Motorsport: Inception Racing team robbed of victory by fuel leak in Abu Dhabi

The Inception team were in winning form until they suffered mechanical problems. Picture courtesy of Optimum Motorsport

Having claimed the pole position, recorded the fastest lap and established a lead during the early stages, the team were on course for its first victory of the season.

However, a fuel leak at the one-third distance mark forced a long pitstop to rectify the issue on the #72 McLaren 720S, dashing hopes of victory, before the Wakefield team pushed on, recording 12th position overall and third in the GT class.

Hot on the heels of last week’s tenth position overall and fifth position in class in the 24H Dubai, at Dubai Autodrome, Inception moved on to Yas Marina with high hopes.

Following the practice sessions, it was an early start on Saturday morning for qualifying where both Brendan Iribe and Ollie Millroy took to the circuit in the 30-minute session. Ultimately, the latter claimed the pole position, setting up the race nicely for his teammate.

Iribe took the start, running second to the #99 Attempto Racing entry driven by Alex Aka. Keeping a watching brief, an early Code 60 after 30-minutes of action saw Iribe and the race leader box for full service.

Millroy resumed for his first stint of the race, quickly closing down the 20-second plus margin on the Attempto Audi to take the race lead. He extended his advantage by another 20-seconds before pitting on lap 33.

Resuming, it soon became clear that the McLaren had developed a fuel leak, and this brought down the curtain on the event after 46 laps and two hours of competition.

Following a lengthy stop for repairs, the #72 resumed, moving ahead of the Attempto Racing Audi which had suffered mechanical problems, with Millroy taking the chequered flag after 84 laps.

Shaun Goff, Inception Racing with Optimum Motorsport Team Principal, said: “We always really enjoy racing at this amazing facility at Yas Marina.

“Brendan and Ollie were super-fast and having secured the pole position, it was looking really promising. We started with Brendan, he put in a great stint, and we then boxed him under the first Code 60 to optimise the strategy which soon enough propelled us into the race lead.

“We went through the driver changes, but we were very unfortunate to pick up a fuel leak on the third stop, which really hampered us in terms of pushing for the race win.

“But we’re happy with the pole, fastest lap and P3 in the GT class. The team and both drivers did a great job all weekend long, so onto the next one.”

The team now begin preparations for the Asian Le Mans Series which gets underway next month in the United Arab Emirates, with the four rounds split between Dubai and Abu Dhabi.