JOTA Sport, winners of the LMP2 category at the 2014 Le Mans 24 Hour, have received a personal invitation to the Goodwood Festival of Speed from the Earl of March.
The late invitiation from Lord March comes after the team’s impressive performance at the Le Mans 24 Hours, the only British team with an all-British driver lineup to take the spoils at the historic endurance race this year. The feat marks the first time in 10 years that three English drivers have shared a victory at Le Mans.
The team, a small but dedicated group from the Kent/Sussex border, comprised of businessmen and part-time racer Simon Dolan and professional drivers Oliver Turvey and Le Mans débutante Harry Tincknell. Completing the British pedigree of the team is the car itself, with the Zytek being built in Derbyshire, running on tyres produced at Birmingham’s Fort Dunlop. The trio completed 356 laps of the Circuit de La Sarthe, or 3,016 miles, at an average speed of 125.14mph.
“I’ve been to the Festival a couple of times before but only as an interested spectator,” said Dolan. “This will be the first time I’ve been there as a ‘driver’. I have no idea what it’ll be like driving our Zytek up the hill and so I think I’ll be taking it nice and slowly and just revel in the glory rather than go for a time!”
“This will be my first-ever visit to Goodwood and I’m really looking forward to it,” added 22-year-old Tincknell. “It’s quickly grown into one of the biggest motorsport events, not only in Britain, but also in the world. To be going there as a Le Mans 24 Hours winner is incredible. I’ve been lucky enough to be around some great Le Mans champions, like my mentor Allan McNish and David Brabham, so going there as a winner in my own right is amazing. I’m looking forward to tackling the actual hillclimb. It’ll be my first time doing anything like this and I’m sure it’ll be a lot of fun. The ‘Mighty 38’ Zytek did us proud at Le Mans and deserves to be there with the rest of the great cars present.”
All three drivers will take stints behind the wheel at the Festival of Speed, while fellow JOTA Group partner David Clark will drive his Harrods McLaren F1 GTR. The McLaren has also seen success at Le Mans, finishing third in 1995 with Derek Bell at the wheel. Bell was reunited with the car at Goodwood, while American chat show host Jay Leno has also driven it up the Goodwood hill.
