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Asian Le Mans Series

United Announces First Lineup for Two-Car Asian Program

Di Resta, Hanson, McGuire to share Oreca 07 Gibson in Asian Le Mans Series…

Photo: United Autosports

United Autosports has announced the first of its LMP2 driver lineups for the Asian Le Mans Series in February.

The 2018-19 title-winning duo of Paul Di Resta and Phil Hanson will reunite sharing the wheel of the No. 22 Oreca 07 Gibson with American Bronze-rated driver Jim McGuire.

Di Resta is returning to the Asian LMS after winning both of this year’s four-hour races at Yas Marina Circuit alongside Josh Pierson, while Hanson is set to compete in the series for the first time since his championship success in a Ligier JS P2 Nissan.

McGuire, meanwhile, will rejoin the Asian LMS grid two years after finishing second in the LMP3 standings with United.

The Anglo-American team is running two Orecas in the top category of the ACO-run series year.

As was the case in 2021 and 2022, the Asian LMS season will consist of consecutive double-header race meetings at Dubai Autodrome and Yas Marina.

“We are excited to return to the Asian Le Mans series and in particular the two fantastic locations in Dubai and Abu Dhabi,” said United team principal Richard Dean.

“We have had a lot of success in the Asian Le Mans Series over the years and it’s a series the whole team really enjoy.

“We are returning with a strong driver lineup with the aim to win and have some fun.”

Di Resta has retained his ties with United despite joining Peugeot’s LMH team in the Hypercar class of the FIA World Endurance Championship. The ex-Formula 1 driver represented the LMP2 team at two Asian LMS races and the 1000 Miles of Sebring this year.

“Very happy to be doing Asian Le Mans again off the back of the 2022 success myself and Josh had,” said Di Resta.

“There [were] no questions about joining Jim and the team for 2023. I’ve known him for a long time: a larger-than-life character and a strong foundation within the team.

“Hopefully we can have some fun out there, also focusing on attaining the best result possible. It’s nice to be back with United to continue on our LMP2 journey together.

“There’s always one goal when you go racing, and that’s to succeed so we’re setting out to do just that.”

McGuire added that he is “super excited” to rejoin Asian LMS in the highest category, after previously driving a United Oreca in select IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship enduros.

“To be back in the LMP2 car is awesome,” he said.

“It’s my favorite car to drive so can’t wait to get going with the team along with Phil and Paul. We’ve got a really strong lineup and we’ll be chasing down the championship title.”

United has stated that its second LMP2 driver lineup announcement is “imminent”.

The team initially looked at adding some LMP3 cars to its Asian program but none of those potential entries have materialized.

Daniel Lloyd is a UK-based reporter for Sportscar365, covering the FIA World Endurance Championship, Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, among other series.

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