Andy Meyrick enjoyed a competitive finale to his first season in the prestigious Le Mans Series yesterday, with a sixth place finish in the British round at Silverstone. Meyrick took a season best fifth place grid spot for the Kolles team on Saturday, before racing the Audi R10 TDI to sixthplace in Sunday’s race.
Following a season best result of fourth place at the last LMS round in Nürburgring, Meyrick had high hopes ahead of his home race in the competitive Le Mans Series. The last race in the five race season, Meyrick’s number 14 car squad – including Narain Karthikeyan and Charles Zwolsman were aiming to go one better at the Northamptonshire track and finish on the podium.
Meyrick has his first opportunity behind the wheel of the Audi R10 TDI during second practice, and again with a 20 minute in the third practice session. With all three drivers taking it in turns to pilot the race winning Audi, Meyrick was on track to qualify ahead of Sunday’s race. The young British racer did well in a session marred by yellow flags and numerous incidents to qualify fifth – the best grid slot for the Kolles LMP team so far.
Handing over driving duties to team mate Karthikeyan at the start, who then stepped aside for Zwolsman, Meyrick was left with the final stint in Sunday’s race which in which the were running sixth at the time. With his main aim to conserve fuel and reach the finish without any additional and costly pit stops, Meyrick drove a mature and measured race to bring the number 14 car in sixth place.
Speaking about the weekend, the MSA Race Elite driver said, “It was great to be driving the Audi R10 TDI on home ground and I was really pleased to get such a great result for the team and those that came to support me in qualifying. As a BRDC Superstar, it was nice to be able to race in front of the BRDC at Silverstone this weekend after the faith they have shown in me this year.
“My role in the race was to bring the car home without making any additional stops, and although it wasn’t the most exciting race ever, it was interesting to learn how to be easy on the car and conserve the fuel and tyres. In a series such as LMS, there’s a lot more to racing than out right speed; you have to think a lot more about strategy. This season has definitely helped me become a more complete driver as a result.”
Source : Andy Meyrick