LMP2 Review: Jota's Mega Season

The 2022 FIA World Endurance Championship LMP2 promised action and intrigue from the very first lap at Sebring in March, and it didn’t disappoint.

Jota scratched an itch it had found a little irritating since it made its full-time leap in to the WEC back in 2016. Prior to that it had won in the European Le Mans Series and it had starred at Le Mans, with wins in 2014 and 2017. But it hadn’t quite come out on top in the WEC.

The opposition was massive for Jota but they were not daunted. The team had raced United Autosports USA and WRT in previous seasons and had occasionally won out. 2022 would be different though. This was Jota’s time.

Yet their season started with some disappointment at Sebring when the No.38 Jota Oreca-Gibson of Antonio Felix da Costa, Will Stevens and Roberto Gonzalez managed only sixth in a race that didn’t go its way at all.

Winning that day was the No.23 United Autosports car with Oliver Jarvis, Paul di Resta and Josh Pierson at the wheel. Pierson’s debut at the age of 16 was one of the standout sensations of the year.

At Spa, the No.38 crew got their first big points of the season with a fighting third place. But it was at Le Mans where they had their day of days.

All three drivers were at their brilliant best at La Sarthe. The pace and consistency was as close to perfection as they dared to dream and they won an LMP2 class as easily as you can amid such fierce competition.

What made it that little bit sweeter was that all of their closest title rivals failed to score significant points. The WRT entry crashed in the morning and United Autosports’ race crumbled beneath them.

Will Stevens summed up Jota’s race at Le Mans by saying; “We’ve had a lot of momentum coming into this week and we rolled off last Sunday with a super strong car, so credit to the team for all the work they did before arriving here.

“The car was honestly a pleasure to drive from the start to the finish. For how competitive LMP2 field is, and all the top teams are there, is credit to the team and I am super happy we could get the win today and I hope it is one of many this year.”

While he was right with the dream-like delivery of the Le Mans, he wasn’t quite on the mark with the further victories, but it mattered little when they sealed the crown in Bahrain in November.

They put themselves in that position by scoring two second places in Monza and Fuji, losing out to RealTeam WRT and the No.31 WRT squad respectively. But this is how titles are won, and the Gonzalez, da Costa and Stevens axis was clearly well-deserving of their title success.

All three drivers showed prime attributes for winning the championship. Gonzalez continued his progress as a silver driver, Stevens plugged in to the team effortlessly and was perhaps the driver of the season, while da Costa yet again showed his class in both qualifying and races.

Robin Frijns and Sean Gelael took the runners-up positions, enjoying two wins at Fuji and Bahrain. Sadly, for them it was too little and too late in the context of the title.

Frijns’s rare mistake at Le Mans cost the team at least a more concerted attack on the title. However, the Dutchman’s pole lap at La Sarthe was one of the moments of the season. A Hyperpole time of 3:28.394 was 1.7s clear of the field and is sure to pass into Le Mans legendary status.

Oliver Jarvis and Josh Pierson took third in the standings scoring points in each of the six rounds in 2022.

Sebring was certainly the highlight, especially for Pierson who carved out a superb reputation in his first season at international sportscar racing level.

The sister United Autosports car of Filipe Albuquerque, Phil Hanson and Will Owen suffered several misfortunes and difficult races in 2022. A fifth place at Spa and a pole via Albuquerque at Monza were the only real high points of the season.

Norman Nato, Rui Andrade and Ferdinand Habsburg’s day of days came at Monza in July with a finely judged victory in the RealTeam WRT entry.

Andrade became the first driver of Angolan birth to win in WEC, and the team followed up that form with a runners-up position at Spa and an excellent pole position via Norman Nato’s wonderful lap in Bahrain.

The Prema Orlen Team were quick and scored points in each of the six rounds but were left disappointed by ending the season fifth. A distant second place at Le Mans in June was Lorenzo Colombo, Louis Deletraz and Robert Kubica’s only visit to the podium last season.

Jota’s No.28 crew of Oliver Rasmussen, Ed Jones and Jonathan Aberdein claimed two podiums at Le Mans and Fuji, the latter of which was especially impressive after a first lap incident.

The LMP2 Pro/Am division was taken by Francois Perrodo, Nicklas Nielsen and Alessio Rovera in the AF Corse Oreca-Gibson.

They started off the season in stellar fashion with wins at Sebring and Spa. These races also included exceptional overall LMP2 pole positions.

But at Le Mans there was disappointment when Perrodo collided with Alexander Sims’ Corvette. His subsequent heartfelt apology to the U.S. team was one of the sporting moments of the season.

This incident and other issues for the No.83 AF Corse crew at La Sarthe allowed the Algarve Pro racing team of Steven Thomas, Rene Binder and James Allen to notch up a dream win. It came after the team had re-built their car following a practice accident.

They followed this up with a faultless drive at Monza to take the Pro/Am points lead. But a difficult Fuji allowed AF Corse to re-assert their hold on the title race and they converted it with maximum points again at the Bapco 8 Hours of Bahrain.