United Autosports team boss Richard Dean told Motorsport Week about his impressions of the GT driver market, having learnt about it swiftly in light of their new LMGT3 campaign for the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship.
As the team has raced in prototype classes, specifically LMP2, for many years, Dean is very familiar with the prototype driver market. GT, though, is a different kettle of fish.
“I know the people involved [in LMP2], I know who doesn’t want to be driving at what venues or whatever,” he said.
“We’re so focused on our own series, and GT – in terms of [the] driver market – is very different, and there are an awful lot more opportunities for drivers, a lot more choices.
“They can do IMSA, they can do GT World Challenge. You don’t have to do Le Mans 24 Hours.
“[The] Spa 24 Hours is an amazing race – it’s the GT drivers’ equivalent to it.
“So it’s a very different market, which I would have liked to have had 6, 8, 12 months lead time to figure out, but we’ve had 2 months.”
The last time in which the team fronted a GT campaign was in 2015, in the GT Cup Championship, when Phil Burgan drove their Audi R8 LMS Ultra.
The following year, they won both their maiden European Le Mans Series LMP3 Drivers’ and Teams’ titles with their Ligier JS P3 machinery, as well as having entered the inaugural Road to Le Mans races – one of the supporter events to the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
They entered the ELMS’ LMP2 class in 2017, as well as racing at Le Mans for the first time. A WEC entry followed in 2019, where they’ve been ever since, dovetailing the premier WEC programme with an ELMS campaign as well.
For the first time in nine years of prototype experience, United Autosports’ CEO Richard Dean found himself in a new position to select two LMGT3 driver lineups for their #59 and #95 McLaren 720S Evos.
By late January, only one of the entrants had a completed driver lineup, with announcements scheduled for early February.
“It’s a new programme,” Dean said. “New projects need lead time, we haven’t had a lot of lead time.
“McLaren equally haven’t had a lot of lead time because they’ve produced a GT3 car, a successful and fast car, [for] what’s required for the ACO.”
The team had a challenging start with a late application process and a brief uncertainty on whether United Autosports would be allocated the two places in LMGT3 to represent the McLaren manufacturer.
Now, in mid-February, and the WEC season fast approaching, the team’s lineup is complete. Gregoire Saucy and James Cottingham will join Nicolas Costa in the #59, and Marino Sato, Nico Pino, and Josh Caygill in the #95.
Like many of the FIA WEC teams, testing has been taking place ahead of the official pre-season Prologue test on 24-25 February, which will be the first time they set foot on the Qatari Losail International Circuit.
