Eurasia Confirms Le Mans LMP2 Lineup

Eurasia Motorsport has confirmed its driver lineup for the 24 Hours of Le Mans that will involve the same trio that contested last weekend’s Total 6 Hours of Spa with the team.

The Filipino LMP2 squad’s Ligier JS P217 Gibson will be driven by Roberto Merhi, Nick Foster and Nobuya Yamanaka in the 88th edition of the classic endurance race.

Shane van Gisbergen was originally set to represent Eurasia, but the New Zealander will be competing in the Virgin Australia Supercars round at Sandown on Le Mans weekend.

The team is also associated with Nick Cassidy, whose planned participation in the FIA World Endurance Championship round at Spa was compromised by travel factors arising from his Super GT commitments in Japan.

Eurasia brought ex-Formula 1 driver Merhi on board to replace Cassidy at Spa, while Foster was also a late addition to the lineup alongside Bronze-rated Yamanaka after Daniel Gaunt was ruled out due to travel complications from New Zealand.

Having completed the Spa race, the same trio will now look ahead to racing at Le Mans.

Both Merhi and Foster are set for their second appearances in the 24-hour race. Foster drove for GTE-Am squad Gulf Racing in 2017 while Merhi ran with LMP2 outfit Manor in the previous year’s edition. Yamanaka, meanwhile, is set for his Le Mans debut.

“We achieved all we expected with this tough test in Spa; the crew got the opportunity to work in a competitive environment for the first time in a while,” said Eurasia team principal Mark Goddard.

“They also worked well under pressure, changing conditions and completed some running repairs.

“The drivers – especially Yamanaka – got the valuable experience that will be of great benefit when he lines up at Le Mans next month.”