OAK Racing and its drivers enjoyed the terrific circuit of Spa

In August, Carlos Tavarès had a quick run in the Ligier JS P3 on the Paul Ricard circuit, and he couldn’t resist the opportunity to get back behind the wheel to race in the Spa-Francorchamps 4 Hours. He really enjoyed this experience, with a great deal of humility and skill: “I experienced some pretty marvellous feelings in the Ligier JS P3. This car is easy for gentlemen drivers like myself, but it’s also difficult to get the absolute maximum out of it. It’s really comfortable to drive but you have to know how to adapt your style between high speed situations where there’s a lot of aero downforce and the medium and low speeds where it tails off: it’s a real challenge!”

OAK Racing used the free practice sessions to optimise the setups of the nos 4 and 24 Ligier JS P3s in the Ingenico colours; and then designated Erik Maris and Pierre Nicolet to do the qualifying session. When Erik Maris got out of his car he told us: “It was a very good session and I’m pretty happy with my time as I managed to get closer to the young guys who are very quick.”

In the neighbouring pit under the proud gaze of his father and team-mate, Pierre Nicolet had a beaming smile on his face as he took off his helmet after setting a stunning time in 2m15.682sec: “The session was very short, only twelve minutes, and that gave us about enough time to do six laps. It was only my second outing at Spa. It’s an exceptional circuit but difficult, and I really went for it to improve my times and on my last lap I got up into tenth place.”

The next day still in blazing sunlight the Spa-Francorchamps 4 Hours got under way at 14:00 in front of packed grandstands. It was a very hectic race throughout the field with several incidents, safety car deployments and yellow flag periods which upset the teams’ strategies.

Although the no. 24 Ligier JS P3 was well placed on the grid it had a difficult start, which compromised its chances. Jacques Nicolet, in the car for the first stint, was the innocent victim: “I was pushed at the start by another car and I found myself stuck in the middle of the GTs. It was very difficult to extricate myself and the various interventions didn’t help us. Handing over to Pierre went off without a hitch and he was able to rejoin and set a good pace.” The no. 24 Ligier JS P3 took the chequered flag without further problems, but the team was disappointed that it had not been able to take full advantage of its excellent performance on the Belgian circuit.

The no. 4 Ligier JS P3 also finished this intense 4-hour race after it too had a fairly chaotic beginning. Erik Maris took the first stint and told us what happened at the finish: “The start of the race was difficult as I was tagged by a GT which meant I had to pit to change the front light cluster. A little later on I lost the car in the double left-hander, but luckily I didn’t hit anything. These incidents didn’t stop us from completing the four hours and my team-mate did a great job on his first outing with us; he drove really well. And Spa circuit is an terrific circuit. ”

It was true as Carlos Tavares having his first race in a Ligier JS P3 in the ELMS found his marks very quickly. While he was with OAK Racing this weekend for a one-off and nothing further is on the cards at present, he said on Sunday evening that he would repeat the experience if another opportunity arose: “Of course, I’d love to come back; it’s a fabulous car. Bravo Ligier! But I was also able to see just how high the standard is in the ELMS.”

OAK Racing’s next rendezvous is at Estoril in Portugal for the final round of the European Le Mans Series on 21-22-23 October.