European Le Mans - Vaxivière's late charge to secure victory in Barcelona!

The opening round of the 2025 European Le Mans Series provided action-packed battles with close finishes in all classes, seeing Vaxivière secure the victory in the #83 AF Corse Pro-Am entry.

QUALIFYING

Green flag waved at the end of the pitlane as the #82 TF Sport Corvette led the way out of the pitlane for the start of the fifteen-minute LMGT3 qualifying session. Martin Berry set the early benchmark with a 1:42:257 in the #63 Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG GT3. Célia Martin in the #85 Iron Dames Porsche got within two-tenths of the sister car, while Andrew Gilbert in the #74 Kessel Racing Ferrari was up to fourth in the latter stages of the session. However, no one could challenge Berry’s time as the #63 Iron Lynx Mercedes took pole on Mercedes’ European Le Mans Series LMGT3 debut.

In LMP3 qualifying, Adrien Closmenil was the man to beat as the eighteen-year old Frenchman from Bayeux led for the majority of the session. Griffin Peebles in the #12 WTM by Rinaldi Racing Duqueine went up to second momentarily but the lap time was immediately deleted due to track limit violation. Despite late attempts from Rik Koen in the #8 Team Virage Ligier, no one could deny pole position for Closmenil as he took the first ever pole position for the freshly rebranded CLX Motorsport.

For LMP2 Pro-Am, Rodrigo Sales topped the time after first run with a 1:35:173 in the #29 TDS Racing Oreca. Giorgio Roda in the #77 Proton Competition responded with a 1:31.721, nearly three and a half seconds clear of second place at the time. European Le Mans Series debutant PJ Hyett in the #99 AO by TF Oreca went second not long after with a 1:32.043. Georgios Kolovos in the #3 DKR Engineering Oreca spun at turn seven with Rodrigo Sales also going off-track and getting stuck in the gravel trap on the outside of turn three. Red flag was deployed with six minutes left on the clock as both cars required additional assistance to get going again. The #29 TDS Racing entry rejoined the session but the #3 DKR Engineering entry was not allowed. After the session resumed, Giorgio Roda improved with a 1:31.110 to extend his advantage, while Sales moved up to second with a 1:31.923 but was quickly beaten by PJ Hyett’s 1:31.349. Ultimately, Giorgio Roda took his third consecutive European Le Mans Series pole position for the #77 Proton Competition Oreca.

In LMP2 qualifying, fine margins within the top ten with drivers continuously exchanging top positions. Matteo Cairoli in the #9 Iron Lynx-Proton Oreca set a 1:28.532 with eight minutes to go, which Cairoli later improved with a 1:27.830, while Tom Dillmann in the #43 Inter Europol Competition Oreca went less than one and a half tenths behind. With twenty seconds left on the clock, Reshad de Gerus in the #30 Duqueine Team Oreca stormed ahead with a 1:27.664 to secure a surprising pole position for the Duqueine Team.

RACE

The race got underway as Francesco Simonazzi in the #30 Duqueine Team Oreca led the grid from pole position, and the Italian managed to hold on to first position into the first corner as Jakub Śmiechowski in the #43 Inter Europol Competition Oreca moved up to second position. In the background, Laurents Hörr in the #3 DKR Engineering Oreca took the escape road and rejoined in sixth having started from twenty-first position. #3 would ultimately receive two separate drive-through penalties for jump start and overtaking beyond track limits. In the LMGT3 class, Célia Martin in the #85 Iron Dames Porsche passed pole sitter Martin Berry in the #63 Iron Lynx Mercedes, while aright-rear puncture for #8 Team Virage Ligier saw Jacek Zielonka manage to bring the car back in the pit lane at the end of lap one. Laurents Hörr in the #3 DKR Engineering Oreca continued the charge up the field, eventually passing Francesco Simonazzi in the #30 Duqueine Team Oreca for the race lead in just fifteen minutes. Jonas Ried in the #9 Iron Lynx-Proton Orcea also passed Simonazzi a couple of minutes later and took the lead of the LMP2 class. Paul Lafargue in the #28 IDEC Sport Oreca went off the road on the outside of La Caixa corner but managed to rejoin with no visible damage. The #31 Racing Spirit of Leman Ligier in the hands of Jacques Wolff, briefly faced the wrong way after being tagged by Timothy Creswick in the #88 Inter Europol Competition Ligier. 

As the leaders entered the pits for their first scheduled stops, drama struck the race leading #9 Iron Lynx-Proton Orcea as mechanics pushed the car back into the garage, and it was ultimately retired due to an electrical issue. In LMP3, there was a Lead change as Paul Lanchére in the #17 CLX Motorsport Ligier made a bold move around the outside of Torsten Kratz in the #12 WTM by Rinaldi Duqueine at turn twelve. Jacek Zielonka in the #8 Team Virage Ligier spun at turn nine on his out-lap, resulting in a rear-left puncture. Double waved yellows were briefly deployed at turn three after Michael Wainwright spun in the #86 GR Racing Ferrari 296 GT3. Alessio Rovera in the #83 AF Corse Oreca overtook Clément Novalak in the #29 TDS Racing Oreca for second in LMP2 Pro-Am, capitalising on traffic that held up the TDS Racing car at turn three. Meanwhile, Scott Noble in the #66 JMW Motorsport Ferrari spun into the gravel trap at turn three, bringing out the Virtual Safety Car. Several LMP2 cars that had not pitted for their second stop benefited from pitting under virtual safety car.

