United Autosports, racing partner of McLaren Automotive, at Bahrain International Circuit
On Saturday afternoon, the grand finale of the 2025 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) roared into action. Notoriously low grip, high degradation and tough on the brakes, the 8 Hours of Bahrain is a true endurance challenge – and yesterday, the WEC curtain-closer lived up to its reputation. The McLaren LMGT3 duo battled through the baking heat and into the night with the #95 taking P9 after eight hours, 216 laps and nine pit stops, followed by the sister #59 in P16.
The Bahrain race marks not only the end of the 2025 WEC season – but also the end of the United Autosports and McLaren Automotive WEC LMGT3 race programme. After two years, three podiums, two historic front row lockouts and victory in COTA, the team close this chapter with a lot to be proud of (Read more: WEC, it’s not goodbye … it’s see you soon).
“The growth of this WEC LMGT3 programme over the past two seasons has been huge,” says Richard Dean, United Autosports CEO. “The team bond and spirit through the highs and lows, the late nights and the tough races … it has been far from easy, but we didn’t stop, we gave it everything and we lifted the trophy as WEC LMGT3 race winners. I am eternally grateful for the United Autosports team and extremely excited for our future in Hypercar.”
59 McLaren races the 2025 8 Hours of Bahrain with United Autosports
#59 Mclaren gt3 evo
quali p13 | race p16 | champ p12
James Cottingham took the start for the #59 crew, double stinting tyres to bank fresh rubber for the final throes. The Brit defended valiantly in the opening stages, but owing to the long-haul tyre strategy, ultimately lost positions and dropped to the back of the pack.
Two hours in, Cottingham handed over to Sebastien Baud – however, the French driver soon encountered an issue. The team acted quickly, pulling the #59 into the box to replace the alternator, with Seb rejoining the race after 20 minutes of intense action.
Half an hour later, however, the same issue reared its head, with a second alternator failure forcing the #59 into the box once again - dropping the team 22 laps behind the LMGT3 leader. Gregoire Saucy took over for the final push, racing to the line and signing off the #59’s podium placing season with a hard-fought P16.
James Cottingham: “We adopted a very aggressive tyre strategy to give us a massive advantage towards the end of the race with more new tyres, which worked completely to our advantage with a full green race for the first two and half hours which meant we had used up a lot of Bronze and Silver drive time on a low consumption tyre strategy. We were looking really good but unfortunately disaster struck when we had an alternator issue meaning that we had to box and ultimately we lost too much time to make it back. A sad final chapter to an amazing two year adventure with United Autosports.”
Sebastien Baud: “So the season is done now. I am a bit disappointed because we had a good team, a good car and a good chance to fight for the podium at most of the races. But we had some technical issues along the way, and that was the same in Bahrain. Good memories in Qatar on the podium but overall a bit disappointed in the end.”
Gregoire Saucy: “Really difficult last race. It’s sad that we had some issues with the car. During my last three stints we showed we could fight with the others … we were not the fastest, but I could fight with them. Overall, it has been a season of ups and downs! I want to say a big thank you to all the team, all the engineers and the mechanics, for their hard work during the season.”
95 McLaren races the 2025 8 Hours of Bahrain with United Autosports
#95 Mclaren gt3 evo
quali p11 | race p9 | champ p11
Darren Leung kicked off proceedings in the #95 McLaren, taking on an impressive triple stint with the challenge of saving as many tyres as possible. The Yorkshireman was pushed wide at T3 on the opening lap, dropping him from P11 to the back of the pack - but with tyre management taking priority over battling for position, Leung stayed in P17 with full focus on the task in hand.
Sean Gelael took over and started the climb, breaking into the top 10 as darkness fell – however, a questionable drive through penalty for VSC procedures stalled the charge, dropping Gelael to the back of the pack. The next three and a half hours passed without intervention, until - with 50 minutes on the clock - a Virtual Safety Car was deployed, closing the pack and giving Marino Sato (complete with fresh tyres) an exciting opportunity.
At the restart, Sato was primed for a double overtake however contact during the move compromised the aerodynamics of the McLaren, taking the fight out of the #95 for the final half hour. From there, Sato worked to maintain P9 in the hectic field, and successfully delivered a top 10 finish for the crew – though, with the thought of what could have been.
Darren Leung: “We managed the race well and got the luck we needed, but unfortunately the end of the race didn’t go our way. I would like to thank the team for all their efforts this year. The first WEC LMGT3 win for McLaren in COTA is a wonderful memory I’ll carry for years to come. Viva Yorkshire!”
Sean Gelael: “It was a tough race and an unfortunate end to the season. I would have loved to finish off the collaboration with United Autosports with a win but in hindsight it was a wonderful year with a win in hand and I am so happy to have contributed to that. I would like to thank everyone in the team, sincerely from the bottom of my heart. Hopefully we can find some place again working together in the future.”
Marino Sato: “We took a really aggressive tyre strategy to be able to fight in the end. The race itself, with the last Safety Car went in our favour but still we didn’t have what we needed to climb up the order in the last hour. I had good momentum at the Safety Car restart and I was racing two cars - but I picked up some damage when I was overtaking them which also cost me in my last stint. It’s a real shame that the result was not what we hoped for in our last race. I am thankful to everyone as always for the huge effort right to the end. Hopefully I will see you all soon.”
Next, the United Autosports team are Malaysia-bound for the opening round of the 2025/26 Asian Le Mans Series. There will be three United Autosports cars lining up on the grid at the 4 Hours of Sepang (13-14th December 2025) with the championship title and a Le Mans 24 entry as the ultimate prize. Stay up to date with the team on social @unitedautosports.