Hong Kong’s greatest motor racing driver, Charles Kwan, is coming out of retirement to boost the SAR’s pioneering Le Mans team.

The track legend has agreed to compete for Noble Group-GruppeM Racing if they are invited to the Le Mans 24 Hours in June.

Kwan, 42, retired after the 2004 Macau Grand Prix following an illustrious 20-year career in the sport.

But the lure of driving for Hong Kong’s official team in the world’s greatest sports car race has proved too strong.

"I had a great career and I’m happy in retirement, so it’s fair to say Le Mans is the only race that can get me back behind the wheel,” said Kwan.

"The Hong Kong Le Mans team is a fantastic project and, after giving it careful thought, I’ve agreed to be one of the drivers.

"I’ll obviously need to do some testing and it’s possible I may compete in a couple of races here in Asia as a warm-up, but I don’t think it will take me long to get back to the level I was at.”

Kwan was already an off-track advisor to Noble Group-GruppeM Racing but now, after months of intense lobbying from team spearhead and fellow driver Matthew Marsh, he has agreed to put on his racing suit once more.

"Matthew has been very persuasive!” laughed Kwan. "But, seriously, I’ve been following the team with interest and they’ve had some good results. I’m impressed by what they’ve achieved.

"Now, I’m looking forward to going to Le Mans and flying the flag for Hong Kong.”

Kwan carved his name in Macau Grand Prix folklore in 1993 when he became the only driver in the event’s history to win three races in the same weekend – the Macau Cup in a Group A BMW M3, the Supercar Race in a Porsche 911 Turbo and the Guia Race aboard a DTM BMW M3.

He capped his career by winning the inaugural Porsche Infineon Carrera Cup Asia series in 2003.

Marsh was delighted by Kwan’s decision. "This is fantastic news,” he said. "Charles is, quite simply, the finest driver Hong Kong has ever produced and to have him back behind the wheel for our team is a massive boost. When I conceived this project it was all about driving with Charles in the world’s greatest race. This is not only the final piece of the jigsaw – it’s the whole picture.”

Noble Group-GruppeM Racing are attempting to become the first Hong Kong team to compete at Le Mans.

The team, which races a bauhinia-emblazoned Porsche GT3 RSR, was launched last June. Being unable then to lure Kwan from retirement, Marsh gave up-and-coming local racer Darryl O’Young the opportunity to share the driving with him in series of six-hour races in Europe as well as last October’s three-hour FIA GT race at Zhuhai.

A two-man team is enough for six-hour races but three will be needed for the gruelling Le Mans 24 Hours. The identity of the third driver will be confirmed soon.

Marsh has just submitted the team’s entry application to the Le Mans organisers, the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO), and will learn in March whether it has been accepted.

"In most cases, entry to Le Mans is by invitation only and is at the discretion of the ACO,” he explained. "They take into account various factors, including results, organisation and capability, as well as what a team can bring to the race in terms of profile and publicity.

"Given our performances, the media interest we have generated and the fact that we would feature the first ever Chinese driver at Le Mans, we’re quite hopeful.”

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Hong Kong’s pioneering Le Mans team are revving up for Christmas – by putting their car on display in IFC Mall this week.

The bauhinia-emblazoned Porsche GT3 RSR will be stationed at Podium One in the Main Concourse of the Central shopping complex from Friday morning to Monday evening.

Drivers Matthew Marsh and Darryl O’Young will be making a personal appearance from 5.30-6.00pm on Friday to meet the public, sign autographs and pose for photos.

Adding to the attraction will be display boards showing information about the team, its background and how it came to be formed.

"The Le Mans project has created a great deal of interest and we have been delighted with the backing and encouragement we have received from the Hong Kong public,” says Marsh.

"So this is a chance for people to see the car up close and for Darryl and myself to say thank you to the public for the way they have supported us.”

