Top five result for Algarve Pro Racing’s AsianLMS Am Trophy challengers in Shanghai

Algarve Pro Racing’s challengers for the 2018-19 Asian Le Mans Series LMP2 Amateur Trophy, Anders Fjordbach, Mark Patterson and Chris McMurry, finished the 4 Hours of Shanghai in fifth overall (23-25 November).

The Pro-Am trio were third of the Am Trophy runners at the finish of the drama-filled AsianLMS season-opener at China’s Shanghai International Circuit, which featured an unfortunate retirement for the sister #24 entry of Harrison Newey, Andrea Pizzitola and Ate Dirk de Jong.    

The #24 Ligier JSP2 of reigning Asian Le Mans Champion Newey, European Le Mans Series title-winner Pizzitola and 2017-18 AsianLMS Gentleman’s Trophy winner De Jong featured highly in both 90-minute free practice sessions;

A time of 1m57.822s from Newey was sufficient for P2 in the definitive FP1 classification, although the #25 car of Patterson, McMurry and Fjordbach led the Algarve Pro charge from fourth in FP2;

Newey and Fjordbach were elected to qualify for the Shanghai season-opener. The former set a time of 1m55.804s to secure a front-row starting position and the latter went seventh overall;

Shanghai was blanketed in thick fog on Sunday (25 November) morning and a delayed start seemed almost inevitable, but there was an adequate improvement in visibility to get the race underway on schedule;

From second on the grid, Pizzitola got the jump on Jackie Chan DC Racing’s Weiron Tan to lead the 27-car Asian Le Mans field into Turn 1;

The French driver was frequently fastest in all three sectors of the 5.45km Shanghai International Circuit and he used a clear track to pump in quick laps in a valiant attempt to break the tow and Jackie Chan DC Racing’s spirits;

In a cruel twist of fate, the #24 Ligier sustained a race-ending electrical fault 20 minutes in, forcing Race Control to deploy a Full Course Yellow;

The surviving #25 entry – Algarve Pro Racing’s challenger for the LMP2 Amateur Trophy – fell from seventh to 13th on the opening lap of the race, but Patterson recovered to eighth on a greasy, low-grip track before pitting for an early driver-change at the 40-minute mark;

McMurry took the reins for a single 40-minute stint and, out of sync with the rest of the LMP2 field, rounded out the top 12 before giving way to Fjordbach, who would take the #25 Ligier to the chequered flag;

Denmark’s Fjordbach was seventh overall and fourth in LMP2 during the third hour, but soon rose to fifth overall and third in the fight for the Amateur Trophy, involving the #23 United Autosports and #4 ARC Bratislava entries;

Diminishing gaps between the Am Trophy contenders made for a tense conclusion to the 4 Hours of Shanghai, but one final splash-and-dash nailed Fjordbach to a highly respectable fifth-place result at the chequered flag.

Mark Patterson (#25 Algarve Pro Racing Ligier JSP2): “The fog was a problem before the race and I allowed it to get into my head, but it was much better by the time we started the race. Unfortunately, it left a greasy track surface that gave very little grip and I lost track position because I had to duck inside two cars into the first turn. I did just fine to recover thereafter and, even though low tyre temperatures gave me a problem in the big braking zones, the car was absolutely perfect.”

Andrea Pizzitola (#24 Algarve Pro Racing Ligier JSP2): “I’m so sad that we had to retire from the Asian Le Mans Series 4 Hours of Shanghai, because I was enjoying my stint so much. We had an electrical problem that sent fuel into the airbox and caused a fire. I had no warning at all – the first sign was smoke in the cockpit. Free practice went well, qualifying second was a satisfying result and we definitely had the pace to achieve something nice in the race.”

The second instalment of the 2018-19 Asian Le Mans Series will be held at Japan’s Fuji International Speedway on 7-9 December.