Championship Decider?

LMP2: Can G-Drive Racing Take 2017 Crown?

After round 4 at Le Castellet the no22 G-Drive Racing Oreca is leading the teams classification by 12 points with 80 points compared to 68 for the no32 United Autosports Ligier-Gibson. 

G-Drive’s Leo Roussel and Memo Rojas are also on 80 points compared to the 68 points for the three United Autosports drivers Filipe Albuquerque, Hugo de Sadeleer and Will Owen.  The no39 Graff Oreca-Gibson of Enzo Guibbert, Eric Trouillet and Paul Petit currently have 49 points, 31 behind the G-Drive crew.

With one victory in 2017 compared to two for United Autosports, G-Drive need to be 27 points ahead of their rivals after the 4 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps on Sunday to secure the 2017 ELMS LMP2 team and driver titles.

First of all, G-Drive need to finish ahead of the American team to extend the points gap.  If the Russian team secure maximum points for pole position and victory, the no32 United Autosports crew need to finish 4^th or higher to keep the championship battle going until Portimão.

LMP3: Can United Autosports Make it Two in a Row?

With four races completed the no2 United Autosports Ligier-Nissan of John Falb and Sean Rayhall have amassed 70 points compared to 58 points for the no18 M.Racing-YMR Ligier of Alexandre Cougnaud, Antoine Jung and Romano Ricci.  The no17 Ultimate, the no11 Eurointernational and no13 Inter Europol Competition Ligiers are all in contention with 53 points, 47 points and 44 points respectively.

With two victories under their belts the no2 United Autosports crew need to be 27 points clear of their nearest rival on Sunday afternoon to secure the team and drivers titles, which, as reigning champions, will be the second ELMS LMP3 title for the United Autosports team. 

A third win of 2017 would put Falb and Rayhall in a good position and if the no18 M.Racing YMR team finish 5^th or below and the no17 Ultimate Ligier doesn’t finish second, then the title would be awarded to the American team and drivers.

LMGTE: Aston Martin v Ferrari

With just 13 points separating the top three crews the LMGTE class is the closest title battle.  The no90 TF Sport Aston Martin of Salih Yoluc, Euan Hankey and Nicki Thiim are currently on 77 points, 9 points ahead of Rob Smith and Jody Fannin in the no66 JMW Motorsport Ferrari.  Aaron Scott, Duncan Cameron and Matt Griffin, in the no55 Spirit of Race Ferrari, are on 64 points but have two wins compared to their rivals one apiece.

If the no90 TF Sport Aston Martin wins the race on Sunday, the no66 Ferrari needs to finish 4^th or higher or the no55 Ferrari needs to finish on the podium to keep the championship from being decided in Belgium.

The 4 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps is Round 5 of the 2017 European Le Mans Series and will take place at Belgium’s premier race circuit on Sunday 24 September.  The series concludes at Portimão in Portugal on Sunday 22 October.