The team – Noble Group-GruppeM Racing – was formed earlier this year and has competed in three races in Europe and one in Zhuhai with the aim of being invited to the world’s greatest sports car race, the Le Mans 24 Hours, in June next year.

It is the first time that a car owned and sponsored by Hong Kong companies and piloted by Hong Kong drivers has attempted to enter the famous race.

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Olivier Pierson and his friends aim to paint Macau red, white and blue this weekend.

They will be bringing a distinctly French flavour to the 39th Motorcycle Grand Prix with the debut of Team of Paris (TOP), their new racing team.

With a Suzuki 1000 GSXR decked out in national colours and one of France’s top riders on board in the shape of former endurance world champion Bruno Bonhuil, TOP are aiming to go wheel to wheel with the established teams – and have fun while doing it.

“I’d never even thought about running a professional racing team before May this year,” admits Pierson, a Hong Kong-based French businessman and self-confessed motorcycling fanatic.

“But I was talking about it with my friend, Luc Martinet, a Suzuki dealer in Paris, and the more we talked, the more serious we became. There was plenty to do. We had to devise a marketing and communication plan, find sponsors, build the team and prepare a racing bike – all in the space of a few months.

“We were officially invited to enter by the Macau Grand Prix Committee at the end of August – that’s when it really hit home that this was for real.

“The great thing about this project is that everyone apart from the rider and mechanics is a volunteer. We’re simply a small group of friends from Hong Kong and Paris. Most of us are French, we like challenges and we like ambitious, yet friendly, projects.

 “We’ve got support from companies based in France, Hong Kong and Macau. Most of our backers are French, but other companies are involved as well. In all, we have 28 sponsors and they’re giving us wonderful support.”

One man grateful for the support is Bonhuil, a rider with an impressive pedigree. He was crowned endurance world champion in 2002, has ridden in the famous Isle of Man TT races numerous times and recently won his country’s premier motorcycling championship, the Super Roadster French Cup.

At the age of 45, he brings vast knowledge to the team and also has the experience of two previous outings at the Macau Motorcycle GP.

“I like the circuit,” says Bonhuil. “It is very different to be racing in the city, rather than on a conventional circuit. Of course, it is also extremely dangerous, because if something goes wrong, you have no escape, and therefore you cannot ride flat-out, but it is also a lot of fun.

“There is a great French community in Hong Kong and when I heard about the team and was asked to join, I was happy to be involved.

“The last time I raced in Macau [in 2000], I finished ninth, and that was on a bike that was not the best. So a top-10 finish this time is certainly possible.”

The key factor behind TOP is Pierson’s friendship with Martinet, a man well-known for helping amateur racers break into the big time. Martinet’s Paris workshop prepared the TOP bike before it was flown out to Macau this week.

“I first met Luc in 1999, a year before I came to Hong Kong, when I went to his dealership to have my bike fine-tuned,” says Pierson.

“Then, a couple of years later when I was on a business trip back to Paris, he called and invited me to try out his Suzuki Hayabusa 1300 for a day. I’d never ridden such a powerful bike! I could not believe it.

“Three days later, I was still riding it around Paris and rescheduling my flight day after day. After that we became firm friends.”

Cheering on Bonhuil as he navigates Macau’s famous street circuit will be the 14-member TOP team and more than 30 supporters.

“Most of our sponsors will be in Macau for the race, some with their staff or VIP guests, and about a dozen people have travelled from France,” reveals Pierson.

One of those is French-Chinese model and Suzuki pin-up Sakura Lam, France’s current “Miss GSXR 2005”, who is also acting as guest presenter on a TV documentary being made about the team this week.

TOP kicked off their Macau campaign in style with a cocktail party in Lan Kwai Fong on Tuesday, an evening of fun before the serious business of racing.

And, while concentrating on this weekend, Pierson is also allowing his thoughts to drift towards 2006. “We aim to make a success of this,” he says, “and then we’ll try to be back next year with two bikes for the 40th Motorcycle Grand Prix.”

TOP and Macau – they are, it appears, the perfect Paris match.

