Johnny Mowlem’s racing career has taken him around the world, far distances from his home in Britain. But, far-flung as are his travels, Mowlem never seems to stay away from the American Le Mans Series for long. He was back in ALMS competition again this weekend at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, driving Dyson Racing’s ModSpace/G-Oil Lola Mazda in the top P-1 category during the six-hour American Le Mans Series Monterey race. The points result was good as the team netted a second-place finish in the category despite a lengthy stop late in the race to repair some debris damage.
“I am disappointed for the Dyson Racing team since we should have been second overall,” Mowlem said. “At least we got second place P1 points which is good for the championship but more work needs to be done before the next race.”
Mowlem, a factory driver for Lotus’ sports car program, will race with Dyson in the long-distance ALMS races this season. His work with the Lotus program leaves little time for other pursuits, but the company has allowed Mowlem to work with the Dyson team.
Mowlem was still getting acquainted with the car’s potential when the race started.
“Through no fault of the team’s, but just through unfortunate circumstance, I went into the race feeling extremely unprepared and a little like the shortest leg on the table! The first part of my stint I used to get my hands around the car and during the second part I was starting to feel comfortable with the car,” said Mowlem. “I was able to run lap times that at that time were second only to the leading HPD LMP1 car, and I’ll admit that was a relief!”
“On a personal level, I really enjoyed becoming initiated into the Dyson Racing Team, as they are a terrific bunch of people, and you could see in everyone the burning desire to get back to winning ways!” Mowlem commented. “I am sure that day will come sooner rather than later.”
Mowlem’s next race will be for Lotus at the Nurburgring at the end of May. His next race for Dyson will come later in the summer.
Source : Johnny Mowlem