Метка: Heart of Racing Team

Ferrari AF Corse sneaks past Toyota for win

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


In a thrilling finish to Sunday’s Lone Star Le Mans six-hour race on the Circuit of The Americas, a customer AF Corse-run 499P driven by Robert Kubica, Yifei Ye, and Robert Shwartzman at Austin took the win after a battle with Toyota. All mere hours after Charles Leclerc’s Italian Grand Prix victory at Monza earlier in the day.

Shwartzman inherited the lead from the No. 7 Toyota GR010 HYBRID LMH with 40 minutes of the race to run when Kamui Kobayashi took a drive-through penalty for a yellow-flag infringement. The Japanese driver, teamed with Mike Conway and Nyck de Vries, came out of the pits nine seconds behind the Ferrari but quickly made up ground. Kobayashi was still closing at the end, but ran out of time, ending up just 1.7 seconds behind at the checkered flag.

That closeness emphasized a pulse-pounding late stage of the race. Toyota appeared to have a win in the bag as the race entered its final stages, having managed to get the undercut on the yellow Ferrari, which had led the majority of the first two thirds of the Lone Star Le Mans. 

Kobayashi took the wheel for the final two hours and pulled way from Shwartzman, building up a lead of 10 seconds only to lose it as penance for ignoring yellow flags at Turn 11.

The No. 83 AF CORSE Ferrari 499P Hypercar

The No. 83 AF CORSE Ferrari 499P Hypercar

Photo by: JEP

Third place at COTA went to the Le Mans-winning factory Ferrari crew of Miguel Molina, Nicklas Nielsen, and Antonio Fuoco. They lacked the pace of the sister works 499P of Antonio Giovinazzi, James Calado and Alessasndro Pier Guidi — but the second 499P posted a rare retirement for the factory team. Driveline issues (that followed a collision with an LMGT3 runner that had damaged a wheel rim) and then a spin while Giovinazzi was lapping one of the Peugeot 9X8 2024 LMHs conspired against the team.

Cadillac took fourth — its best result of the season — with the Ganassi-run V-Series.R shared by Earl Bamber and Alex Lynn.

Alpine followed in fifth in the A424 LMDh shared by Ferdinand Habsburg, Paul-Loup Chatin and Charles Milesi. They fought back from an early penalty after Habsburg locked up on the first lap and was penalized for the contact with Bamber at Turn 12 at the end of the long back straight.

The Signatech-run Alpine benefitted from a late penalty for Kevin Estre in the championship-leading Porsche 963 LMDh for a yellow-flag infringement, which left the Penske-run car co-driven by Laurens Vanthoor and Andre Lotterer sixth at the flag.

The No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R Hypercar of Earl Bamber, and Alex Lynn

The No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R Hypercar of Earl Bamber, and Alex Lynn

Photo by: JEP

Vanthoor, Lotterer, and Estre fought through the field from 14th on the grid — with Estre surviving a clash with Sebastien Buemi in the second Toyota in the race’s fifth hour. Buemi, on an outlap, made contact with the Porsche as he moved over on the back straight to protect his position. He continued to move to the left, resulting in a second contact. The Toyota sustained a rear puncture and bodywork damage, before being given a 30-second stop-go penalty for causing a collision that left the car 15th and last of the classified finishers in Hypercar.

The best of the WRT BMW M Hybrid V8 LMDhs — the No. 20 car driven by Rene Rast, Robin Frijns and Sheldon van der Linde — was also hit with a late penalty of 100s for an energy in infringement. It lost a top-six position as a result, ending up in 13th at the finish.

The LMGT3 class was dominated by the American-flagged Heart of Racing Aston Martin squad. Its Vantage GT3 crewed by Ian James, Daniel Mancinelli, and Alex Riberas crossed the line with almost half a minute in hand over its nearest competitor to take the victory. Bronze-rated James, who’s also Heart of Racing’s team principal, laid the foundation for the squad’s first WEC victory since joining the series last year. The Briton converted pole position in the race lead and raced away from Sarah Bovy in the Iron Dames Lamborghini Huracan EVO2.

The No. 51 Ferrari AF Corse Ferrari 499P failed to finish

The No. 51 Ferrari AF Corse Ferrari 499P failed to finish

Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images

Heart of Racing’s run to victory was made easier when a clash between the Iron Lynx-run Lamborghini (which Bovy shared with Rahel Frey and Michelle Gatting) and the best of the TF Sport Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R (the No. 81 entry driven by Tom van Rompuy, Rui Andrade, and Charlie Eastwood) took both cars from contention.

That allowed the two Manthey-run Porsche 911 GT3-Rs — running 1-2 in the class points coming into the Austin race — to come through to claim second and third positions. All in spite of receiving a Balance of Performance hit and carrying significant success balance.

