|
Halliday back behind the wheel in American Le Mans Series |
|
|
|
|
Wednesday, 13 August 2008 |
Female
racing driver Liz Halliday will make her long awaited return to the
American Le Mans Series later in the year after signing for British
squad Creation AIM to contest the Petit Le Mans and Laguna Seca events.
The
California born dual sportswoman, who also competes at an international
level in 3 Day Eventing, is the most successful female driver ever in
ALMS history having scored six class wins and six other podiums and
finished as championship runner-up in the P2 class in 2006.
The
deal with Creation will see Halliday, who is based in the UK, graduate
to the P1 class for the first time where she will drive one of the
team’s eponymous CA07 chassis alongside South African Stephen Simpson.
The pair will race together at Laguna Seca and be joined by an as-yet
unnamed third driver for the 1000 mile Petit Le Mans endurance race.
Having tested the car for the first time at Snetterton last week, Halliday
revealed her delight at being back behind the wheel, having not raced
since the 2007 Le Mans 24 Hours: “I really enjoyed just being in a race
car again and the test has increased my anticipation for the Petit Le
Mans in October.
“I’ve wanted to drive a P1 car for a very long
time so it’s exciting to finally get that opportunity. The test went
really well and the car felt superb and very good to drive. Creation’s
regular drivers Jamie Campbell-Walter and Stuart Hall were also around
to give me some tips and I found that really helpful. The team are very
professional and have a great track record and I’m confident we’ll work
well together.”
Halliday’s last US appearance came at the 2007
12 Hours of Sebring, where she claimed a GT1 class podium, but having
taken a small break from racing to concentrate on her equestrian
activities, she admitted a return to race in her homeland cannot come
soon enough.
“I’ve been waiting a long time to get back to the
ALMS,” she said. “I have so many friends there and really enjoyed my
time in the championship. I’ve had a lot of success there in the past
and hopefully that will continue.”
Creation AIM Team Principal Mike Jankowski
said: “It took us 18 months to get Liz in our car and we are delighted
that she will be with Creation for the final two races of the American
Le Mans Series. Despite having been out of the cockpit for more than a
year, she was quickly up to speed during the test and we believe there
is even more to come. Liz is very well known to fans of the ALMS and
will be a strong complement to our two car end-of-season effort.”
The
Petit Le Mans takes place on Saturday 4 October and can be seen Live on
Speed TV (USA) and Motors TV (Europe). The race at Laguna Seca takes
place on Saturday 18 October and can be viewed in full on NBC Sports
(USA) and Motors TV (Europe).
|
News