AGS Events Racing extend their Championship winning performance at FFS GT4 Finale
Having already secured both the Am, Silver Cup and Team’s titles in the sister SRO sanctioned GT4 European Series at the circuit the weekend before, last weekend’s FFSA GT4 finale was always going to be difficult task for the team to achieve anything more despite their #89 Pro-Am entry of Nicolas Gomar and Mike Parisy laying in second place in the Championship such was the points deficit.
What seemed an almost impossible mountain for them to climb needed two class wins and then rely upon the then Championship leading duo not to score so very nearly came off in the end for the #89 car – finishing on the podium in both races, winning the second and final race of the year but sadly ‘only’ in second place in the weekends first race to miss out on the Pro-Am Championship by just four points to the #42 car of Fabien Michel and Gregory Guilvert who actually failed to score in both races!
Those results from the #89 car were enough though for them to secure the Team’s Championship title from the Santeloc Racing team by just four points.
The weekend also saw a strong finish from the teams #161 Am class car of Didier Dumaine and Christoph Carriere who earned a P3 class podium in race 1 and a P4 class finish in Sunday afternoon’s finale to see out their season together fourth overall in that Championship.
This final race weekend was also going to give their GT4 European Series Silver Cup winning duo of Valentin Hasse-Clot and Theo Nouet one final bow out this year aboard their AMR Vantage GT4 but contact for Nouet going into turn 1 in the dark of race 1 saw his car spin off and into the concrete wall in ball of steam. Thankfully, the young Frenchman was able to exit the car himself before being last seen exiting stage left with red mist presumably very much in his eyes.
Unfortunately, the team was not able to repair the car in time for Sunday’s final race where Hasse-Clot was due to start from pole position.
Well done to the team anyway for even more Championship winning credentials in their first season with the AMR Vantage and we look forward to further confirmation of their ongoing race plans for next season.
Photo credits – FFSA GT4 / AGS Events
Final dance for AGS Events Racing four Astons at FFSA GT Paul Ricard finale
Having already scooped the GT4 European Series Silver Cup, Am Class and Team Championship titles at this circuit last weekend in their first year of running the new 2019 Aston Martin Racing, the AGS Events Racing Team will again field all four of their AMR race cars at this weekend’s final round of the French National Series – again one that the team could (mathematically at least) secure should results go their way of the weekends two races.
Drivers Nicolas Gomar and Mike Parisy presently lie in second in the Pro-Am Drivers Championship table some 47 points back from the class leaders but with 50 points still available – anything is still possible.
Joining them again in that class is the Akhil Rabindra/Gilles Vannelet car who presently lie in P9 after what can only be described as a disappointing season. They are joined by their Am Class, full season entry of Christophe Carriere and Didier Dumaine who themselves just lacked a string of consistent finishes that would have otherwise had then in a Championship contending position.
After Free Practice on Friday, Qualifying and an evening race awaits the team on Saturday before a daytime race on Sunday sees out their 2020 season. Both races will again be streamed live via the series website – but it is only with French commentary!!
AGS Events Racing take clean sweep at GT4 European Series finale
New to the AMR platform for the season and having ran up to four cars in a busy GT4 European Series and the FFSAGT4 Series dual programme, all their #89 Am Class and #27 Silver Cup Class cars had to do today during the penultimate hour-long race of the final race weekend from Paul Ricard was to finish in front of their respective championship rivals in order to win.
For Nicolas Gomar and Gilles Vannelet, that they did in emphatic fashion by claiming yet another Am Class victory, their sixth of the season to wind up a near perfect inaugural season for them with the Aston Martin to secure their Championship win without the need for any points in this evening’s final race of the year which they co-incidentally won in class anyway!!
Doing likewise, although not with another overall race win in race 1 was the #27 Silver Cup Class car of Theo Nouet and Valentin Hasse-Clot who clinched their overall title after an eventful and (in hindsight) vital fourth place finish in this morning’s race but importantly finishing ahead of their nearest championship rivals. That proved to be just as well as the #27 later failed to finish in this evenings final night race.