At the restart, Enzo Fittipaldi led the field in the #47 CLX Motorsport Oreca, with Georgios Kolovos in the #3 DKR Engineering Oreca close behind. However, the bronze-rated Greek driver was quickly passed by Daniel Juncadella in the #18 IDEC Sport Oreca. A few laps later, Dane Cameron in the #99 AO by TF Oreca made a move on the inside of turn four to take the LMP2 Pro-Am lead from Kolovos. There was high-speed contact between Jean-Baptiste Simmenauer in the #34 Inter Europol Competition Oreca and Torsten Kratz in the #12 WTM by Rinaldi Duqueine at the exit of turn thirteen. Kratz, who was attempting to pit, was unaware of the closing Inter Europol car which caused the #34 car to unsettle and went off into the gravel at turn fourteen but managed to continue. No further investigation was deemed necessary. At La Caixa corner, another victim was found as Erwan Bastard spun the #59 Racing Spirit of Léman Aston Martin but rejoined through the gravel trap safely. The battle for second in LMGT3 went the way of Lorcan Hanafin in the #63 Iron Lynx Mercedes, who overtook Matteo Cressoni in the #60 Proton Competition Porsche with a move on the inside of turn four. 

A second Virtual Safety Car was deployed after Leonard Weiss went off and got stuck in the gravel at the final corner in the #12 WTM by Rinaldi Duqueine. Leaders pitted for their final driver changes. Luís Felipe Derani resumed the race in the lead in the #47 CLX Motorsport Oreca, with LMP2 debutant Mathys Jaubert in the #18 IDEC Sport Oreca behind in second. Shortly after the restart, the #63 Iron Lynx Mercedes retired from second in LMGT3 due to a throttle pedal issue. Mathys Jaubert used the traffic to his advantage, making an opportunistic move on Derani at turn thirteen to take the overall lead. Meanwhile in LMGT3, the Iron Dames came into the pits from the race lead for their final scheduled pitstop, handing over to the newly signed Porsche contracted driver Michelle Gatting for the final stint in the #85 Porsche. A thrilling battle for third position overall saw Matthieu Vaxivière in the #83 AF Corse Oreca pass Charles Milesi in the #48 VDS Panis Racing Oreca, the ex-Alpine factory driver came out on top on this occasion with a move on the inside of turn 5. Unfortunately, the #11 EuroInternational Ligier suffered a mechanical failure, forcing Ian Aguilera to park the car before turn four, triggering a Full Course Yellow.

When racing resumed, Vaxivière made a strong restart, and overtook Derani for second overall. Pole-sitting #30 Duqueine Team Oreca retired with technical issues with thirty-six minutes remaining. More drama followed for the #99 AO by TF Oreca, which was stranded at La Caixa due to a throttle sensor issue. Although Louis Delétraz got the car moving again, it had lost several valuable positions after coming to a stop from second position in class. After final scheduled pitstop, #47 CLX Motorsport Oreca suffered a mechanical failure which forced Derani to retire the car on the outside of turn three. Simultaneously, the race-leading #18 IDEC Sport Oreca and #83 AF Corse Oreca pitted together. AF Corse was the only front-running LMP2 car to change tyres, dropping them behind both the #48 VDS Panis Racing Oreca and #10 Vector Sport Oreca entries. In LMP3, the new DKR Engineering Ginetta G61-LT-P3 Evo was forced to retire from sixth position when Wyatt Brichacek stopped the car before turn one, prompting another Virtual Safety Car to retrieve the stranded Ginetta.

With just two and a half minutes remaining, the race resumed with Mathys Jaubert leading in the #18 IDEC Sport Oreca. However, Vaxivière in the #83 AF Corse Oreca was on a mission.. The decision to put on fresh tyres at the final pitstop proved to be critical as it allowed the ex-Alpine factory driver to catch the three cars in front. Vaxivière overtook Pietro Fittipaldi in the #10 Vector Sport Oreca with a brilliant move around the outside of La Caixa corner. Vaxivière was onto the back of Charles Milesi in the #48 VDS Panis Racing Oreca on the exit of the final corner which set him up for a clean dive up the inside of Milesi into turn one. Vaxivière continued the charge and successfully overtook race leader Jaubert on the exit of turn five. With half a lap to go, Vaxivière pulled away and crossed the line to win both overall and LMP2 Pro/Am for the #83 AF Corse Oreca, alongside teammates François Perrodo and Alessio Rovera. Mathys Jaubert crossed the line in second position overall but secured victory and twenty-five points in the LMP2 class along with teammates Daniel Juncadella and Jamie Chadwick, with the latter becoming the first female driver to win an LMP2 race in the European Le Mans Series. 

In LMP3, #17 CLX Motorsport Ligier successfully converted pole position into a commanding victory, with pole sitter Adrien Closmenil taking the checkered flag in the car he shared with co-drivers Theodor Jensen and Paul Lanchère. Redemption for Iron Dames from last year’s pit stop disaster, saw Michelle Gatting managing to fend off Ferrari factory driver Daniel Serra in the #57 Kessel Racing Ferrari in the last stint to take victory in LMGT3 along with teammates Sarah Bovy and Célia Martin. 

THE FRENCH RIVIERA AWAITS

Round two of the European Le Mans Series heads to the Circuit Paul Ricard in Le Castellet from May 2nd - 4th. The#18 IDEC Sport Oreca leads the LMP2 standings with a seven point advantage over the #48 VDS Panis Racing Oreca. Reigning LMP2 Pro/Am champions #83 AF Corse Oreca continue their strong form as they lead the LMP2 Pro/Am championship, while the #17 CLX Motorsport Ligier tops the LMP3 championship after a dominant performance in Barcelona. In LMGT3, the #85 Iron Dames Porsche leads the Championship, closely followed by last season’s runner up, the #57 Kessel Racing Ferrari.

Images © David Lord