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Le Mans Series 2006
Round 2. Spa 1000 Kilometers. May 12-14th 2006

Qualifying. Issued May 13th 2006

Second Successive Pole for RML

RML starts on class pole for the second successive race following an impressive run in difficult conditions at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium for round two of the 2006 Le Mans Series. Heavy overnight rain had been followed by another torrential downpour shortly before the start of the twenty-minute qualifying session, but Brazilian Thomas Erdos took the slippery circuit in his stride to emerge nearly a second-and-a-half clear of the field in LMP2.

“I’m delighted of course, but it’s such good effort from everyone in the team,” insisted Erdos afterwards. “ We knew the track would be drier towards the end of the session, and we worked hard towards making the most of that knowledge.” This was reflected in the fact that the RML MG Lola EX264 was one of the last cars to head out onto the track. “After that, I just went out and kept trying to go quicker and quicker, right up until my last lap.” The time was not only fast enough to secure the class pole, but also to set the MG on the second row overall, less than a second shy of gaining a valuable front-row slot. “It’s very encouraging to be so close to the quickest LMP1 cars,” commented Adam Wiseberg Motorsport Director at AD Holdings, the team’s principal sponsor. “To be just two-and-a-half seconds off pole, less than a second away from the first row, is very impressive.”

During two days of practice, the RML MG has been consistently quickest in class, topping the times not only during the dry periods of Friday, but also when the track has been at its most treacherous. “I think it was Stirling Moss who said that nobody actually enjoys driving in the wet, but some are just better at it than others,” said Mike Newton, who co-drives the EX264 with Thomas Erdos. “Tommy’s style clearly suits the wet, and I feel we both cope well with conditions like this. Generally, we’re very competitive when it rains. Certainly, a wet race holds no fears for us!”

The forecast for Sunday is for changeable conditions, and these may benefit the RML duo, but memories of their last outing in Istanbul are still fresh. On that occasion Thomas Erdos was tipped into the pit wall by contact from another prototype driver even before they had crossed the starting line. It’s a concern that is never far removed from the team’s thinking as they face Sunday’s race. “If nothing goes badly wrong at the start, we should be able to deliver another podium tomorrow,” said a quietly confident Adam Wiseberg. Ray Mallock, team owner at RML, was equally hopeful. “I’m very pleased with the way the car has been dialled in for this circuit,” he said. “We’ve been trying some slightly different parts on the car and they’ve worked well, and that’s reflected in good times from both drivers, but we still need to look forward to a good, clean get-away.”

The six-hour, 1000 kilometer race starts at half-past twelve local time tomorrow.