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Hong Kong duo Matthew Marsh and Darryl O’Young are confident they have done enough to merit an invitation to next year’s Le Mans 24 Hours after an encouraging performance in their final race of 2005 at Zhuhai today (Sunday).

The Noble Group-GruppeM Racing co-drivers finished fourth in their class – and 10th overall – in the FIA GT Championship at the southern China track.

"We have shown we are competitive and that is the most important part of the Le Mans equation,” said Marsh. "The other key point is that we would be the first ever entry from Hong Kong – in fact, the first entry from Asia apart from Japanese teams – so we would certainly bring something different to the party.

"These factors will be taken into account when the Le Mans organisers begin sending out invitations in January. We think we’ve got a good chance.”

With cars for Sunday’s race divided into GT1 and GT2, the Hong Kong pair qualified fifth in the GT2 class to start 15th overall on the grid in their bauhinia-emblazoned Porsche GT3 RSR.

After Marsh completed the first 80 minutes, O’Young took over behind the wheel for the remainder of the 500km (three hours) race.

O’Young experienced a dramatic moment on the penultimate lap when his brakes failed, causing him to career off into the gravel trap. He was towed out and completed the race at cruising speed, secure in the knowledge that the mishap had made no difference to the team’s fourth placing.

"We’re a bit disappointed not to be on the podium in what is effectively our home race,” said O’Young. "We were within 10 seconds of the third-placed car for much of the race.

"But we’ve got to be positive. It was a good performance by the team and the experience will serve us well in the future.”

Sunday’s race was Noble Group-GruppeM Racing’s fourth outing this year but their first in Asia.

After a high profile launch in June, they competed in three 1,000km races in Europe as part of the Le Mans Endurance Series (LMES).

After bad luck dogged their first two outings at Monza and Silverstone, causing early retirements, they scored Hong Kong’s first ever LMES point when finishing eighth in their GT2 class at Nurburgring on 4 September.

Sunday’s event saw Marsh and O’Young switching competition from the LMES to the FIA GT Championship, an 11-race series that takes place throughout Europe and Asia.

Anthony Kumpen, Bert Longin and Mike Hezemans, driving a GT1-class Corvette C5R, won Sunday’s race. Marc Lieb and Mike Rockenfeller in a Porsche 996 were first home in the GT2 category and seventh overall.

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Hong Kong Le Mans hopefuls Matthew Marsh and Darryl O’Young are looking forward to racing in front of their "home” fans in Zhuhai this weekend.

After competing in Europe during the summer, the Noble Group-GruppeM Racing co-drivers will give their bauhinia-emblazoned Porsche GT3 RSR its first ever Asian outing in Sunday’s FIA GT Championship at the southern China track.

"We’re really excited about the race,” says Marsh. "The Hong Kong team has been very well received in the media across Asia. Everyone is behind this first effort from a Hong Kong team to race in top-level international sports car racing.

"Now that we are, if you like, coming home, the reaction is bound to be fantastic. Perhaps some people were a bit surprised by how competitive we were in Europe. We’ll certainly be shooting for a podium finish in Zhuhai.”

Noble Group-GruppeM Racing are attempting to become the first Hong Kong team to be invited to take part in the world’s greatest sports car race, the Le Mans 24 Hours.

Since a high profile launch in June, they have competed in three 1,000km races in Europe as part of the Le Mans Endurance Series (LMES). Bad luck dogged their first two outings – a 260 km/h tyre blowout ended their race at Monza while gearbox failure ruined their chances at Silverstone – but they scored Hong Kong’s first ever LMES point when finishing eighth in their GT2 class at Nurburgring on 4 September.

The team expect to find out later this year whether they have secured an entry to Le Mans in June 2006.

This weekend sees Marsh and O’Young switching competition from the LMES to the FIA GT Championship. Sunday’s 500km race is the ninth stop in an 11-race series that takes place throughout Europe and Asia.