Alex Malykhin, Joel Sturm, and Klaus Bachler took second with 30 kg of success ballast, while the sister car of Yasser Shahin, Morris Schuring, and Richard Lietz took third with 25 kg after the Shahin received a drive-through for a track limits violation.

Vanthoor, Lotterer, and Estre still lead the championship on 125 points; Molina, Nielsen, Fuoco and de Vries and Kobayashi tied on 113 points.



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Aston Martin completes 6000km of testing with new Valkyrie LMH

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Aston Martin’s new Valkyrie World Endurance Championship and IMSA SportsCar Championship contender has already notched up more than 6000km in testing since hitting the track last month. 

The Le Mans Hypercar developed by the British manufacturer out of the Adrian Newey-inspired Valkyrie road car has racked up that distance, equivalent to 3700 miles, over the course of six days of testing on home ground in the UK and then in mainland Europe. 

That started with a full day of testing at Donington Park two days after the completed Valkyrie AMR-LMH’s roll-out on the Silverstone Grand Prix Circuit on 16 July. 

There was then a further day at Donington and two more at Silverstone before the programme moved to Aragon in Spain for a two-day test.

Aston Martin head of endurance racing Adam Carter expressed content with the testing so far with the Valkyrie, which will be run by the US-headquartered Heart of Racing team in both WEC and IMSA next year.

“We have set out a test programme with challenging and realistic objectives and we are going through the schedule ticking them off,” Carter told Autosport / Motorsport.com.

“So far we have accomplished 6000km and are very pleased with how it is going, but it is still early in what is going to be a long programme.”

Carter would not reveal who has driven the AMR-LMH so far in addition to the drivers who took the wheel of the car in the initial tests that preceded the release of the first photographs of the car.  

Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH

Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH

Photo by: Aston Martin

Harry Tincknell, who is contracted to Valkyrie development partner Multimatic Motorsports, drove at the Silverstone shakedown before longtime Aston-contractee Darren Turner and HoR regular Mario Farnbacher took over for the first proper test at Donington. 

Former Aston driver Stefan Mucke did the very first run of the car minus its completed bodywork on Silverstone’s Stowe layout early in July.

Carter revealed that Aston and the HoR team are looking beyond Aston Martin’s existing pool of GT drivers, which includes two-time GTE Pro WEC title winners Nicki Thiim and Marco Sorensen. 

“Through the initial testing phase we will be leaning on the Aston Martin Racing roster to support us and we have started to have look at a few drivers from elsewhere as well,” he said. 

HoR team principal Ian James insisted that no decisions have been made on who will race the three Valkyries next year — two in the WEC’s Hypercar class and one in GTP in IMSA — but he insisted that the “chemistry between the drivers” will be paramount as the line-ups are finalised.

“There are a lot of good drivers out there, but we want drivers who can leave the ego in the garage and do a solid job,” James told Autosport / Motorsport.com.

“That is what we are looking for, team players.”

Carter revealed that initial testing of the Valkyrie is also likely to encompass a trip to the Middle East where the WEC has two rounds in Bahrain and Qatar. 

He stated that the development programme is on course to expand to the US when a second car comes on stream in the autumn as scheduled.

But he would not comment on whether the Valkyrie will make its race debut at the Daytona 24 Hours IMSA season-opener next January as outlined on the launch of Aston Martin’s comeback to the top flight of sportscar racing in October 2023. 

IMSA has a so-called sanction test scheduled for Daytona in November at which competitors for the season ahead are obliged to participate. 

Whether the Valkyrie would have to have completed its homologation by that test is, said Carter, “a point of discussion”. 

Last December, the Lamborghini SC63 LMDh, the newcomer to IMSA’s GTP class ranks in 2024, took part in the corresponding test in homologated form even though it wasn’t scheduled to join the IMSA grid until the Sebring 12 Hours in March. 

Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH

Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH

Photo by: Aston Martin



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Title contender Gunn reacts to Priaulx’s exit from IMSA-leading Porsche

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


Heart of Racing’s Ross Gunn says it’s “business as usual” following the shock departure of IMSA SportsCar Championship GTD Pro title rival Seb Priaulx from the points-leading AO Racing Porsche squad.

AO revealed last week that 23-year-old Priaulx is stepping down from partnering Laurens Heinrich “to focus on his growing commitments with Multimatic”.

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A statement from the team, which has recruited Porsche-contracted Julien Andlauer to replace him at Road America this weekend, added: “Increasing obligations and schedule conflicts have necessitated the transition sooner than expected.”

Priaulx and Henrich scored back-to-back GTD Pro victories at Laguna Seca and Detroit, and hold a 98-point lead over Gunn, who’s also had multiple team-mates in Mario Farnbacher and Alex Riberas this year in the #23 HoR Aston Martin Vantage.

