Monday 27th October 2003

Morgan at Le Mans

Off to France for 9th November qualifier

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The Morgan Works Race Team heads to France soon to race in the Le Mans ‘Bugatti Circuit’ 1000km race, which takes place on 9th November. The new event, run by the ACO – the organisation that is also responsible for the Le Mans 24 Hour Race – is seen as a vital stepping stone to the British marque’s ambitions in the world’s number one motor race.

2003 has been a trying year for the Malvern-based race team, which was unexpectedly not included in the list of invitations to race at Le Mans last June. Following that set-back the team set about changing the car to conform to FIA GT regs allowing it compete at Donington Park and later in the 24 hour race in Spa, Belgium, where former Formula 1 star Jacques Laffite joined their driver line up.

After qualifying well at Spa, a 150mph crash in torrential rain ended a very promising outing just 3 hours into the race, and the team, which is still struggling on without a major sponsor, has since fought hard to rebuild the car for its return to France.

Commenting, Team spokesman David Dowse said: "I am not going to pretend this has been an easy year for us. We’ve had some tough times, but this team is made of tough stuff and we’re so pleased to be back on the road. To race again at Le Mans, even in this smaller event, is sure to bring back memories of our fantastic outing there in 2002, when we ran against all the odds for 18 hours – a loud and clear contradiction to all those who said we couldn’t do it. That’s the spirit of Morgan ."

The team's driver line up will include Neil Cunningham and Adam Sharpe, the winning pair who snatched a famous last-minute victory recently in the British GT Championship at Brands Hatch. A third driver is expected to be confirmed shortly.

Supporters can follow the Morgan Works Team’s progress at www.morganworks.com

[Ballistic Banana]

Lets all hope they do well and get that invite to Le Mans 24heure.

Simon

[hansgerd]

That's good news. I remember Neil Cunningham commenting on his drive in the Moggy during the rain at Spa when the windscreen wipers failed to work. He said: "When it's raining the correct procedure is to grap the wheel harder and shout 'Oh f**k, it's raining !!!'"... true class.
BTW, Martin Short was supposed to drive the Morgan at LM this year but due to not having raced at Sebring the car wasn't invited. However, he will be at LM in ten days to drive the Reynard Judd LMP 900 of Fred Goddard Racing.
Best of luck to both of them !!!

[dazren]

I hope they have the success necessary to pull off an invite to the next 24hours. It would definitely raise the profile of the Marque and give the army of British invaders another team to cheer on.

Hopefully some financial backing can be secured from a major company wishing to be associated with "Englishness".

DAZ