THE CIRCUIT

For the sixth time, the ELMS will head to the Red Bull Ring, nestled in the foothills of the Austrian Alps of Styria. The 4.218 km-circuit located near Spielberg recently hosted a Formula 1 race. It is remarkably hilly and offers breathtaking views to attending spectators. Overtaking opportunities are relatively limited, so the 4 Hours of the Red Bull Ring is known as one of the most exciting rounds on the ELMS calendar.

THE GRID

Eighteen cars will once again take the start in the LMP2 class. The winner at Monza, G-Drive Racing (#26 ORECA 07-Gibson) currently has 37 points and will continue counting on Roman Rusinov, Andrea Pizzitola and newly-crowned Formula E world champion Jean-Eric Vergne. Trailing by only one point, TDS Racing (#33 ORECA 07–Gibson) is a favorite contender thanks to Loïc Duval, François Perrodo and Matthieu Vaxivière (but this will be their final appearance in the championship this year). One point behind the French team is the winner of the opening round at Le Castellet, Racing Engineering, with its #24 ORECA 07-Gibson entrusted to top-notch trio Norman Nato, Paul Petit and Olivier Pla. Fourth and fifth in the ELMS are two more ORECAs fielded by Duqueine Engineering (the #29 driven by Pierre Ragues, Nicolas Jamin and Nelson Panciatici) and IDEC Sport (the #28 shared by Memo Rojas, Paul Lafargue and Paul-Loup Chatin), respectively, the latter having clinched the LMP2 pole at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Let's not forget the winners of the 2017 running of the 4 Hours of the Red Bull Ring: Filipe Albuquerque, Will Owen and Hugo de Sadeleer. Still representing American team United Autosports, the three men will not be driving the same car this year: the Portuguese driver will take the wheel of the #22 Ligier JS P217-Gibson with Phil Hanson, while Owen and de Sadeleer will share the #32 with Wayne Boyd. 

There are a few other driver line-up details worth mentioning. IDEC Sport Racing will have Patrice Lafargue and Erik Maris at the wheel of its #27 Ligier JS P217-Gibson. The Graff team's #40 ORECA 07-Gibson will be driven by Jose Gutierrez and James Allen in the wake of Enzo Guibbert's departure.

LMP3 winners at Monza, Giorgio Mondini and Kay van Berlo (Eurointernational's #11 Ligier JS P3) boast a 10-point lead on Terrance Woodward and Ross Kaiser (360 Racing's #6 Ligier JS P3). Alain Ferté (with 14 participations in the 24 Hours to his credit) will take the wheel of Yvan Muller Racing's #19 Norma M30 LMP3 along with David Droux and Lucas Légeret. The LMP3 class has lost one entrant: Racing Team Poland's Ligier JS P3. 

Title-winner in LMGTE in 2017 and fifth at the 2018 running of Le Mans in LMGTE Am, JMW Motorsport (#66 Ferrari 488 GTE) had a successful early season in France, currently leading the overall standings with 37 points. The British team is six points ahead of Ebimotors' #80 Porsche 911 RSR (sixth at the 24 Hours), with Proton Competition's #77 and #88 Porsche 911 RSR not far behind.

ENTRY LIST

SCHEDULE

Free Practice 1                         20/07/2018 11:15     Duration: 90 min.

Bronze Driver Collective Test 20/07/2018 16:35     Duration: 30 min.

Free Practice 2                         21/07/2018 09:15     Duration: 90 min.

Qualifying - LMGTE                 21/07/2018 13:40     Duration: 10 min.

Qualifying - LMP3                   21/07/2018 14:00     Duration: 10 min.

Qualifying - LMP2                   21/07/2018 14:20     Duration: 10 min.

Race                                           22/07/2018 12:00     Duration: 4 hours

 

VIDEO: YouTube - ELMS 

PHOTO: Will Filipe Albuquerque (Ligier JS P217-Gibson) win the 4 Hours of the Red Bull Ring two years in a row?