Marsh took part in last year’s race at Zhuhai, when he partnered Hong Kong motorsport legend Charles Kwan to fourth place in the GT2 class in a Ferrari 360.

"That successful effort proved that the concept of a Hong Kong endurance racing team was sound and Noble Group have since come on board as title sponsor for our Le Mans programme,” says Marsh.

"They’ve been sending us off to our LMES races with much enthusiasm and now they’ll be able to watch us at home, which is great.

"Sadly, Charles is in retirement now, but he has been ably replaced by Darryl, who has driven very well so far. Hopefully Charles will come to Zhuhai to cheer us on.”

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Matthew Marsh and Darryl O’Young were celebrating in Germany on Sunday after claiming a slice of Hong Kong motor racing history.

The Noble Group-GruppeM Racing co-drivers piloted their Porsche GT3 RSR to eighth place in their class at the 1,000km of Nurburgring – and in doing so claimed the SAR’s first ever point in Europe’s elite sports car competition, the Le Mans Endurance Series (LMES).

The duo overcame a crash involving O’Young shortly before the halfway point in the six-hour race to register their first finish on their third outing in the series.

"This is a huge step for us,” said Marsh. "We’ve shown all along that we’re competitive and up with the pace, but we’d been held back by a bit of bad luck in the first two races. Our goal here was to finish – and we’ve achieved that.”

O’Young added: "We’re progressing all the time. It’s great to register our first finish and our first point, but we’re still slightly disappointed because, without the crash, we could have finished second. Next time out, we’ll definitely be targeting a podium finish.”

The pair started seventh on the grid out of 15 cars in their GT2 class. Marsh took the wheel for the first 80 minutes and by the time O’Young took over they were in fourth place.

But the team had a setback when O’Young, running eighth at the time, collided with a backmarker, damaging the Porsche’s front left suspension. The car was in the pits for 25 minutes while mechanics repaired it and the team dropped to last place.

"It was an error of judgment on my part,” said O’Young. "I went to overtake, locked up and we came together. But the guys did a great job fixing the car so quickly. The main problem after that was the handling because the car’s set-up was badly affected. From then on, we simply had to nurse it around and make sure we finished.”

The duo each took another turn behind the wheel, using their skill and experience to pick their way through the field to eighth place in their class and 28th overall.

It was third time lucky for Marsh and O’Young. In their first outing, at Monza in July, a puncture ended their race early while a broken gearbox meant they also failed to finish at Silverstone last month.

Noble Group-GruppeM Racing are bidding to become the first Hong Kong team to take part in the world’s greatest endurance race, the Le Mans 24 Hours. They are competing in the LMES – a series of six-hour races at some of Europe’s top tracks – in an effort to secure an invitation to Le Mans in June next year.

The team’s next LMES event will be in Istanbul, Turkey, on November 13. Before that, they are hopeful of taking part in the three-hour FIA GT Championship race at Zhuhai on 23 October.

Marsh added: "We’re looking forward to Istanbul and, if logistics allow, we’ll be at Zhuhai as well. It would be great if we could race in our own backyard and give Hong Kong fans the chance to see us in action. But one thing is certain – wherever we race next, we’ll be going for a top-three finish.”

Victory in the GT2 class at Nurburgring went to Sebah Automotive’s Marc Lieb and Xavier Pompidou in a Porsche 996 GT3 RSR.

The overall race winners were the Zytek Engineering team of Hayanari Shimoda and Tom Chilton, piloting a Zytek 04S in the top class, Prototype 1. It was a remarkable win for the pair – despite being fastest in practice, they had to start from the back of the 44-car grid due to a technical infringement.

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Chinese ace Tung Ho Pin remains hopeful of joining Hong Kong’s pioneering Le Mans team after an impressive sports car debut alongside project leader Matthew Marsh today (Sunday).

Dutch-born Tung – who has done all his racing to date in single seaters – put on a scintillating display in the Maserati Trofeo race at Nurburgring in Germany.

