Interview with CEFC Manor TRS Racing’s Ben Hanley

2017 is British driver Ben Hanley’s second full season in endurance racing and, since he made his debut in the WEC in Spa Francorchamps in May, he has been quietly making a name for himself.

Alongside his full-season European Le Mans Series seat with the American Dragonspeed team, the 32-year-old from Manchester has also been a key player in the LMP2 category of the FIA WEC, driving for three different teams.

Hanley raced for TDS Racing in Spa-Francorchamps, G-Drive Racing in Nürburgring and, from the fifth round in Mexico to the end of the season, as part of the CEFC Manor TRS Racing team.  Teamed with Jean-Eric Vergne and Matt Rao, the trio delivered the team’s first podium finish in Mexico in early September. 

Q:  You are the only WEC driver this year to race with three different teams; how difficult is it to adapt?

BH: “Well they all use the same car, they are racing the ORECA 07, so it’s not that big a deal if I am honest.  Maybe if it was different manufacturers then it might take a little bit of time to get used to it.  It’s just how quickly I can get to know the engineer, the team, things like that.  I think I’ve only got two more teams left to race for to get the full set (he laughs).”

Q: In the ELMS you and Nico Lapierre were teammates at Dragonspeed but here you will be rivals. Have you talked to him about the tracks since Mexico?

BH: “No not really.  In the ELMS we worked together really well and there has never been any issue between us.  We’re always trying to help each other and push each other.  But here we are with different teams so it is a different situation.”

Q: How have you found these new, more powerful, LMP2 cars this year?

BH: “I feel the 2017 car has suited me better than last year and this is my second year in endurance racing, so I am feeling a lot more comfortable with the racing, the strategy and with traffic management.  It’s going well and I just have to keep my head down and keep pushing.”

Ben Hanley was talking to Jeff Carter of the FIA