be followed by a one hour break and a second two hour session concluding at midnight. The race itself will take the French Tri-Colour flag at approximately 15:00 on Saturday, 13 June.
Quotes
Paul Drayson, Driver/Owner:
About the elation of running at Le Mans:
“I am so glad to get my 10 laps done. I want to get back in and do my night qualification now. It’s everything and more than I expected it to be. It certainly lives up to its reputation of ‘Le Mans.’”
About reaching this goal:
“There is a sense of another milestone reached. Then you focus on the next one. I am focused on qualifying tomorrow and then it will be the race. I am so enjoying this. This is being laser-etched into my brain. It’s great. You never do it the first time again and that was my first time.”
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