United Autosports Suffer Massive Disappointment In Spa 24 Hours

An incredulous Geddie barged in to spin after only five-minutesExtremely rare engine problem halts 24 hour race debutant BrattAnglo-American team now concentrate on British GT series title assault Twenty-four hour motor races are rarely won in the opening minutes but they can certainly be lost and that was the unfortunate case for United Autosports in the 65th edition of the legendary Total 24 Hours Of Spa this weekend (27-28 July).On only the second lap with just five minutes on the clock and with Glynn Geddie (GB) at the wheel, the Anglo-American team's Audi R8 LMS ultra was hit hard and launched in to a spin at the La Source hairpin.And while Geddie set competitive lap times before a scheduled pit-stop for a driver change and full service (fuel and tires), Mark Patterson (USA) pitted with almost 90mins on the clock to repair the front nose 'splitter' and have the right rear upright replaced - both of which were damaged in the contact at the beginning of the race.The 46min pit-stop for repairs effectively scuppered any chance the Audi R8 LMS ultra of Will Bratt (GB), Geddie (GB) Alain Li (F) and Patterson (USA) had of claiming a top-result in the ultra-competitive Pro-Am category.Ultimately a rare Audi engine issue after four hours - the first United Autosports has suffered in 62 races since the team's formation in 2010 - brought a halt to its one-off Blancpain Endurance Series appearance which marked the team's fourth consecutive year of contesting the annual Spa race - arguably the most important and prestigious GT3 sports car race in the world.Indeed 28 of the 65-cars contested the Pro-Am category with many featuring 'factory' manufacturer drivers - plus ex-Formula One pilots -  with teams from throughout Europe, Russia and the Ukraine such was the level of competition in the 'blue ribband' event which was run in mainly warm, dry and humid conditions.Race Facts  #125 Allied World/UBS/Viglen Audi R8 LMS ultra16:30   Start: 53rd/26th Geddie16:35   50th Geddie, tagged into spin at La Source, resumes 61st almost one lap down17:00   Safety Car, 54th Geddie (clearing accident damage from track)17:13   Race resumes, 43rd/22nd GeddiePosition after 1hr: 40th/17th, -2 laps17:31   40th Geddie, full service (fuel and tires) to Patterson, resumes 56th/25th

17:48   Safety Car, Patterson 50th/22nd (clearing accident damage from track)17:54   50th/22nd Patterson pits, front splitter & right rear upright replaced, both damaged when Geddie was spun around (16:35). Patterson resumes (18:40) after 46mins pit-stop, 59th/25th    17:59   Race resumesPosition after 2hrs: 56th/24th, -16 laps19:00   Patterson spins at T13, resumes no contactPosition after 3hrs: 59th/25th, -20 laps19:39   59th/25th Patterson, full service (fuel and tires) to Bratt, resumes 59th/25th20:04   57th/24th Bratt pits, reports engine down on power, fuel, electrics re-booted, resumes 56th/24th20:25   56th/24th Bratt pits, reports down on powerPosition after 4hrs: 56th/24th, -68 laps21:29   Officially retired, engine* Overall/Pro-Am class positionsWill Bratt (GB). Age: 25. Born: Oxford, UK. Lives: Banbury, England, UK."I took over from Mark [Patterson] and as soon as I left the pits and accelerated up the hill, the engine didn't feel right it was down on power. I reported this back to the pits and we gave it a couple of laps to see whether it would sort itself out but it got worse – the other Audi cars were flying past so I pitted. The team rebooted the electrics but the problem remained so after a further 20mins I pitted again. The Audi Sport technicians looked over the engine for over an hour before it was decided to call it a day. It was a sad and frustrating end to my first 24 hour race but working with United Autosports for a second time was good fun."Glynn Geddie (GB). Age: 23. Born/Lives: Aberdeen, Scotland, UK.

"I started the race but was launched in to by a Mercedes at the beginning of the second lap! To take a lunge down my inside going into a right-hand hairpin like that just five minutes in, was stupid and ruined our race as the impact caused a lot of damage and ultimately forced us to make a lengthy pit-stop for repairs. For something like that to happen so early in a 24 hour race is soul destroying. Ultimately we were sidelined with an engine issue which was a great shame as I'm certain we could have recovered and achieved a decent result."Alain Li (F). Age: 53. Born: Caen, France. Lives: Hong Kong."Luck wasn't on our side this year, that said I'm already looking forward to 2014! The potential was there despite Audi's performance being restricted on this occasion. Getting hit is out of our control while a mechanical problem with an Audi is so rare but that's motor racing."Mark Patterson (USA). Age: 61. Born: Port Elizabeth, S Africa. Lives: Bronxville, N.Y., USA."It was my fourth consecutive year with United in an Audi at Spa and we'd obviously hoped for a respectable showing. But the Balance of Performance affected all of the Audi sports cars this time. Getting hit so early in the race was inexcusable. So our race was on the wrong trajectory from the start and unfortunately by the time Will began his stint, irreparable engine damage took us out of the contest which was very sad. It's now a case of concentrating on winning the BGT title with Matt Bell."Richard Dean (GB), Managing Director & Co-Owner of United Autosports:"I've done a lot of racing with the Audi and this is our first engine failure. It's not as if we've only done 'sprint' races with the R8, we've been here for the last four years and have done the Dubai 24 Hours plus 12 hour races in Abu Dhabi and Bathurst. There's a first time for everything but it doesn't make it any easier for the entire team who've put a lot of effort in for this race. It's rare as Audi's reliability is second to none. It's disappointing for all four drivers but especially for Glynn, who was driving the Audi for the first time, for Will who was competing in his first 24 hour race and Alain who didn't get in to the car during the race. It's made even more frustrating because the reports back from the drivers was that we had a good race car and our times were competitive. We will regroup and rest assured, a knock like this makes us even more determined to win the British GT Championship which we currently trail by just half a point so come Monday, our focus is the next BGT race at Brands Hatch."


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