Combined, the performances of both cars were also enough for the AGS Events Racing Team to take a commanding season win in the Overall Teams Championship as well to make that three out of three.
This weekend also saw two AMR Vantage GT4’s from the R-Motorsport stable and another from AGS Events Racing team make their first ever appearances in the GT4 European Series – one for the originally intended full season effort of Seb Perez and George Gamble as well as a racing debut for Danish businessman Henrik Lyngbye Pedersen and his driver coach Markus Lungstrass for a taster of might have been.
Not quite finished for the year, the AGS Events Racing team return to Paul Ricard next weekend where they will race out the final races of the FFSA GT4 Series with an outside change of a Class Championship in that one for Gomar and Mike Parisy.
Four Aston's with title hopes to battle it out at Paul Ricard this weekend
Seven Aston Martin Racing cars have made their way down to the south of France for this weekend’s final, title deciding rounds of both the GT World Challenge Europe and GT4 European Series at Circuit Paul Ricard.
Whilst three AMR Vantage GT4’s from both the R-Motorsport and AGS Racing Teams compete in the European Series for the first time this year, the remaining two full season cars from the French AGS Events Racing team figure highly in each of the Am and Silver Cup Classes that they compete in as well as the overall Team’s Championship.
Despite leading all three Championship tables by some margin, the fifty points still available for winning each of the weekend’s two one-hour races is still more than enough for both cars to lose out at the final hurdle should events not go in their favour.
In the Am Class – team boss Nicolas Gomar and Gilles Vannelet presently lead the class on 204 pts in their #89 AMR Vantage, just 35 pts ahead of Bob Herber despite having taken nine podium finishes in the ten races so far this season and including five class wins.
In the Silver Cup Class, Valentin Hasse-Clot and Theo Nouet also lead their Championship table in their #27 AMR Vantage on 172 pts – just 24 pts ahead of their nearest rival after their seven podium finishes so far and including four class wins.
Confirming a third AGS Racing Team car today, Frenchmen Jonathon Mareschal and Fabien Baule share the #161 Am Class entered Vantage GT4 who join R-Motorsport Seb Perez and George Gamble aboard their #762 Silver Cup entry and Henrik Lyngbye-Pedersen and Markus Lungstrass aboard their #18 Am Class entry.
These cars help to make up a starting grid of just nineteen cars.
With the GT4 European Series in support, this weekend also sees the concluding round of the GT World Challenge Europe Series with their customary 1000km event (6 hours) of Le Castellet.
Full season participating team, Garage 59 return with their two AMR Vantage GT3’s after something of a ‘chalk and cheese’ affair at the last round of the series at the Total Spa 24hr. Whilst the #188 Pro-Am car of Alex West/Chris Goodwin/Jonny Adam with Maxime Martin scored a well deserved P3 finish overall, their #159 Silver Cup entry of Valentin Hasse-Clot/Andrew Watson/James Pull with Roman de Angelis became a victim of the long night with accident induced damage eventually seeing their car log up a DNF
Results from Spa leave the #188 P2 overall in Class but level on points with the leading Ferrari 488 and the #159 car P3 in Silver Cup and just seventeen points behind that class’s leading Lamborghini.
With each car reverting back to a three driver line up, Andrew Watson forgoes his WEC duties over in Bahrain this weekend for the sake of his Championship possibilities in France whilst the #188 car has been forced to lose Jonny Adam to the WEC in Bahrain as he and TF Sport go after their GTE Am World title hopes over there. His position has since been confirmed to be taken by the ultra-fast R-Motorsport and experience AMR Vantage GT3 driver Marvin Kirchhofer.
It couldn’t be any closer for any of the four Championship contending Astons!!
