Phil Hanson, Oliver Jarvis and Marino Sato to contest the 2023 European Le Mans Series
Anglo-Japanese trio to drive the #22 ORECA 07 in the LMP2 class
Announcement completes United Autosports’ 2023 ELMS line-up
Phil Hanson, Marino Sato and Oliver Jarvis
British duo Phil Hanson and Oliver Jarvis will team up with new recruit Marino Sato in the 2023 European Le Mans Series as United Autospors bid to reclaim the prestigious LMP2 championship title - the team having scored more points, wins and pole positions than any other team in ELMS since 2017.
The Anglo-Japanese driver line-up boasts an impressive list of titles between them including Hanson’s stunning 2020 24 Hours of Le Mans victory for United, Jarvis’ 2022 IMSA DPi Championship win and Sato’s single-seater success in the 2019 Euroformula Open Championship.
Now taking on ELMS in the #22 ORECA 07, the accomplished trio complete the three-car LMP2 entry for United Autosports, who placed third in the championship last year and won the title outright in 2020.
Phil Hanson - former ELMS, WEC and Le Mans champion - returns to the European series for his sixth consecutive season with United Autosports. To date, the Brit has scooped 8 wins, 16 podiums and one championship title on the European stage – now it’s all eyes on taking back the title.
For former factory driver Olly Jarvis, ELMS somewhat surprisingly marks a new challenge, the sportscar ‘veteran’ never having previously competed in a full European Le Mans season. Fresh from a stellar year in 2022 – winning the Rolex 24 at Daytona with fellow United WEC driver Tom Blomqvist, claiming the IMSA DPi Championship title and placing third for United in the World Endurance Championship (LMP2) – the experienced Brit will now represent United Autosports in the Asian Le Mans Series, WEC and ELMS.
Taking the silver-graded spot in the #22 ORECA 07 is Marino Sato, a familiar face in single-seaters for the past eight years. The 23-year-old from Yokohama has contested the FIA Formula 2 Championship since 2019, winning the Euroformula Open in the same year. He also tested for AlphaTauri in the 2020 Formula 1 Young Drivers Test Day in Abu Dhabi, and now makes his prototype debut in the European championship.
The European Le Mans Series kicks off in April with the 4 Hours of Barcelona. Stay up to date with all the latest on our social channels @unitedautosports.
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Phil Hanson: “Very excited to be back for another season of ELMS with United Autosports. Finishing 2nd and 3rd in the last two years has only added more fuel to what was an already growing hunger to challenge for a second title.”
Oliver Jarvis: “I am delighted to be joining United Autosports in the ELMS alongside Phil and Marino. I know Phil extremely well and look forward to working with Marino for the first time having watched him in F2. It will be my first full season in the championship but being part of a proven race-winning team, with extremely strong teammates, I’m confident we can challenge for victories.”
Marino Sato: “I would like to thank everyone in the team for their trust and everyone around me for making this happen. It will be a new challenge for me but I’m sure we can have a great season – I’m excited to get started.”
Richard Dean: “This is a super strong driver line-up … we’ve strengthened our team in so many areas as we have our sights solely focussed on winning back our European Le Mans Series title.”