Manor Evaluating “Options and Opportunities” for Second Ginetta

Manor sporting director Graeme Lowdon says the team is still looking at options to run a second Ginetta G60-LT-P1 and that progress on its driver lineup has been made.

The British team is currently the only publicly-announced customer of the car, which was unveiled last week. 

Lowdon says TRS Racing Manor could still add a second car for the full FIA World Endurance Championship season, in addition to continuing its LMP2 program.

“We’ve confirmed one,” Lowdon told Sportscar365. “The entry window is obviously still open for the ‘Super Season’ and we’re still looking for options and opportunities where we could run two.

“There are an awful lot of things that influence that decision, so we have to make what we think is the right decision for the long-term.

“It’s definitely one, and we still have the LMP2 program at the moment. In terms of the ‘Super Season’, the next decision point will be the entry deadline.

“After that, you can enter race-by-race, and we did that in our first year in WEC with the P2, but the next decision for us is whether it’s one or two for the ‘Super Season’.”

While the lineup for the confirmed LMP1 car is yet to be finalized, Lowdon feels confident of picking the right drivers for the program.

“There’s been a huge amount of interest and we’re in an interesting period, driver-wise, because there are an awful lot of drivers who are available and who want to do it,” he said.

“Endurance racing has become pretty cool and it’s good to see people in Formula 1 experiencing it.

“There’s an awful lot of other things happening in the driver market at the moment which means there are a lot of guys available, which is great for us, and it means there’s a huge amount of talent out there.

“We’re confident that the lineup will match the rest of the setup.”

After several mid-season lineup changes over the past two seasons with Manor’s LMP2 program, Lowdon said he wants the same drivers for the full season in the top-class entry.

“It’s so different in P1,” he said. “We’re developing a product and the area of competition is not just the racetrack now.

“It’s the desktop and the design office and everything else. We want to get the right driver lineup and we want consistency.”

Lowdon said sponsorship deals will determine the team’s level of involvement in LMP2.

“Obviously, we have two cars, but a lot depends on how things come together in the next weeks or so,” he said.

“There are a lot of other P2 teams looking to finalize their driver lineups as well, and the driver lineups influence the sponsorship.

“There are lots of variables at this time and it’s busy without having the new program!”

Lowdon Confident of Additional Ginetta LMP1 Interest

Ginetta chairman Lawrence Tomlinson is planning on building ten G60-LT-P1s, six of which will race and four will remain as spares. 

Manor’s first car is currently the only publicly-announced chassis, although an undisclosed customer has purchased three more cars as well.

Despite the low uptake so far, Lowdon is hopeful that more customers will be attracted to the car in time for the WEC season.

“In the ideal world, we want this to be a rocket ship and if it is, everyone will want it,” he said.

“We can’t sit here and say it would be great if we’re the only ones who have it, because if that’s the case, it probably wouldn’t be a desirable car.

“Hopefully the car will be good and other teams will want to take advantage of it.”