Photo credits – GT4 European / GTWCE / AGS / R-Motorsport / Garage 59
Winning streak returns for AGS Events Racing at penultimate round of GT4 European Series (Updated)
Again, running in support of the GT World Challenge Europe Series at their delayed Total 24 Hours of Spa, the team would again have drivers Gilles Vannelet and Valentin Hasse-Clot run double driving duties as each swapped between their GT3 and GT4 cars. More importantly, both of these drivers and their respective co-drivers in Nicolas Gomar and Theo Nouet was that each had Championship positions to secure/improve upon before the Series moves onto its finale down at the Circuit Paul Ricard in the South of France in two weeks-time.
Fridays opening round was conducted under some of the most atrocious track conditions that the Ardennes could throw at the 7km circuit with the race starting from behind the Safety Car, but at least the pole setting #27 AMR car of Nouet had the clearest of views of them all with Gomar not too far behind in P5.
Two laps – twelve minutes later and the grid was eventually released but with standing water on parts of the track and spray hanging in the air along the tree, visibility and grip was always going to be of issue but surprisingly enough, there were few moments of inter car contact. By the end of their otherwise short period of race time, both Nouet and Gomar had cemented their positions on track or in class to pit from the lead.
By the time the lead cars re-emerged from pit lane, the rain had at least all but stopped but conditions were still treacherous as Hasse-Clot started extending his cars overall race lead by the tune of about five seconds every five minutes. Vannelet meanwhile was given some Pro-Am cars a race for their money and despite his own Am grading, was comfortable circulating to the end in P8 overall but more importantly first in class! Ahead of him, Hasse-Clot collected the #27 cars second overall race win of the season so far with each AGS Racing Aston crew further extending their Championship lead in the process.
Saturday morning’s second race at least was to start on a wet but drying track as Hasse-Clot starting the #27 from P3 and Vannelet starting the #89 car from P5 with some cars even electing to start upon slicks!!
No Safety Car start this time around, but both Astons appeared to be sluggish at the start and found themselves swamped going into turn one and had to battle not to lose any further track position by the end of the Kemmel Straight.
Even with the Pro-Am cars ahead continuing their battles ahead, the #27 car appeared unable to keep up with them but as with any motor race, it is more about being at the right place at the right time for Hasse-Clot as successive opportunist moves soon found him elevating himself from P4 to P2 whilst Vannelet was running P6 overall – again P1 in Am.
Both running long into the pit window again, any advances gained on track was soon lost to the #27 crew as it was awarded a one second stop-go penalty for running a too short a minimum pit stop time and that dropped them back from another overall podium position to a battle for a Silver Cup Class podium within the final ten minutes that Nouet had available to him.
As the brightness quickly faded and skies darkened once again, Nouet was able to pick off another car to climb back up to P4 overall – P3 in class at the chequered flag whilst Gomar secured the #89’s second class win of the weekend to further bolster their AM Class Championship claim. At the time of writing, official confirmation of post race technical inspections were still being awaited so that the Championship standings so far could be confirmed,
The sixth and final round of the GT4 European Series will be at Paul Ricard in two weeks time.
UPDATE
With Saturdays race now officially ratified by the Series, the results from this penultimate round of the season have the following effect. Nothing is secured just yet!!!
AGS Events Racing continue to lead the Overall Team's Championship table by 65 Pts
Vannelet/Gomar continue to lead Am Drivers Championship by 35 Pts
Hasse-Clot/Nouet continue to lead Silver Cup Championship by 24 Pts
Photo credits – GT4 European Series
AGS Events Racing lose Championship ground at Grand Prix D'Albi
This time running with just their three full season entries, neither their #89 Pro-Am crew of Nicolas Gomar and Mike Parisy nor their #161 Am Class crew of Didier Dumaine and Christophe Carriere managed to continue their season long pathway of achievement in securing at least one class podium during the weekends two races.
