Drayson rejoins British government

DRAYSON REJOINS BRITISH GOVERNMENT AS SCIENCE MINISTER

Drayson-Barwell driver and principal Paul Drayson will be returning to the British government in the position of Science Minister, Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced last week. Before joining the American Le Mans Series, Drayson served a Minister for Defense Procurement and in the House of Lords before taking a leave of absence to pursue a dream of racing at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The most important thing from the Drayson-Barwell racing team's point of view is that this new position won't affect Drayson's racing program and future goals. Indeed, the Prime Minister is fully supportive of his motorsport activities, which will continue in the 2009 GT racing arena.

"I'm really delighted as this is my dream job," Drayson enthused. "Motorsport is just the sort of high-tech, high-growth industry that the British excel at. It sets a great example of how the UK can lead the world in applying science and engineering to win."

Drayson teamed with Jonny Cocker and Darren Turner for a ninth-place GT2 finish in the Drayson-Barwell Aston Martin Vantage GT2. The team also finished second in the inaugural Green Challenge among GT teams. The Green Challenge ranks entries based on their overall performance, fuel efficiency and environmental impact.

Drayson-Barwell is one of several teams in the American Le Mans Series competing on cellulosic E85, which is made from sources such as wastewood and switchgrass.

The final round of the 2008 American Le Mans Series is the Monterey Sports Car Championships from Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. The four-hour race into darkness is scheduled to start at 2:45 p.m. PT on Saturday, October 18. NBC Sports will air the race from 2 to 4 p.m. ET on Sunday, October 19. XM Satellite Radio's Channel 144 will air the race from 4 to 8 p.m. ET on the same day. Live video of qualifying will be available on americanlemans.com starting at 3 p.m. PT on Friday, October 17. American Le Mans Radio will have live coverage on americanlemans.com, which also will feature Live Timing & Scoring.

-credit: alms