Experienced British prototype racer Alex Brundle has been chosen to lead United Autosports’ LMP3 challenge in next year’s European Le Mans Series.
The 25 year old will drive the Anglo-American squad’s recently purchased Ligier JS P3 in all six races of the 2016 season, starting at the 4 Hours of Silverstone in April.
Brundle has a close association with Onroak Automotive, which produces the Ligier-branded cars, having assisted in the testing and development of the Ligier JS P2 model last year.
“I’m delighted to be joining United Autosports for the full and extended European Le Mans Series in 2016,” he said. “I’ve admired the way they go racing for a long time and it’s going to be absolutely great to work with them on their new LMP3 programme.”
“I have worked closely with Ligier in the past on their LMP2 programme and it is great to continue working with a Ligier chassis underneath me. First and foremost though, my excitement is with joining United Autosports and mirroring the ambition and effectiveness of Zak [Brown] and Richard [Dean] in the delivery of their previous motorsport programmes which I’m sure will continue into their 2016 ELMS campaign.”
The Ligier JS P3 will complete its first full ELMS season next year (Credit: Frederich Le Floc’h/DPPI)
Despite his young age Brundle – the son of former Le Mans winner Martin – has a wealth of sportscar racing experience under his belt, including three appearances at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. His best result came in 2013 when he partnered Olivier Pla and David Heinemeier Hansson to a second place in LMP2 with OAK Racing.
In addition to his Le Mans exploits, Brundle has also taken part in the Daytona 24 Hours twice, as well as a number of prominent championships including the Le Mans Series, United Sportscar Championship, Blancpain Endurance Series and FIA World Endurance Championship.
“It’s great to have Alex on board for 2016 to lead the team in our debut in the ELMS,” said Zak Brown, chairman and owner of United Autosports. “He’s got a strong racing history that will benefit both him and United heading into a new era for us all. His knowledge of LMP racing and the circuits on the ELMS calendar will stand us in good stead for the year ahead. I can’t wait to see how he gets on.”
“He is fast and reliable and will bring a huge amount of knowledge of LMP racing to our team and we are looking forward to working with him on the development of our LMP3 programme,” added Richard Dean, United Autosports owner and managing director. “We worked with Alex’s father Martin at the 2011 Rolex Daytona 24 when he finished fourth alongside Zak, Mark Blundell and Mark Patterson so this will be really interesting for us to also get to work with Alex for a full season.”
