Williamson misses WEC podium by 0.071sposted in WEC24 | 07 | 2016
HIGHLANDER LEWIS WILLIAMSON missed out on an LMP2 podium position on his debut in the World Endurance Championship by just 0.071secs at the end of the six-hour race at the Nurburgring in Germany.
Ironically, the 26-year-old from Golspie’s Strakka Racing Gibson 015S Nissan was pipped to third place by the Extreme Speed Motorsports Ligier-Nissan of Airdrie’s Ryan Dalziel.
“It’s been a mega weekend,” Williamson said, after watching team-mate Jonny Kane mount a last-lap charge to overtake former FIA LMP2 world champ Dalziel, “and to come so close to a podium on my debut is tough to take.
“I believe I’ve shown I have the ability to make it at the highest level of sportscar racing, and I have to thank Strakka Racing for giving me the opportunity this weekend.
“It’s been a huge learning experience, and this weekend has just consolidated the fact sportscars is where I want to be racing. The WEC is a brilliant championship.
“It was great to make some overtaking moves and have a proper race again. That’s the longest I’ve driven a car in a race for but physically it was fine. I’ve just got to learn more about driving the car, especially how to adapt as fuel levels change and the tyres wear.
“The car feels very different on full tanks and it caught me out under braking when I was between two GTs, leading to me flat spotting the fronts.”
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With Williamson concerned about the condition of the tyres, the team took the decision to bring him slightly earlier than planned with a driver change to Nick Leventis. Once again during this stint the team delivered a strategic gain that brought the race alive at the very end.
“Lewis did exactly what we asked him to do,” team principal Dan Walmsley stressed. “He showed good pace but also stayed out of trouble, didn’t make mistakes and drove like an accomplished sportscar driver. We are all impressed with the job he did all weekend.”
Dalziel, meanwhile, was delighted with his LMP2 podium place, and finishing 10th overall.
“We double-stinted the Michelin tyres at the end, and over the last few laps I was seriously struggling for grip,” the Florida-based Scot admitted.
“I was doing everything I could to keep Jonny behind me, and in the end it was down to a sprint out of the final corner to the chequered flag. Somehow we managed to keep third, which is brilliant.”
The race was won by the LMP1 Porsche 919 Hybrid of former F1 racer Mark Webber, Timo Bernhard and Brendon Hartley, which finished 53.787secs ahead of the two Audi R10 e-tron hybrids in second and third. The two Audis were separated by just 0.696s.
Related: Lewis Williamson starts third on WEC debut
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Jim McGill