The second race of the Silverstone Heat, held on Saturday afternoon, 12 September, delivered plenty of twists and turns. Red-flagged following an off-track excursion for the #99 Team Virage Ligier JS P4, which required repairs to the safety barriers, the race ended behind the safety car after the #33 Petrogold Ligier JS P4 came to a halt on track.
In JS P4, Alex Gardner and Simon Schranz claimed victory in the #14 Team Virage Ligier JS P4 and regained the championship lead. In JS2 R, newly crowned champions Antonin Bernard and Daniel Dallakyan secured their second win at Silverstone in the #41 VSF Sports Ligier JS2 R.
Ligier JS P4: The #14 Team Virage Ligier JS P4 wins and regains the championship lead.otorsport
Ethan Pharamond, starting from pole position in the #6 ANS Motorsport Ligier JS P4, made a strong getaway and retained the lead. After just a few minutes of racing, the red flag was shown to allow the marshals to repair the safety barriers following an off-track excursion for the #99 Team Virage Ligier JS P4.
At the restart, Ethan Pharamond remained in the lead and began to pull away from his rivals, August Therbo in the #57 M Racing Ligier JS P4 and Simon Schranz in the #14 Team Virage Ligier JS P4. The battle intensified between Ethan Pharamond and August Therbo ahead of the mandatory pit-stop window.
Following the pit stops, several competitors were handed 10-second penalties, to be served at their next pit stop, for failing to follow the start procedure. These included the #6 ANS Motorsport, #7 LR Motorsport and #57 M Racing Ligier JS P4s. However, with fewer than five minutes remaining, the #33 Petrogold Ligier JS P4 stopped on track, prompting the deployment of the safety car.
Unable to serve their penalties, the penalised competitors saw their podium hopes disappear. The #19 Trajectus Motorsport Ligier JS P4, driven by Vincent Bouteiller and Tomas Pompidou, crossed the finish line first, ahead of Alex Gardner and Simon Schranz in the #14 Team Virage Ligier JS P4, and Gabriel Doyle-Parfait and Nickolas Ellis in the #20 Trajectus Motorsport Ligier JS P4.
However, several post-race penalties for failing to comply with the pit-stop window reshuffled the order. Alex Gardner and Simon Schranz were promoted to victory and regained the championship lead. August Therbo finished second in the #57 M Racing Ligier JS P4, ahead of Luis Perez Cabello and Henrique Oliveira in the #12 ASM Motorsport Ligier JS P4.
In the PRO-AM classification, Marius Kristiansen and Dominique Bastien claimed victory in Race 2 with the #69 Bretton Racing Ligier JS P4, while Emil Hellberg topped the AM classification in the #48 Allay Racing Ligier JS P4.
Ligier JS P4 overall podium: Simon Schranz / Alex Gardner (#14 Team Virage) (left)* before being promoted to winners, Vincent Bouteiller / Tomas Pompidou (#19 Trajectus Motorsport) (center)* before receiving a post-race penatlty, Nickolas Ellis / Gabriel Doyle-Parfait (#20 Trajectus Motorsport) (left)* before receiving a post-race penatlty.
Ligier JS P4 PRO-AM winners: Marius Kristiansen / Dominique Bastien (#69 Bretton Racing)
Ligier JS P4 AM winner: Emil Hellberg (#48 Allay Racing)
Ligier JS2 R: Second victory of the day for VSF Sports
Simone Bianco started from pole position in the #81 LR Motorsport Ligier JS2 R and retained the lead ahead of Daniel Dallakyan in the #41 VSF Sports Ligier JS2 R and Marcus Terkildsen at the wheel of the #88 23Events Racing Ligier JS2 R. The three drivers were running nose to tail when the red flag was shown.
The battle resumed at the restart, with Daniel Dallakyan taking the lead in the #41 ahead of Marcus Terkildsen in the #88 and Anthony Ghibaudo in the #18 VSF Sports Ligier JS2 R.
Following the round of pit stops, Antonin Bernard, now at the wheel of the #41, remained at the front of the field until the chequered flag, securing the French team’s second victory of the day and its sixth since the start of the season.
Simone Bianco crossed the finish line second in the #81 LR Motorsport Ligier JS2 R, followed by Maxime Aparicio and Anthony Ghibaudo in the #18 VSF Sports Ligier JS2 R. The duo also claimed victory in the PRO-AM classification.
However, the #81 LR Motorsport Ligier JS2 R received a post-race penalty for failing to comply with the pit-stop window and dropped to the bottom of the classification. Maxime Aparicio and Anthony Ghibaudo were therefore promoted to second place in the #18 VSF Sports Ligier JS2 R, ahead of Marcus Terkildsen in the #88 23Events Racing Ligier JS2 R.
Ligier JS2 R overall podium: Simone Bianco (#81 LR Motorsport) (left)* before being penalized, Daniel Dallakyan / Antonin Bernard (#41 VSF Sports) (center), Maxime Aparicio / Anthony Ghibaudo (#18 VSF Sports) (right)* before being promoted to second place.
Ligier JS2 R PRO-AM winners: Maxime Aparicio / Anthony Ghibaudo (#18 VSF Sports)
Daniel Dallakyan, VSF Sports, Ligier JS2 R #41, Winner of Race 2 in JS2 R:
“For Race 2, I knew that we were ahead in the championship, so I just wanted to finish without taking any risks. I started the race and overtook two cars before the red flag. Simone [Bianco in the #81 LR Motorsport JS2 R] stopped so I took the lead of the race. I kept the pace. Antonin then took over and did a good job finishing the race.”
Antonin Bernard, VSF Sports, Ligier JS2 R #41, Winner of Race 2 in JS2 R:
“I didn’t want to take any risks because I knew we had won the championship already. But I didn’t want to think too much about that because we were fighting for victory, we are drivers. Daniel did a very good stint even if it was short. He put a ten-second gap with the second. For me, the goal was just to finish the stint. I tried to push but there was a yellow and then a safety car for the finish. Well done to Daniel and to VSF Sports which had been working all night to repair an engine issue.”
The next round of the Ligier European Series will be the grand finale of the 2026 season, held on 8–9 October at the Portimão circuit in Portugal. The JS P4 title fight remains wide open, setting the stage for a fiercely contested Portimão Heat!
CLICK HERE for the results
CLICK HERE for the provisional classification
Photo credit: DPPI
