Road Atlanta: Andy Meyrick 2010 season review

Meyrick's 2010 ALMS Memories

Andy Meyrick, one of Britain's brightest, new, international sports car talents, can look back on his first season in the 2010 American Le Mans Series with Dyson Racing with many happy memories and much to relish.

That his final race of the year in the Mazda-powered Castrol Lola should end with gearbox failure mid way through the 1000 Mile Petit Le Mans event does not detract from the experience he gained both at Road Atlanta and in his previous outings with Dyson Racing earlier in the season.

"We knew the car was quick at Petit Le Mans, as Guy demonstrated on Friday when he put it on the LMP2 pole, "said Andy. "Our pace was quite good in traffic which, with 45 cars entered, was important. It is a very rewarding car to drive and I think we had the quickest car in the series so it was really disappointing to have the gearbox fail when it did.

"It was the most enjoyable race I've done all year," continued the Cheshire-based 25-year-old. "We were running a solid 2nd in the LMP2 class, and really looking forward to battling with the Highcroft HPD and Cytosport's Porsche Spyder through to the chequered flag. It's a shame for Dyson Racing to finish the year with a DNF, but I was super impressed to see the improvements carried out by the team between the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca race in May and now. It's a completely different package and really, really good."

Meyrick first drove for Dyson Racing at this year's 12 Hours of Sebring, co-driving with Chris Dyson and Guy Smith to the team's first podium finish of the season. He was also on duty with the Poughkeepsie, NY-based team at the 6-hour race in California, with another podium place as his reward, just prior to making a very successful debut at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with the French Team ORECA.

Team Principal, and Andy's team mate in the ALMS, Chris Dyson, said of his young team mate: "We could not have been happier with the job Andy did for us this year. From the moment he first tested with us, I knew that we had a young driver with the right combination of talent, determination and maturity to perform at this level. He was a great fit with Guy Smith and me and his feedback and approach to the job were excellent. Andy was still very new to endurance racing earlier this year, but judging by the results he achieved you would never know it. I think he learned a great deal working with us, and we certainly enjoyed having him on board.

"I was very pleased with his driving all week at the Petit Le Mans. Road Atlanta is a very fast circuit with blind corners and a maddening flow of traffic. It's not a breeze to learn how to go fast there. But in his typical fashion, Andy soaked it all up and in the race was running exactly the pace we needed from him. It's too bad we didn't get to the end because I think we had a great result on the cards.

"He did great at Sebring and backed it up with a strong race at Mazda Raceway. And you can't deny he did a great job at Le Mans, finishing fourth overall and first in the gasoline class."

Meyrick is now busy working on finalising plans for 2011, with a return to the American Le Mans Series being uppermost on his wish-list. As this year's top Le Mans 'rookie' driver and second highest finishing Briton behind Allan McNish, Andy will also be looking towards a podium finish for his second 24 Hour race. Meyrick is a man in demand.

-source: www.andymeyrick.com