Former Renault junior Hanley joins ELMS

31 year-old Hanley, a silver-categorised driver, will join reigning Le Mans LMP2 champion Nicolas Lapierre and Henrik Hedman in the team, which is run by Elton Julian.

“I’m delighted to join DragonSpeed for the ELMS in 2016,” said Hanley. “This will be my first season in cars since 2010 and first in sportscars, so I need to get back into the swing and learn a new discipline at the same time.

"Even so, I aim to be up to speed quickly and contributing to achieving the team’s goals. Elton has put together a terrific team and I can’t thank him and Henrik enough for this great opportunity.”

After his single-seater career petered out due to lack of budget, Hanley made a successful return to karts, scoring top-three results in a further 8 European and World Championship events through 2015.

The Mancunian will get his first taste of LMP2 machinery this week when he tests the ORECA 05-Nissan at Sebring.

Commenting on the highly-rated Hanley, team principal Julian said: “It’s a real pleasure to welcome Ben to the team. His talent and determination have shown throughout the ups and downs of his career, and he’s super motivated to make his comeback in sportscars.

"We see Ben as the strong silver-level driver we need to round out our ELMS squad, and look forward to working with him.”

The first ELMS race of the new six race season takes place at Silverstone on April 16.