Grist/Erdos/Boyd score excellent third place in LMP3
United Autosports celebrated its 300th race in great style when Garett Grist/Tommy Erdos/Wayne Boyd recorded the Anglo-American team’s 154th podium finish in the team’s 10-year history in Spain last night. Competing in the third round of the European Le Mans Series, Grist/Erdos/Boyd scored a well-deserved LMP3 third place at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, the four-hour race run in the evening for the very first time in the championship’s history.
2 Grist/Erdos/Boyd and the sister #3 Ligier of Mike Guasch/Christian England both led LMP3 in the final 30 minutes, #3 having to ultimately settle for P5. In LMP2, #22 (Filipe Albuquerque/Phil Hanson) and #32 (Alex Brundle/Ryan Cullen/Will Owen) recorded seventh and eighth positions after dogged drives.
2 Grist/Erdos/Boyd. Qualified: 6th (WB). Race: 3rd (LMP3).
3 Guasch/England. Qualified: 13th (CE). Race: 5th (LMP3).
LMP3 Race
2 (Grist) and #3 (England) started P6, Boyd equalling his best qualifying position of the season, and P13 respectively. #3 lay 9th after 30 minutes before an off cost England a place and an early pit-stop while #2 (Grist) recovered from an opening spin which dropped him to 15th and the back of the LMP3 field. With 60 minutes on the clock, #2 lay 10th but yet to pit, one place ahead of #3.
3, on a different pit-stop sequence to the majority in class, led approaching the 90 minutes mark with Boyd, having taken over #2, 7th. Guasch took over #3 at mid-distance after a stellar drive by England with #3 4th while #2 (Boyd) headed the field himself early in the third hour before pitting to Erdos. #3 (Guasch) was back into the lead with 90 minutes remaining and led entering the final hour with #2 (Erdos) 3rd, but Guasch spun out of the lead with 20 minutes remaining, handing the lead to Erdos, #3 resuming P3. But almost immediately, #2 lost the lead and #3 slipped back another place, the United pair taking the chequered flag in P3 (#2) – the car’s second consecutive podium – and P5 (#3) respectively, Mike dropping a place on the final lap when he was punted off the track by the car that took fourth place.
2 and #3 lie fourth and seventh in the Team’s standings.
Garett Grist (CAN), driver car #2, United Autosports: Born: St. Catherine’s, Canada. Lives: Grimsby, Canada. Age: 24 “The opening lap was a complete disaster being forced off the track and into the gravel/sand traps in two separate incidents. Two cars ahead of me got together and I had to go off on the outside of T3 to avoid them. Then into T9, I went to pass one of the GT Porsches and when I pulled out to pass him he just swerved towards me causing me to lock-up and spin into the gravel. Both incidents were in avoidance but didn’t have contact in either but it put me at the back of the field. It was a rough start.”
Tommy Erdos (BRA), driver car #2, United Autosports: Born: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Lives: Milton Keynes, UK. Age: 55 “Our car had a very difficult start to the race. Garett had to avoid incidents ahead of him and lost a lot of time. At that point if I’d been told we would get a podium I wouldn’t have believed it! I think once again the team showed their strength and resilience and never gave up and kept pushing. It was hard conditions for everybody, the drivers and the pit crew, but to fight back from the back and get a podium in the end, I think is fantastic. I’m very happy.”
Wayne Boyd (GB), driver car #2, United Autosports: Born: Belfast, Northern Ireland. Lives: Templepatrick, Northern Ireland. Age: 28 “I enjoyed my stint. I quite like recovering and trying to get back up through the field and being on different strategies, it’s always very interesting. The pace of the car was really good and it was a case of managing the traffic. We got back up into the lead, obviously on a different strategy, but from where we were and to get back up into the mix of things was really good.”
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