Lola’s new LMP2 sportscar, the B05/40 scored impressive 2nd and 3rd place positions in the latest rounds of the 2005 Le Mans Endurance Series at Monza today.Chamberlain Synergy and the RML Group both scooped podium positions after a hard fought 1000kms that saw many of their rivals fall by the wayside. Four examples of the B05/40 were in action at Monza with the Binnie Motorsports and Horag-Lista cars also competing. Sadly, this pair was forced to retire during the gruelling five-hour event.
Bob Berridge, Peter Owen and Gareth Evans arrived at Monza as LMP2 class points leaders and with 8 points for their second place this afternoon they extend their advantage in the points standings to 11 over the RML duo of Tommy Erdos and Mike Newton.
The Chamberlain Synergy team started the race with Gareth Evans driving a stint before Peter Owen took over. Lying in 5th place in the LMP2 class, Owen drove a single shift but it was not without its problems, including his own discomfort as he completed the whole race weekend with two cracked vertebrae, a legacy of his accident at Le Mans last month.
“The downchange got a bit sticky as soon as I took over,” said the 2000 FIA Sportscar champion. “ I had to really give it big blips on changing down so the times were a little inconsistent. The car and the engine were so much better than at Le Mans and all in all we had a great race. My back wasn’t a big problem really. I must give full credit to all the team for another fantastic job today.”
Mirroring their 5th place overall at Spa, Chamberlain Synergy once again came home in that position. Their next event is on home turf at Silverstone and Hugh Chamberlain is relishing another strong showing
“After the accident at Le Mans and then finishing the race so early we were down in the dumps for a while,” said the veteran entrant. “But that doesn’t last for long in this team and we showed that we could bounce back quickly. We had our game plan today and it paid off. We can’t wait for next month at Silverstone.”
RML Group brought their MG-Lola EX264 to Monza on the back of a fantastic victory at Le Mans last month. Despite some problems with gear selectors in qualifying, the team started the race well with Tommy Erdos taking the class lead from the Belmondo Courage driven by Belgian, Vincent Vosse.
Mike Newton took over in the cockpit after an hour and forty minutes and completed his usual solid and consistent stint before handing back over to his Brazilian team mate. But, just a lap after re-joining back in the lead of the class, Erdos lost drive with what turned out to be a dislodged disc bell.
“That lost us about 7 or 8 laps as we sorted it out,” said Erdos after the race. “We had great pace early on but just had a slice of bad luck. It was a tough race and Mike did a really good job for us, extending the lead.”
The RML MG-Lola was classified 11th overall and the 6 points earned for third in class puts them just behind the Chamberlain Synergy team in the LMP2 points table.
Horag-Lista debuted their Lola B05/40 this weekend after just a few days testing at Most in the Czech Republic. Didier Theys and Fredy Leinhard were learning all about the car during the free practice and qualifying sessions but still impressed with some quick lap times and a commendable 7th on the starting grid.
A good start to the race by Didier Theys ensured that the Judd engined car ran as high as 3rd in LMP2 at one stage. Despite having to revert to a manual gearshift after losing the paddle shift system early on, Theys handed over to Leinhard after a double stint in the car, lapping competitively with the front-runners.
When Leinhard took over from his Belgian team mate, the receiver beacon in the engine bay had to be changed, resulting in a small delay for Leinhard, who was racing a sportscar for the first time in just under a year. Shortly after this, Leinhard was back in the pits and this time there was a more significant delay when the team were forced to change the front left wheel hub. With that done, the car rejoined but got only as far as the first chicane when the left rear wheel worked loose and stranded the Swiss driver on the track, forcing the retirement the car.
"It was a shame but this is all part of the learning experience for us,” said Leinhard, who was delighted by the performance of the car. “The Lola is absolutely fantastic to drive and we are very much looking forward to working and developing it further. It is obvious to Didier and I that it is a very quick car and beautifully put together. We cannot wait to get more testing miles on the car and to show what we can do with it.”
Binnie Motorsports were an early retirement from the race after Adam Sharpe pitted on lap 7. The American/British team were starting only their second event with the Nicholson/McLaren engined B05/40 and they qualified 9th in class, despite some technical problems during the practice sessions. Bill Binnie and Bobby Julien each drove during these sessions but missed out on the race. The team however, are looking forward to some more testing before the next round at Silverstone next month.