Co-driving with Marsh for the first time, the would-be Formula One star made the transition to sports cars look easy, powering through the field from 11th on the grid to sixth by the time he handed over the wheel to Marsh 40 minutes into the hour-long race.

Marsh, Hong Kong’s most high-profile driver, experienced braking problems that saw him lose three places, but both men felt the eventual ninth-place finish was less important than the fact they had learned a lot about each other’s driving.

"I really enjoyed the race,” said Tung, a test driver for the Williams F1 team and currently racing in Formula 3 in Germany. "I had only done 15 laps in the car prior to today, so I was very happy with my performance. I was half a second quicker than in qualifying and my lap times were very consistent.”

The Maserati race was a support event to the main race later in the day, the 1,000km of Nurburgring, in which Hong Kong’s Le Mans team, Noble Group-GruppeM Racing – led by co-drivers Marsh and Darryl O’Young – were taking part.

That gave Tung, 22, the opportunity to meet team personnel and watch them in action with a view to working together in the future.

Noble Group-GruppeM Racing, who are hoping to race in the Le Mans 24 Hours next June, already have Marsh and O’Young signed up for six-hour races like the one at Nurburgring but need a third driver for 12 and 24-hour events.

"It’s an interesting project and one I’d like to be involved in, if my schedule next year allows,” said Tung. "In that respect, it’s been very useful to have the co-drive with Matthew, to learn more about driving sports cars and to meet the team. We will see what happens.”

Marsh, 36, added: "It was slightly disappointing to end up ninth because we felt we could have finished higher, but in terms of the Le Mans project – driving with Ho Pin and introducing him to the team – the weekend’s been a success. Hopefully we’ll work together again.”

Noble Group-GruppeM Racing are bidding to become the first Hong Kong team to take part at Le Mans, the world’s greatest sports car race. Their Porsche GT3 RSR is owned and sponsored by SAR companies and both British-born Marsh and Chinese-Canadian O’Young are Hong Kong residents.

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A broken gearbox forced Hong Kong’s pioneering Le Mans team to retire from the 1,000km of Silverstone on Saturday just as Darryl O’Young was producing an outstanding drive in treacherous conditions.

The Noble Group-GruppeM Racing star had shown immense skill and maturity to keep his bauhinia-emblazoned Porsche GT3 RSR in the running as torrential rain turned the track into a skidpan and spray thrown up by cars reduced visibility to a few metres.

But O’Young was powerless to do anything about the broken gearbox that ended the Hong Kong team’s hopes an hour and a half into the six-hour evening race.

"I was in fifth gear when I felt it go – and I knew straight away it was serious,” explained O’Young, 25. "I got it back to the pits in third gear and within minutes the mechanics were telling us there was nothing they could do.

"It’s too bad. It had taken me a while to get used to the track and the conditions, but after that I felt I was going really well.”

The breakdown came as O’Young was running seventh out of 15 in his category and just a few laps before co-driver Matthew Marsh was due to take over behind the wheel.

The setback mirrored the team’s misfortune in their first outing at Monza last month when a rear tyre blowout forced Marsh into the gravel trap and out of the race before O’Young had taken his turn in the driver’s seat.

Marsh, 36, refused to be downhearted. "Obviously, it’s disappointing, but we have to concentrate on the positives,” he said.

"Considering his relative lack of experience at this level, plus the fact it was an unfamiliar track and very difficult conditions, Darryl drove fantastically well. He showed tremendous coolness under pressure in a race where some of Europe’s top drivers were unable to keep their cars on the track.

"It’s almost impossible to explain to the casual observer just how tough it is to drive in heavy rain like that. Racing tyres are very efficient at removing water from the track, but the place they remove it to is the air and that creates a huge amount of spray. It is very, very difficult for a driver to see where he is going.”

Marsh, who had placed seventh in qualifying, added: "However, for the second race in a row, we’ve shown we’re on the pace. We were running seventh in our category, but we were on the same lap as the fourth-placed car and in position to challenge the leaders later in the race.”

