Jota Sport AMR: An eventful 6 Hours of Estoril

On a sun-drenched Estoril circuit, Jota Sport AMR took to their last outing of the year. The 4.182km track played host to an eventful final Le Mans Series round for the British team, where they finished 5th in class.

The #79 car of Simon Dolan and Sam Hancock has experienced a year of highs and lows; and today’s race was no different. The team and drivers were dealt a handful of bad luck; including a stop-and-go penalty and a spin into the gravel following an over-ambitious move from the class-leading Ferrari. Despite all this, the stunning pace of both drivers and faultless reliability of the Jota-prepared car resulted in a well-deserved 5th in class finish, matching the previous best result of the year.

Simon Dolan: ‘It’s a great end to the season; I had two of my best stints in the car to date and 5th in class is very satisfying. We have improved race on race throughout the season, which can only be positive for next year. A heartfelt thanks to all the team, who have been consistently faultless, I cannot wait for next year.’

Sam Hancock: ‘I had an eventful race that’s for sure. As the warm-up lap started I had an issue with my belts so was late to get going, as a result we started the race from the very back of the pack. Fortunately, within the first two laps we were back up to our rightful
position. Then later in the same stint we suffered a stop-and-go penalty for unintentional contact with the #66 Ferrari, which was frustrating. During my second stint we were then hit from behind, both cars spun but unfortunately we ended up in the gravel, this cost us a lot of time as I had to wait to be towed back onto the tarmac.’

‘My third and final stint however, was the most enjoyable of the season. The balance of the car was the best it had been and we were fast enough to catch and pass some of the faster cars in our class. This is a testimony to the team; the pace of the car was great and it remained great despite suffering several set backs during the race. The team deserve huge praise for this. When I look back at our first race in Paul Ricard, I can see that we have made huge progress and everyone should be extremely proud.’

Sam Hignett, Team Principal: ‘A stunning performance from the entire team today. Both drivers drove the best stints of the year, the performance of the pit crew at each stop was the fastest in the pit lane, and the guys prepared a supremely reliable car. A great way to end the season. Finally, thanks to our suppliers and sponsors without whose support none of this would have been possible.’

5th in class was the best we could have hoped for and was a good result for the last race of the season. It’s been a fantastic Le Mans Series and I would like to thank the team and drivers for all their hard work throughout. I would also like to thank all our sponsors for their valued support over the year.

Jota Sport

Image Richard Leach