Press Release – November 5, 2019
Entries for the first season of the Ligier European Series have only just opened and already several teams have confirmed their decision to enter for 2020. They include teams from different horizons and a newly-founded Driving Institute devoted to young talents. It all bodes well for a great field!
Among them English team RLR Msport is ready for the off! Its season in the European Le Mans Series and the Michelin Le Mans Cup with a squad of three LM P3s is over; and last week it announced that it would enter a Ligier JS2 R for the 2020 Ligier European Series.
“Our Ligier European Series entry will stand at the base of RLR MSport’s ladder to the 24 Hours of Le Mans,” explained Nick Reynolds, Director of Motorsport Operations. “It’s a cost-effective launchpad for gentlemen drivers wishing to enjoy themselves on the best tracks in Europe, but also for young talents who wish to improve and learn how to operate as part of a professional racing team at the highest levels of motorsport.”
This vision is shared by Jean-Bernard Bouvet who has just launched a Driving Institute, the “Institut de Pilotage Automobile” and created the Endurance GT and/or LMP Prototypes nursery. The aim of this school is to train during three years between four and six young drivers aged from 16 to 20 into becoming a professional racing driver. The drivers who will be incorporated into this nursery will take part in the Ligier European Series in a Ligier JS2 R and/or a Ligier JS P4.
“When I had the idea of creating the first Endurance GT and/or LMP Prototypes nursery, the perfect championship was the Ligier European Series, said Jean-Bernard Bouvet, President of the Institut de Pilotage Automobile. A single-make series is a good way to showcase the best drivers. It was also a no-brainer for me to choose the French constructor Ligier Automotive, involved in all the endurance championships. The Ligier European Series, featured during the same weekends as the European Le Mans Series, will offer a great visibility to our young drivers.”
The drivers in the Endurance nursery will learn the ropes in the French team, ZOSH Compétition managed by Jean-René de Fournoux, which will enter a Ligier JS2 R and a Ligier JS P4. The team that was running three Ligier JS2 Rs in the Ligier JS Cup France, the French endurance formula dedicated to the Ligier JS2 R, clinched first and second places in the overall classification!
“ZOSH Compétition is excited to partner with the Institut de Pilotage Automobile”, added Jean-René de Fournoux. “We have a long history with Jean-Bernard which started 20 years ago when we were co-drivers at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and in LMES. When Jean-Bernard introduced his project, it appeared to me as an obvious move. It is simply what we would have dreamed of when we started our career. These young talents will have at their disposal all the tools and competencies necessary to quickly evolve in the professional world of motorsport. We will help them to fast-track their career”.
Stéphane Roux’s MV2S Racing squad which, among other activities, has been running Mitjet 2Ls and “Supertourismes” for eight years, will also enter two Ligier JS2 Rs.
“We’ve been keeping a close eye on the Ligier JS2 R since it was unveiled and on the launch of the Ligier JS Cup France,” said Stéphane. “We were looking for a cost-effective product that receives widespread media coverage for our clients. The announcement of the Ligier European Series came at the right moment for us as we’d just finalised a programme in LMP3 in the Michelin Le Mans Cup with one of our clients. What’s more by contacting Ligier to buy the new Ligier JS P320 operating two Ligier JS2 Rs in the Ligier European Series is an obvious step for us. With a beautiful car with a good ratio between cost and performance, a great field in the making and everything on the same weekends as the European Le Mans Series and the Michelin Le Mans Cup, it’s absolutely ideal for our clients and it makes sense from a financial point of view.” The team is currently in the process of finalising its two-driver lineups.
Italian outfit HP Racing Team, which has just finished the season in the Ultimate Cup Series with three victories out of three events, will enter its Ligier JS P4 in the Ligier European Series with Eurointernational managed by Antonio Ferrari.
“The announcement last July of the launch of this new single-make series immediately caught our attention, declared Abramo Levato, CEO of HP Racing Team. We rapidly decided to enter this championship with our Ligier JS P4 allowing us to visit some of the best European tracks. Thanks to the experience accumulated during the Ultimate Cup Series with Eurointernational at our side, we are now ready to tackle this new challenge.”
Other teams are expected to announce their participation in the series in the very near future.
For further information about the Ligier European Series contact Morgane Tizon at the following addressentry@ligiereuropeanseries.com.