The Silverstone race was the latest event in the 2005 Le Mans Endurance Series (LMES), a string of 1,000km races at some of Europe’s top tracks.

Noble Group-GruppeM Racing are competing in the LMES with the aim of being invited to take part in the Le Mans 24 Hours in June next year. It is the first time a Hong Kong team has targeted the world’s greatest endurance race.

The team’s next outing is the 1,000km of Nurburgring on 4 September, when they will be hoping for better luck.

"We’re competitive, there’s no doubt about that,” added O’Young. "But you need a little bit of good fortune in endurance racing. Let’s hope we get it in Germany.”

Victory in the GT2 class in which Marsh and O’Young were competing went to Sebah Automotive’s Marc Lieb and Xavier Pompidou driving a Porsche 996 GT3 RSR. The race winners were Stephane Ortelli and Allan McNish from Audi Playstation Team Oreca - they were driving an Audi R8 in the top category, Prototype 1.

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Chinese ace Tung Ho Pin has emerged as a serious candidate to join Hong Kong’s pioneering Le Mans team after agreeing to co-drive a Maserati with project leader Matthew Marsh at a race meeting in Germany next month.

It will be the first time Dutch-born Tung has raced with Marsh, the SAR’s most high-profile driver, and both are hopeful it will lead to bigger things.

The Hong Kong Le Mans team, Noble Group-GruppeM Racing, already have Marsh and teammate Darryl O’Young signed up for a series of six-hour races in Europe but need a third driver for 12 and 24-hour events.

Tung - currently racing in Formula 3 in Germany - and Marsh will join forces for the Maserati Trofeo race at Nurburgring on 4 September and the Chinese star is relishing the challenge.

"It will be a great experience to work with Matthew and it will also be an opportunity for us to find out about each other’s driving,” said Tung, 22. "I have a busy schedule but I’m very keen to be part of the Le Mans project. If I can fit it into my plans and, crucially, give it the undivided attention it deserves, then I’d love to join up with Matthew and Darryl.”

Noble Group-GruppeM Racing are bidding to become the first Hong Kong team to take part in the Le Mans 24 Hours, the world’s greatest sports car race. Their Porsche GT3 RSR is owned and sponsored by SAR companies and both British-born Marsh and Chinese-Canadian O’Young are Hong Kong residents.

The team are currently competing in a series of endurance races in Europe with a view to being invited to Le Mans in June next year.

Marsh, the reigning Porsche Infineon Carrera Cup Asia champion and the man who has spearheaded the Le Mans project, believes Tung - scheduled to demonstrate a BMW Williams F1 car on the streets of Rotterdam this Sunday - would be the perfect foil for himself and O’Young.

"Ho Pin is fantastically talented - the fact that Formula 1 teams are closely monitoring his progress says it all,” said Marsh. "Just as importantly, he is a team player, something that is crucial in endurance racing. Darryl and I have worked very well together so far and we think Ho Pin would fit in very well.”

The Maserati race is a support event to the 1,000km of Nurburgring, which Noble Group-GruppeM Racing are competing in, meaning it will be a hectic weekend for Marsh. Hours after sharing driving duties with Tung, he will be teaming up with O’Young to race the Porsche in the main event.

"The Maserati Trofeo is a short event and there’s a break of several hours before the 1,000km race, so tiredness won’t be a factor,” said Marsh. "Darryl and I both agreed it would be good to meet up with Ho Pin and for one of us to share a car with him to see his driving at first hand. Darryl is contracted exclusively to Porsche, so it has to be me.”

Tung and Marsh will be driving a Maserati Trofeo GranSport, the racing version of the road car that is sold in Hong Kong by importer Auto Italia, the company that is funding the duo’s entry.

Marsh will be hoping history repeats itself - in his only previous Maserati Trofeo outing, at Silverstone last year, he partnered British TV presenter Vicki Butler-Henderson to victory.

