Chris Hoy and Charlie Robertson clinched the inaugural European Le Mans Series LMP3 championship with a round to spare at Paul Ricard.
The Scottish duo, sharing the #3 Team LNT-entered Ginetta-Nissan, won by over a lap at the French circuit to take the victory required to seal the title.
The retirement of the sister #2 Ginetta of Gaetan Paletou and Michael Simpson left Hoy and Robertson virtually unopposed for the rest of the race.
“I’m delighted,” exclaimed Hoy afterwards. “The last closing stages were very nervous because we were just trying to stay on the track and off the kerbs. We had some damage to the front part of the bodywork so it was just about nursing the car home. Charlie finished off in the last 20 minutes. It was an awesome result.”
“It’s just been an almost perfect season really,” said Robertson. “The team have been working tirelessly, working constant developments on the car. It’s been a really reliable car in its first season, too. I’m absolutely over the moon and so is Chris. It’s a dream come true, despite me only finding out that I could win the title in this morning’s press conference!”
The victory places Hoy and Robertson an unassailable 38 points ahead of the second placed University of Bolton entry. Now the pair are looking ahead, primarily towards the 2016 24 Hours of Le Mans.
“I’d love to compete at Le Mans next year and Charlie would as well,” explained Hoy. “We need to sort out cars and teams and everything else but we’re definitely on track. There’s a long way to go until Le Mans but I’m always trying to learn and develop as much information as possible.”
The #3 squad’s season started with a gutsy victory at Silverstone, before a pair of penalties hampered their progress at Imola. Nevertheless, a dominant win at the Red Bull Ring in July set the stage for a shot at the class title – an opportunity that was duly converted this afternoon. The team now looks ahead to the final round of the championship at Portugal’s Estoril circuit on October 18.