These results do not however exclude either car from any Championship aspirations but frankly, they do depend quite heavily upon the misfortune of others at the final round of the season at Ledenon over the 7thand 8th November. The overall Am Drivers Championship is however, already out of reach.
Also competing at Albi was of course the #69 Pro-Am entry of Gilles Vannelet and AMR Academy driver Akhil Rabindra. Although being the lead AGS team car in race 1 in P14 overall (P7 in class), that was sadly not be repeated in Sunday’s race where they finished P19 overall (P11 in class). For some reason, 2020 FFSA GT4 just hasn’t gelled for these drivers despite their combined experiences.
Photo credits - FFSA
Points needed for AGS Events Racing's FFSA GT4 title hopes
Having ran a fourth car at each of the last two rounds, the team resort to just their three full season entries with two cars in Pro-Am and a third in Am.
To date the #89 Pro-Am car of Mike Parisy and Nicolas Gomar and the #161 Am car of Didier Dumaine and Christophe Carriere have been making all the running within the team with nine class podium finishes between them over the eight races so far. Just the #69 Pro-Am car of Gilles Vannelet and AMR Academy Driver Akhil Rabindra are yet to collect any silverware despite coming close on a number of occasions.
This weekend shall see the Series revert back again to just two one-hour races over the weekend and in daylight too with previous races at Magny-Cours and Paul Ricard racing into darkness.
Championship wise, Gomar and Parisy need a significant point’s haul if they are to make up the present 37 point gap to the Pro-Am leaders whilst as do Dumaine and Carriere who lay some 42 points back in the Am Class.
Track action for the Grand Prix D’Albi starts tomorrow with Free Practice.
AGS Events Racing looking to bolster Championship positions at Zandvoort
Three rounds complete - three rounds to go for the GT4 European Series teams as they make their respective journeys over to the infamous coastal circuit of Zandvoort to the west of Amsterdam for this weekends two hour long races.
Having run last time out at the Nurburgring at the beginning of the month, French team AGS Event Racing continue to be the sole Aston Martin Racing representatives in the Series, running an AMR Vantage GT4 in both the Am class for Nicolas Gomar and Gilles Vannelet and in the Silver Cup for AMR Academy drivers Theo Nouet and Valentin Hasse-Clot.
Germany was again fair to the #89 Am car with both a class win and a further class P3 over the course of that weekend whilst the #27 car was robbed of a sure podium going into the final lap of race one before they replied in the best manner possible in race 2 with both a class win and second overall in the race.
These results leave the #89 in the lead of the Am class with just one race result with them not on the podium so far blotting their copybook whilst in Silver Cup, the #27 car remains a close second in the Championship despite their unkind loss of points at the Nurburgring due to the puncture. Their results also place the team at the top of the Team Championship table although each is still open to the effects of underperformance between now and the end of the season at Paul Ricard in mid November.
Eighteen cars are again scheduled to compete at the weekend with officially timed Free Practice on Friday before Qualifying and Race 1 on Saturday and Race 2 on Sunday.
Photo credits - GT4 European / AGS Events Racing
AGS Events Racing Team expand to four AMR Vantage GT4's for FFSA GT4
Having been doing rather well in Europe so far with a whole collection of class podium finishes in both the GT4 European Series and the FFSA GT4 Series, the AGS Events Racing Team expand up to a fleet of four Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT4's for this weekends second round of the French national GT championship from Magney-Cours.
Their first round into the FFSA GT4 at Nogaro two weeks ago proved to be something of a mixed bag for the two Pro-Am and single Am class entered cars as all six drivers were thrusted into a competitive atmosphere of the opening round's triple header with not a lot of pre-season track time (if any) for some off them.
Despite that and a couple of DNF's between them, the team still came away with a couple of podium finishes for the #89 Pro-Am car of Nicolas Gomar and Mike Parisy.
