First run - at Snetterton
Hong Kong’s Le Mans car has seen its first taste of action – and drivers Matthew Marsh and Darryl O’Young are delighted with the results.

The Noble Group-GruppeM Racing duo tested their Porsche GT3 RSR for the first time at the UK’s Snetterton circuit in preparation for their opening race at Monza, Italy in just over a week.

The testing session came just five days after the team was officially launched in a blaze of publicity in Hong Kong.

“Last week's launch was the first tangible evidence of all the hard work, and the positive reaction from all the supporters was very pleasing,” said Marsh. “Today, though, was huge. Before today there was always an element of doubt. What would it be like to drive an RSR? Could we handle it? Now we know the answers. All is well – we can do this!

“We were within a second of the times set by the other car run by GruppeM [driven by Jonathan Cocker and Tim Sugden]. This is Darryl’s first trip to Europe, yet he adapted very well to a circuit he had never seen before and ended the day two tenths of a second faster than me. He has shown we made the correct choice of co-driver.”
Noble Group-GruppeM Racing are attempting to become the first Hong Kong team to compete in the Le Mans 24 Hours, the world’s greatest sports car race. The team will take part in four endurance races in Europe, one at Zhuhai and another in the USA in an effort to be invited to Le Mans in June 2006.

Wednesday’s session marked the car’s first outing in bauhinia colours after it arrived from the USA in late May and was stripped and rebuilt at GruppeM’s UK workshop.

Team engineer Steve “Doc” Bunkhall was happy with the day’s events. “It was a very satisfactory start,” he said. “The car was reliable and the drivers performed well.”
The car was taken back to GruppeM’s workshop in Hemel Hempstead, north of London, to be prepared for departure to Italy on Monday.

The Monza race on July 10 is part of the Le Mans Endurance Series, a season of 1000 kilometre (about six-hours) races around Europe designed to help teams and drivers get in shape for Le Mans.

O’Young added: “The day went as we planned. We both got a good feel for the car and we’re going away happy and excited about Monza.”
- posted by Matthew @ 02:25   

 
Team Launch in Wan Chai!
Hong Kong’s history making Le Mans team are ready for their first taste of action after unveiling their racing car in the SAR today.

Noble Group-GruppeM Racing took the covers off the Porsche GT3 RSR – which features the Bauhinia symbol emblazoned on the roof – at an official launch ceremony outside 1/5 club in Star Street, Wanchai.

Co-drivers Matthew Marsh and Darryl O’Young posed for pictures with the car which they hope will carry them to glory in the world’s greatest endurance race, the Le Mans 24 Hours, in June next year.

“This is a fantastic moment for SAR motorsport,” said Marsh. “We have brought the car here to show Hong Kong people that we truly mean business. The Bauhinia flag will be flying proudly at Le Mans next year – and we intend to prove we belong there.”

O’Young added: “It’s a magnificent racing machine and I can’t wait to get behind the wheel. We’re going testing in the UK next week and our first race at Monza is just three weeks away. We’re ready to roll.”

The two drivers fielded questions at a launch press conference in 1/5 attended by dozens of media before stepping outside to unwrap the car.

The launch was rounded off by a glamorous VIP cocktail party at 1/5 yesterday evening attended by more than 200 people including sponsors, supporters and celebrity fans.

Marsh and O’Young also revealed that Hong Kong fans would have the chance to watch them in action later this year – in the China round of the FIA GT Championship. The 11-race series for GT cars, which is staged across Europe and Asia, visits Zhuhai on October 23 and Marsh said Noble Group-GruppeM Racing would “almost certainly” be there.

“Our other four races this year are all in Europe, so it would be tremendous to compete in a top-class event on Hong Kong’s doorstep,” he said. “We’re finalising arrangements to take part and it would be fantastic if local fans could turn out in numbers to support us.”

The road to Le Mans begins on July 10 at Monza, Italy, when the team will compete in a 1,000-km, six-hour event that is part of the Le Mans Endurance Series (LMES). They will compete in further LMES races at Silverstone in August, Nurburgring in September and Istanbul in November, interspersed with the Zhuhai date.

After a winter break, Marsh and O’Young will take the car to Florida next March for the USA’s most high-profile endurance race, the 12 Hours of Sebring. A good result in that race, backed up by consistent performances in the LMES, will be enough to secure an invitation to the Le Mans 24 Hours in June 2006.

The two drivers will head to the UK early next week to begin testing at Snetterton, ironically the circuit where Marsh – the reigning Porsche Infineon Carrera Cup Asia champion – began his racing career as a teenager in the mid-1980s.

Briton Marsh, 36, a Hong Kong resident for 14 years, has spent the past year piecing together corporate sponsorship for the ambitious project. It will be the first time that a car owned and sponsored by SAR companies and piloted by Hong Kong drivers has gone wheel to wheel with the world’s best at Le Mans.

The project has been made possible by the support and enthusiasm of two Hong Kong companies – Noble Group and the William E Connor Group – and GruppeM Racing, the UK-based outfit that is one of only two teams worldwide to carry Porsche “factory supported” status.

Another piece in the jigsaw was fitted last month with the announcement that Canadian-Chinese driver O’Young, 25, had joined the team. Born in Vancouver to Hong Kong parents, O’Young came “home” to the SAR 18 months ago to begin competing in the Carrera Cup.

