Photo : D.R. - Onroak Automotive

 

Gustavo Yacaman will be having his first outing in the car and he will share it with a top-class team-mate Alex Brundle, one of the development drivers of the Ligier JS P2, with whom he clinched second place at Watkins Glen.

A month after the team’s disappointing race at Road America where OAK Racing was forced to retire after its no. 42 Morgan-Nissan LM P2 was punted off the track, the French squad is making its comeback at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) and taking up a new challenge. OAK Racing is running the new Ligier JS P2 built in the constructor Onroak Automotive’s workshops in the Tudor USCC for the first time.

The performance of the new sports prototype from the Sarthe made a big impression on its first outing, the Le Mans 24 Hours, in which three cars were entered powered by Nissan and HPD engines. After a very fruitful collaboration with Nissan, which supplied power for the no. 42 OAK Racing Morgan LM P2 entered in the Tudor USCC, the team has decided to use the Ligier JS P2-HPD that raced in the Sarthe classic.

While Yacaman has not yet driven the new Ligier JS P2, he will be able to count on the expertise of Brundle who has a lot of experience in this car as development driver and his outing in the Le Mans 24 Hours. They should both find their marks quickly and work in close collaboration with the HPD team to make the most of the potential of the Honda engine, and also to find the right setups adapted to the Continental tyres used on the Ligier JS P2 for the first time.

Will the quick, technical Circuit of the Americas see the first victory of the Ligier JS P2 and a second win in North America for OAK Racing this year?

Gustavo Yacaman: "After this long summer break I am ready to get back in the car at COTA. Specially to show what the new Ligier JSP2 can do. I want to thank Zytek and Nissan Motorsports for a flawless season until now, but at the same time I am very excited to work with the guys from HPD. It will be fun to have a double Onroak Automotive programme at COTA with the WEC and TUSCC teams present. I believe we can score a double win for Onroak Automotive in both championships."

Alex Brundle: "COTA is an awesome venue and I can't wait to get back out on track there. This will be the first track I have previously visited on my 2014 stateside calendar so I'm looking forward to going back. The Ligier chassis is one I know well from my role in the development process and participation at Le Mans, but the HPD engine is a new challenge for me. We will have to get out heads around the machinery quickly to achieve a good result."

Philippe Dumas, OAK Racing Team Principal: “The team is thrilled to bits by this new challenge. We entered two Ligier JS P2s in the Le Mans 24 Hours, one with a Nissan engine and the other with HPD power shod with Dunlop and Michelin tyres, but it’s the first time we’re running the car on Continental rubber. We’ll have a big setup job to do during practice. Our motivation’s still as strong as ever and a top-three finish is our prime target. We’re going to Austin with a lot of humility and high hopes. We’ll do everything possible to score a good result on the Ligier JS P2’s first outing on the North American continent, and we also want to shine at Road Atlanta.”

Jacques Nicolet, Onroak Automotive President: “We arrived here at the beginning of the year to take part in the Tudor USCC with OAK Racing and the Morgan LM P2. Our top-three finishes in Detroit and at Watkins Glen and our win in Canada have put us in fourth place in the overall classification despite tough competition from the DPs. Today, our aim is to take part in the last two rounds of the season with a new product from Onroak Automotive, the Ligier JS P2 which made an eye-catching debut in the Le Mans 24 Hours. This closed prototype should attract the public and, we hope, generate interest among American teams to the same extent as it has done in Europe. Our participation in Austin with two Ligiers, one for G-Drive Racing in the FIA WEC and one for OAK Racing in the Tudor USCC powered by Nissan and HPD engines respectively, testify to our determination to be present in the US in the long term with our products.”

OAK Racing press release