MANOR (GBR)

Website : www.manorwec.com

2016 FIA WEC results:
6 Hours of Silverstone: Rao/Bradley/Mehri (GBR/GBR/ESP), Oreca 05 - Nissan #45, 10th (6th LM P2) Graves/Stevens/Jakes (GBR/GBR/GBR), Oreca 05 - Nissan #44, Rtd.

6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps: Rao/Bradley/Mehri (GBR/GBR/ESP), Oreca 05 - Nissan #45, 9th (3rd LM P2); Graves/Stevens/Jakes (GBR/GBR/GBR), Oreca 05 - Nissan #44, 15th (8th LM P2).

 

John Booth founded Manor in 1990 when he retired as a driver. It was important to the Formula Ford driver to remain in the world of single-seater racing. Manor reaped victories in the British Formula Renault right from the first season but didn’t claim the title until 1994. It was the first of eight! Several well-known drivers worked with Manor, namely Guy Smith who won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2013, Audi factory driver Oliver Jarvis, not to mention Formula One champions Kimi Räikkönen and Lewis Hamilton.

Meanwhile, in 1999, Manor began a Formula 3 campaign. The team’s season opener win was a good omen and they strode to victory, thanks to drivers Marc Hynes and Tor Graves – whose team is also at Le Mans this year. Manor then ventured into the Formula 3 Euros Series, with less success and then moved on to the GP3 Series and Formula One in 2010. Initially named Manor Grand Prix, the Formula One team quickly became known as Virgin, its sponsor’s name. A regular at the back of the grid, Virgin Racing became Marussia F1 Team in 2012. In the winter of 2014/15, with no glimpse of a victory and still reeling from Jules Bianchi’s fatal accident in Japan, Manor bordered on bankruptcy.  But John Booth stuck his heels in and enlisted the help of engineer and entrepreneur Graeme Lowdon of Nomad Digital, a leading data management company in the transport field. The pair signed an agreement with businessman Stephen Fitzpatrick for the sale of Manor F1, but their diverging interests soon became apparent and Booth and Lowdon decided to make 2015 their last season in Formula One. They headed straight for endurance and put together a FIA World Endurance Championship campaign for 2016.

The team rebranded as the original Manor, bought a Nissan-powered Oreca 05 #44 and hired Tor Graves, who has competed at Le Mans twice, in 2012 and 2013. Manor quickly announced they would be running a second Oreca 05 (#45) in the FIA WEC, but it was too late to enter it for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The #45 will therefore be running a full season with the exception of the French 24-hour race. For his driver line-up, John Booth is relying on old favourites. Will Stevens drove for the team in Formula One in 2015 while James Jakes was with Manor in F3 in 2007 and in GP3 Series in 2010. In the second car, Matt Rao, Roberto Mehri and last year’s LM P2 winner Richard Bradley will be chasing the class trophy.

The season-opener at Silverstone was disappointing. The #44 retired due to a transmission breakdown and the #45 took seventh place after a contact with another LM P2. However, the outcome at Spa-Francorchamps was a podium place. Despite a setback when Roberto Mehri was sent spinning, the crew of the #45 Oreca 05 earned themselves third place. The #44 encountered brake issues and the repair work put a victory out of reach. Without those incidents, Manor could well have won the race as the cars were in the lead for much of the race. If the reliability issues are ironed out, Manor is a serious candidate for the LM P2 podium and possibly the top step.