Noble Group-GruppeM Racing also revealed last month that recently retired SAR racing legend Charles Kwan Siu Cheung had agreed to be an official adviser to the team.

O’Young added: “We have the car, we have the driving expertise, we have the technical support and we have the sponsorship package. This is a team with ‘made in Hong Kong’ stamped all over it. Now, it’s time to race, and we aim to give the people of Hong Kong something to be proud of.”
- posted by Matthew @ 02:24   

 
O'Young joins Marsh in Le Mans bid
Hong Kong drivers Matthew Marsh and Darryl O’Young are teaming up to fly the bauhinia flag for the SAR’s pioneering Le Mans team.

Marsh, the reigning Porsche Infineon Carrera Cup Asia champion, and O’Young, one of his rivals in the series, are to be co-drivers on the Hong Kong team aiming to take part in the world’s greatest sports car race – the Le Mans 24 Hours.

And making it a true Hong Kong “dream team” will be recently retired SAR racing legend Charles Kwan Siu Cheung, who has agreed to act as an official adviser to the project.

“This is a dream come true – I’m still pinching myself,” said Canadian-born Chinese driver O’Young. “Since I was young Le Mans has always been the peak of sports car racing, so to land this project is the culmination of everything I’ve been aiming for in my racing career.

“At 25, I feel I’m always learning but I’m ready for the challenge and this is a fantastic opportunity. I’ve learned so much from racing in the Carrera Cup last season and this season and it’s really prepared me for this chance.”

O’Young, the son of a Hong Kong mother and a father from Guangdong province who was raised in Hong Kong, was born in Vancouver and began karting at the age of eight. He moved to the SAR at the beginning of last year to start competing in the Carrera Cup. He added: “I’ve done a 24-hour race and a 12-hour race in California. They were club-level events but they gave me good experience to prepare for this.”

Marsh, who has been spearheading the ambitious project, was delighted to secure O’Young’s services. “It’s fantastic news that Darryl has joined the project,” he said. “I know from competing against him in the Carrera Cup that he is an extremely talented driver who has plenty of experience racing Porsches.

“Just as importantly, Darryl is a team player, someone who will put the needs of the team ahead of the individual. Right from the start of our discussions he has been very enthusiastic about the Le Mans campaign and is keen to be part of Hong Kong motor racing history.”

The Hong Kong team, Noble Group-GruppeM Racing, has been further boosted by the news that former Carrera Cup champion Kwan has agreed to be an adviser.

Kwan, 41, who retired from competitive racing last November after 20 years in the sport, said: “It’s a great project, one that will raise the profile of motor racing in Hong Kong.

“Matthew and Darryl know I have plenty of experience, especially having been involved in endurance racing in Japan, so that’s why they’ve asked me to be an adviser. They’ve been putting a lot of time and effort into this and I’m happy to help.”

Marsh said Kwan’s support would be invaluable. “Charles brings vast knowledge and experience to the setup,” he said. “He will be advising us on a wide range of subjects from endurance driving skills to technical issues. He’s fully supportive of the Le Mans campaign and it’s a huge boost for the team to have him involved.”

Marsh and O’Young will be driving a Porsche GT3 RSR with a distinctive yellow, white and red livery that features a large bauhinia on the roof. It will be the first time ever that a car owned and sponsored by SAR companies and piloted by Hong Kong drivers has gone wheel to wheel with the world’s best at Le Mans.

The road to Le Mans will begin with four races this year in the Le Mans Endurance Series (LMES) in Europe – each event is 1,000km and lasts about six hours – followed by a trip to the 12 Hours of Sebring race in Florida next March. Good results in those five outings will be enough to secure an invitation to the Le Mans 24 Hours in June 2006.

A two-man driving team is enough for the LMES, but a third driver will be required for Sebring and Le Mans. “Sebring is more than nine months away, so we have plenty of time to select the third driver,” said British-born Marsh, 36, who has lived in Hong Kong for 14 years.

The Le Mans project has been made possible by the support and enthusiasm of two Hong Kong companies – Noble Group and the William E Connor Group – and GruppeM Racing, the UK-based outfit that is one of only two teams worldwide to carry Porsche “factory supported” status.

“Hong Kong could not ask for a better driving team than Matthew and Darryl,” said GruppeM owner Kenny Chen, a Chinese property developer who has lived in the UK for the past 18 years. “They are both experienced Porsche drivers with the talent and technical know-how needed to race at the highest level. We’re really looking forward to working with them.”

Noble Group-GruppeM Racing will begin their campaign at Monza, Italy, on July 10, the first of the four LMES races. Other events will be at Silverstone in August, Germany’s famous Nurburgring in September and Istanbul, Turkey, in November.

The team’s Porsche has already been delivered to the UK and Marsh and O’Young expect to begin testing at Silverstone in mid to late June.

“All the pieces in the project are coming together nicely,” added Marsh. “We worked long and hard to put the sponsorship package in place and now, with Darryl on board, Charles joining as an adviser and the car delivered, we are ready to go racing. We’ll be going all out to make a strong debut at Monza.”
- posted by Matthew @ 10:56