30/10/09
THE DRAYSON RACING LOLA TAKES POLE POSITION
In only its third event since switching to the premier Le Mans Prototype 1 (LMP1) category, Drayson Racing earned its first-ever career pole position today in qualifying for this weekend's Asian Le Mans Series' inaugural event at the Okayama (Japan) International Circuit. In four laps Jonny Cocker piloted the No. 87 Drayson Racing Lola with Judd Power to a grid-setting lap of one minute, 19.143 seconds around the 3.7 Km/2.3 mile, 13-turn race course. Cocker and teammate/owner Paul Drayson will share the Michelin tyre-shod, closed-cockpit racer in a pair of three hour events 31 October and 1 November which will decide the champion of the 2009 Asian Le Mans Series season
.
Whilst the historic ramifications of being in the record book as the first pole winner in the Asian Le Mans Series are momentous, the importance for this weekend is also significant. The double-event weekend held this single, 20-minute qualifying session to set the grid for both of the 136-lap (503.6 Km/312.9 mile)/three hour events. Therefore, by qualifying quickest today, the Dale White-managed team has actually earned the top starting spot for both Saturday and Sunday's events. The first race will start at 12:30 (GMT+9) tomorrow while the second will take the green flag at 09:00 Sunday. In the balance is the championship as well as an automatic invitation to the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June, 2010.
Against a field full of factory efforts and much more experienced prototype drivers/teams, the pole position was a significant event for the family-owned, private racing venture of Drayson Racing. Not only did it show the speed and commitment of the team but also its ability to overcome adversity. Two weeks ago, at the Monterey Sports Car Championships in Monterey, Calif., USA, it was questionable if the Anglo-American team would even be able to make the trip to Asia. A massive incident when Paul Drayson was struck and pushed off course on the race's third lap caused extensive damage to the Lola Coupé. However, the team drew deep and pulled from all corners of its technical partners including Lola Cars International and Judd Engines to prepare the car for shipment in two days. With the arrival of the car and needed parts in Japan, the crew was able to repair the No. 87 not only to survive but flourish on today's first day of practice and qualifying.