- United Autosports ready for inaugural British Prototype Cup
- Four car team for European Le Mans Series LMP3 champions
- Successful third two-day test for United Autosports in the lead up to the Prototype Cup
United Autosports are preparing for the inaugural Prototype Cup race this weekend at Snetterton (8-9 October).
They will be running four Ligier JS P3 sports prototypes in the showcase event before a full calendar of races in announced for 2017.
Jay Palmer and Wayne Boyd will team up in the #2 Ligier JS P3, having attended all three of United Autosports’ exclusive test events since July. Jacques Duyver and Charlie Hollings, who were present at the most recent United Autosports test, will race in the #3 Ligier, while recently announced American racers, Guy Cosmo and Patrick Byrne, will race the #32 Ligier. Previously announced driver Richard Meins is unfortunately unable to take part in the upcoming race weekend due to business commitments, leaving Shaun Lynn to pilot the iconic #23 Gulf-liveried Ligier on his own.
A total of nine cars will enter the race at Snetterton, with Tockwith Motorsports, Douglas Motorsports and Team West Tec joining United Autosports on the grid, with drivers Nigel Moore, Phil Hanson, Mike Newbould, Thomas Randle and others still to be announced.
As part of their role as UK agents for Onroak Automotive, United Autosports have provided Prototype Cup teams and potential Ligier customers with exclusive test days in the lead up to the first race. Their latest test was earlier this week (3-4 October) where Aaron Scott, John Dhillon, Andrew Bentley and Pat Egan all tried out a Ligier JS P3. Over the course of the three tests, Jon Minshaw, Phil Keen, Bradley Smith, Richard Abra, Mark Poole, Jack Butel and Matteo Bobbi have all tested the new LMP3 machinery. Pirelli – the Prototype Cup tyre supplier – have also supported all three tests as they worked with United Autosports on tyre testing for the new series.
The Prototype Cup race weekend will begin on Saturday 8th October, at 10:05 for a 20-minute free practice session, then the 20-minute qualifying session will begin at 14:20. On Sunday 9th October, drivers will have a 10-minute warm up at 10:25, with the 60-minute race beginning at 14:00.
The full calendar of British Prototype Cup races in 2017 will be confirmed soon. For further information on the Prototype Cup, visit www.prototypecup.com
Richard Dean, Team Owner and Managing Director, United Autosports:
“I’m really excited about the first Prototype Cup event. We have put a lot of work into making the weekend a success and I hope all the teams enjoy themselves and enjoy racing the Ligier JS P3 cars. I think it’s a great idea to have this first event to test the water – there has been a lot of interest from drivers and teams about the Ligiers and the Prototype Cup. We are working closely with Bute Motorsport – the organisers of the series – and are hopeful of a great calendar for 2017 that compliments the ELMS calendar. There are no more than nine cars sold in the UK at the moment, but with the deposits we have taken as Onroak Automotive UK agents, we expect nearer 20 to be turning up to the first round of the championship next year.”