Having taken part in the Ultimate Cup Series opening round, Inter Europol Competition concluded its 2023 race programme by taking part in the championship’s final round, once again at Circuit Paul Ricard.

The team fielded two Ligier JS P320s, the #88 for James Winslow and John Corbett, the #15 for 2023 Michelin Le Mans Cup racer Chris Short, and two new faces in Max Mayer and Romain Favre. It proved to be a competitive week in the cool, sunny conditions in the south of France, with plenty of track time and the four-hour endurance race yielding fifth and eighth positions in the LMP3 class for the #88 and #15, respectively.

The schedule was very much skewed to late afternoon running, meaning that all of qualifying took place well after sunset. Chris and his rookie teammates Max and Romain showed great pace when it counted to qualify third overall in the #15, with the #88 just outside of the top ten in P12.

The race was largely trouble-free, although the timings of the Full Course Yellows could have been more favourable, with Chris on track for a double stint at the start before pitting at the 95-minute mark from fifth position and handing to Max. Romain took over at the three-hour mark, running directly behind the sister Inter Europol Competition Ligier for a number of laps before a late race stop dropped him down the order.

There was plenty of speed in the #15 car and its drivers, and the eighth-place finish doesn’t really reflect this race pace, but the #88 crew were the more consistent and following a double stint from John at the start, James was at the wheel as the two drivers alternated to the conclusion of the race, finishing fifth in LMP3, eighth overall.

The 2024 season is coming fast, and the team is now continuing preparations for its IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship campaign, which gets underway in January.

Romain Favre #15
“I’m really happy about the job done by the team; the whole crew did a great job. I learned a lot during the week, and I really enjoyed it. I want to thank Andy, Sasha, Rafa, Chris, Max and all the staff at Inter Europol Competition for their hard work.”

James Winslow #88
“It was great to be back with Inter Europol Competition again after a long history with this team. The race went well, but I’d missed most of the practice here at Paul Ricard, so the race was my first real run in the car; we moved up from P12 Qu to battle at the front and top three.

“We lost out to the FCY as others stopped for fuel as track positioning meant we just missed the window due to bad luck, but fifth place was a great end to the season, especially as it was John’s first race in over a year.

John Corbett #88
“It was a great, fun, weekend back with IEC and driving with James again. I look forward to more in the future!”