He added: "I’m excited by two things: firstly to be racing a Maserati again, because it’s one of the great sports car marques; and, secondly because again a Hong Kong company has backed our team. Auto Italia had to make a quick decision to get us into this race and they made it boldly. Now we have to win!”

As for Noble Group-GruppeM Racing, Nurburgring will be their third race since the team was announced last April. Marsh and O’Young took part in the 1,000km of Monza three weeks ago, when they were forced to retire while running fifth in their category, and they are next in action at Silverstone on 13 August.

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Matthew Marsh has been reliving the dramatic moment when he had to call on all his 20 years’ driving experience to steer Hong Kong’s pioneering Le Mans team away from danger.

The Noble Group-GruppeM driver suffered a rear left tyre blowout at 260 km/h during the prestigious 1,000km of Monza endurance race in Italy - leaving him battling to keep control of the car.

To make matters worse, the tyre unravelled and ripped out the brake lining, leaving Marsh – travelling at more than two and a half times Hong Kong’s fastest legal speed limit – without brakes as he headed for the next turn.

The Hong Kong resident had to use all his strength and know-how to keep the car upright and moving in a straight line before careering headlong into a gravel trap.

The incident put Noble Group-GruppeM out of the race – but car and driver were unharmed and ready to fight another day.

"It was certainly an anxious few seconds,” says Marsh, 36, recalling last Sunday’s race. "You need a little bit of good fortune when something like that happens and I definitely had some luck on this occasion because the tyre blew while I was on a straight part of the track. If it had gone while I was cornering, it might have been a different outcome.

"The same thing happened to one of the Ferraris later in the race and the driver wasn’t so lucky – he went into a wall and caused a great deal of damage to his car.”

Until fate intervened, it had been a promising big-race debut for Noble Group-GruppeM Racing, which is attempting to become the first ever Hong Kong team to gain entry to the world’s greatest endurance race, the Le Mans 24 Hours.

Co-driver Darryl O’Young had taken the wheel of the bauhinia-emblazoned Porsche GT3 RSR for qualifying and registered a time good enough to place the team seventh out of 14 in the GT2 category on the grid.

Then Marsh had moved the team up to fifth when the blowout happened on lap 46 of the 173-lap race.

"It was extremely frustrating for Darryl, because he was supposed to take over for the second half of the race,” says Marsh. "But he was brilliant about it. He just said, ‘That’s racing, we’ll have better luck next time.’ And I’m sure he’s right. Tyre trouble apart, we were quick, we were competitive and we showed Hong Kong can thrive at this level.”

Canadian-born Chinese O’Young, 25, agrees. "It was unfortunate, but we have every reason to be confident about the rest of the season. We’re off to the UK next month for the 1,000km of Silverstone and we’re anxious to get going again. Racing at Monza was a real buzz and, if anything, has made us even more excited about the Le Mans project.”

The duo are hoping tyre supplier Pirelli can work out why several teams on Pirelli tyres, including Noble Group-GruppeM Racing, experienced blowouts during the weekend.

"It was our third puncture – we had one in practice and then another one earlier in the race,” explains Marsh. "Obviously, we’ll be talking to Pirelli because we don’t want the same thing happening at Silverstone.”

Noble Group-GruppeM Racing is competing in a series of four major races in Europe – the Le Mans Endurance Series – this year and expects to also appear in the Zhuhai leg of the FIA GT Championship in October.

The team will then take part in America’s most important endurance race, the 12 Hours of Sebring, in Florida next March.

A series of strong performances will be enough to earn the team an invitation to the Le Mans 24 Hours in June 2006.

If that happens, it would be the first time that a car owned and sponsored by Hong Kong companies and piloted by Hong Kong drivers has taken part in the world’s most famous sports car race.

Marsh adds: "After all the months spent securing sponsorship, setting up the team and preparing the car, it was great to finally go racing. We’re up and running – and we can’t wait to get on the track at Silverstone.”

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