MV2S Racing takes on the challenge of the Asian Le Mans Series in 2023

The team from Revel (France) took its first steps in the Asian championship less than 48 hours ago, with its trio of Fabien Lavergne, Jérôme de Sadeleer and the young recruit Viacheslav Gutak.

The promising first laps of the #29 Ligier JS P320 in practice were confirmed in qualifying on Saturday morning. Jérôme finished 5th on the grid for race 1 (Saturday) and 4th for race 2 (Sunday), less than 4 tenths of a second off the front row!

Viacheslav was chosen to start the race in the middle of the 46-car field at 16:45 (local time). At the age of 19, he did not let himself be intimidated at the wheel of the Ligier n°29 and maintained himself in the top 5. The first FCY 12 laps after the start led to the first wave of pit stops and the first driver changes. Jérôme, the Bronze driver of the team, climbs aboard, but has to make up for the seconds lost due to the change of nose. This he manages to do to put MV2S Racing back in 4th position at mid-race. After nearly 2 hours and 20 minutes behind the wheel, the Swiss driver handed over the wheel to Fabien, in 2nd position. The 2019 European Le Mans Series (LMGTE) champion has not lost his speed, quite the contrary. While managing fuel consumption, Fabien returned to the front of the race and took the lead with less than 12 minutes to go. After a final splash and dash, the #29 Ligier won under the chequered flag after 114 laps of the race and only 4 seconds ahead, also with the 3rd best lap in the race.

The win in Dubai represents the MV2S Racing team's first win in LMP3 across all disciplines since its inception in 2014.

The second race of the 4 Hours of Dubai will take place this Sunday, February 12, at 3pm (12pm in France).

"I am delighted with this first victory, despite a turbulent race on our side and some small mistakes. I would like to thank and congratulate the whole team for having put in place a magnificent strategy. It's a great overall result. Viacheslav made a few youthful mistakes, but above all he showed his speed at the beginning of the race. Jérôme was imperial in his double relay, being close to the best pros. As for me, I wanted to win the race and I didn't want to give up. It's a great joy and we hope to continue on this path."

Fabien Lavergne, team principal and driver

“We had a difficult start to the race with a small bump on the muzzle after contact. This resulted in understeer and a lot of damage to the front left tyre. We were lucky because a Full Course Yellow arrived a few minutes later and we were able to change the front. For more than two hours at the wheel, I weaved my way through the traffic to get back into the top three before handing over to Fabien who managed to take the lead and we won the race. It's a great win, a great race and we're looking forward to the rest of the race."

Jérôme de Sadeleer

“I am very happy to finish my first race with MV2S like this. It was a tough race, but we saw what we had to do for tomorrow, and despite all the mistakes, our set-up was so strong that we won the race. Now let's keep our heads down and try to do it again tomorrow, but we are going into the race with more confidence. The season is on!"

Viacheslav Gutak