Akhil Rabindra returned to GT racing at the opening round with the team having spent most of last season out in the USA competing in the Michelin Pilot Challenge with CSJ Motorsport and this year he is also part of the AMR Drivers Academy again. He and co driver Gilles Vannelet have now had one meeting to become accustomed with one another as Rabindra gets back up to speed having had a long winter and summer away from the racetrack.
The first of the team's Am entries is the #161 car of Didier Dumaine and Christophe Carriere. For this pair, the started well with a class pole in race one before ultimately finishing P4 but after that incident and accident on track lead to a lowly finish in race 2 and a DNF in race 3.
For the second round's usual two race format at Magney-Cours, these three cars will be joined with another Am class entry for reigning FFSA GT4 Am Champion and AGS racer Julien Lambert who will be joined by Romano Ricci. Lambert was one of the original names listed with the team pre-season but it has taken him till now to find a suitable co driver in the form of the Bentley GT World Challenge Europe driver Ricci.
Track action begins on Thursday with Private testing before Free Practice on Friday. Similarly to the GT4 European Series, Qualifying will take place on Saturday ahead of Race 1 later in 6th day with race 2 on Sunday.
Photo credits - FFSA GT4 / AGS Events Racing
Two poles - two podiums: Not a bad start for AGS Events in FFSA GT4
Their return to their national FFSA-GT4 Series at the weekend for the reigning AM Class Champions of 2019 was something of a success for the AGS Events Racing team after a brace of class pole positions and race trophies were collected by the squad despite their slow start to the opening round from Nogaro.
Having swapped over to the new Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT4 for a parallel programme in both the French national GT series as well as the GT4 European Series, the team was to commit to a three car full season effort this year with cars spread across both the Pro-Am and AM classes.
Delays in confirming their full season line up (probably because of the fluidity of the CV-19 situation in France at the time) saw not all their six drivers being able to test with their new cars or team mates as many of the six would not have been in the 'running' when the Series tested at the Nogaro Circuit earlier last month.
So from these shaky beginnings, the team went to work in preparing the #161 Am class car for drivers Didier Dumaine/Christophe Carrier, the #89 Pro-Am car for team boss Nicolas Gomar/Mike Parisy and the #69 Pro-Am car for Gilles Vannelet/Akhil Rabindra. Like the dozen or so other young drivers competing with an AMR team around the world, Rabindra is again part of the AMR Drivers Academy process.
With another season again being delayed by the pandemic, the SRO sanctioned series ran a similar triple header event to the ones that are being run very successfully over in the GT4 America Series as they strive to catch up upon races in a shorter period of time available.
Going in the weekends first race, the #161 Am car of Dumaine had earlier claimed class pole position at his first time of asking but unfortunately that race went badly wrong for the team as the #161 firstly had to pit with a puncture from behind the Safety Car just as the #89 Pro-Am car came into the garage with race ending technical issues.
Quickly out again for the second race of Saturday, again the #161 car of Carriere had this time also claimed his first class pole position and the repairs had been made to the #89 car in time for Parisy to take up his front row start in P2. Rabindra meanwhile was steadily getting back up to speed in the #69 car to start this race from P13 out of a 33 car entry.
This time, early contact for the #161 from a hobbled and out of control Alpine car scuppered any chances of them collecting more Championship points after their eventual P4 finish in race 1 as Carriere was forced to pit for repairs, losing them six laps to the leaders in class. In Pro-Am however, the #89 Parisy/Gomar car were to earn the team their first podium finish after Gomar brought the car home in third.
Going into Sundays final race saw the three AMR's starting from a midfield position of P11 for the #89, P12 for the #161 and P17 for the #69 and by the end of the pit stop window Gomar had elevated itself into the overall lead of the race for Parisy to take a commanding win by over thirteen seconds.
The sister Pro-Am entry would see out their first race weekend with their best result so far in P10 but for the #161 Am entry, they would inherit their first DNF of the season.
The next round of the Series takes them to Magny Cours, this time supporting the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Series in three weeks time.
Photo credits - FFSA GT4