When asked by Motorsport.com for his thoughts on Priaulx’s exit from the car he’s chasing for the title, Gunn replied: “For us, I think it doesn’t really change anything. The AO guys have been really strong all year already, and I’m pretty sure Andlauer did some IMSA races last year, so I don’t think there’ll be any sort of time for him getting up to speed.

“Obviously, he’s a very experienced Porsche guy and very quick. So, to be honest, I don’t think there’s any change on that front for us. It’s just about focusing on our job and making sure that we execute in the best possible way.

“Those guys have been phenomenally quick this year and have also done a very good job in getting podiums consistently and, yeah, I think they’re still gonna be the ones to beat going forward for sure.”

#23 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo: Ross Gunn, Alex Riberas

#23 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo: Ross Gunn, Alex Riberas

Photo by: Jake Galstad / Motorsport Images

Although Gunn said it would be “business as usual” from his side, he did suggest that mid-season driver swaps with non-regular IMSA drivers could risk some pitfalls.

He added: “Of course, there are some things that a driver will have to get used to, and there’s only two practice sessions to get used to communicating with the team, get used to the style of racing and also the pitstops and rules set. That’s a big change from Europe and the WEC.

“I’ve raced (Andlauer) quite a few times, and Heinrich is obviously a very quick driver as well, so I’m sure they’re going to the guys to beat. They still have a pretty big gap, and been quick in the last few races, so it’s up to us to do the best job that we can and that can open some doors.”

#23 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo: Ross Gunn, Alex Riberas, Ian James

#23 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo: Ross Gunn, Alex Riberas, Ian James

Photo by: Michael L. Levitt / Motorsport Images

Gunn pointed to recent successes for Heart of Racing in IMSA and WEC competition, as well as Aston Martin’s Spa 24 Hours victory with Comtoyou Racing, a race he finished in fourth place with Walkenhorst Motorsport.

He feels that momentum can help in his quest to overhaul AO in IMSA GTD Pro.

“The last few months have been very, very good for Heart of Racing and also Aston Martin,” said Gunn. “We’ve had several wins in the WeatherTech Championship, we had a podium in WEC and Aston won the Spa 24 Hours, so it’s been an awesome period.

“I think the energy is really positive right now and everyone is feeling it. For us, we’re in a very good position in the championship, not quite where we want to be but we’ve gradually been progressing throughout the year. We were fourth at the start of the year, then third and now second.

“There’s a gap to the Porsche in front, but we’re gonna give it everything we can. We’ve got some really positive momentum right now.”

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Aston Martin Valkyrie Hypercar set for «full-blown test programme»

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


The maiden runs for the Aston Martin Valkyrie Le Mans Hypercar have been billed as a “great foundation” for the test programme leading into its competition debut next season.

Adam Carter, Aston’s head of endurance motorsport, made the claim after the Valkyrie AMR-LMH undertook its first two days of circuit testing at Silverstone and then Donington Park last week, as the British manufacturer builds up to its entry into the respective Hypercar and GTP classes of the World Endurance Championship and IMSA SportsCar Championship.

“We set an ambitious but achievable target and we completed our aims,” he told Motorsport.com.

“It has been a long journey with a lot of commitment from a lot of parties to get to this milestone, but it just marks the beginning of the next stage of the journey. It was a great foundation to take the car forward into a full-blown test programme.”

That will begin imminently, Carter explained. “Between now and going into competition next year we have a very sizeable test programme planned and we will be active every few weeks,” he said.

“We have a very solid target and our first running in the shakedown has given some cautious optimism of being able to achieve that.”

Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH

Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH

Photo by: Aston Martin

The car was run over the course of the two days by a mixture of personnel from the US-headquartered Heart of Racing team, which will field the Valkyrie in both WEC and IMSA, and the Aston Martin Performance Technologies group leading the programme.

It completed more than 300 miles over last week’s test outings at Silverstone on Tuesday and Donington on Thursday.

The test at Silverstone was undertaken by Harry Tincknell, who is contracted to Multimatic Motorsport, a key partner in both the development and running of the Valkyrie. Longtime Aston driver Darren Turner and HoR regular Mario Farnbacher then took over driving duties at Donington.

Carter wouldn’t be drawn on whether Aston and HoR would give the AMR-LMH its race debut at next January’s Daytona 24 Hours, the opening IMSA round of the season.

That was put into doubt by Aston’s press statement on the release of photographs of the Valkyrie running at Donington in camouflage livery. It talked of a “competitive debut early in 2025” without mentioning Daytona, which suggests its first race could be delayed until the 10-hour WEC season-opener in Qatar at the end of February.

“The first milestone was to get the car running, the next one for me is the homologation date,” Carter told Motorsport.com. “There is a lot to be learned between now and the homologation — that is my key focus. Let’s get to the homologation point and see where we are.”

HoR will field a single Valkyrie in IMSA, while it will make a pair of entries in WEC in line with the new rule mandating that manufacturer teams in Hypercar run two cars.



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