DK’s Restored Courage C65 takes double LMP2 Victory on Debut at Mugello.

The 2023 Race Season for both DK Engineering and Peter Auto opened spectacularly in the Tuscan Hills over the first weekend of April. Almost all of the races featured full grids and its clear to see that historic motorsport as a whole continues to grow from strength to strength. However of all the grids, it is the Endurance Racing Legends (ERL) grid which has seen the most impressive growth over the last five years since its inception. Led by Jarrah Venables this exciting grid mimics the Le Mans 24 hours races from the 90s and 2000s, featuring classes for both GT and Prototypes (LMP). The cars from this era not only immediately iconic, sound fantastic but they have a wider appeal to the historic crowd as they are still relatively affordable (an ex Le Mans 996 R is worth around a third of a 1960s era 911 with similar pedigree) - and crucially since they were designed to race for 24 Hours, the 40 minute race format should mean a level of reliability new to most historic racers. Lastly they are generally regarded as the safest cars in the historic paddock, owing to their more modern safety standards with the introduction of carbon and other lightweight strong materials.

DK Engineering have long since supported this era of car, having bought the Dallara LMP900 back before the series was even conceived, as well one of the most successful Prodrive Ferrari 550 Maranellos, we have also owned a Ferrari 575 GTC, Porsche 997 RSR and currently stock a Ferrari 430 GTC, 458 GTE and of course the Epsilon Eusaki LMP1. Our latest ERL eligible car is the stunning G-Force Racing Courage C65 Judd.

The Courage C65 was a slight Evolution of the C60 to meet 2004 LMP2 Regulations, and they were built to work with a number of engines including a Judd or Mechachrome V8 or the AER 4 cylinder turbo. Our car Chassis 08, was initially equipped with Mechachrome V8 for an assault on the Le Mans Endurance Series (including the Le Mans 24 Hours) in white and Orange “Moet Hennessey” colours. Then the following year the car was taken on by G-Force Racing and fitted with a Judd V8 for another attack on the Le Mans 24 Hours. Since then the car had been used in the USA briefly before retirement and had not seen in public for well over a decade.

DK bought Chassis 08 in the Autumn of 2021 and immediately entrusted the car to historic racing specialists Pursuit in Bicester who were instructed to undertake a nut and bolt total restoration to the same meticulous “DK” standard that we would restore a 250 GT SWB to. So often these “modern” race cars are simply 're-Commissioned', but in this instance the brief was to head to the track in 2023 with a car with zero hours on every component. The decision was to restore the car to its later Le Mans spec with is distinctive black and orange G-Force livery and with a screaming Judd V8. The restoration was completed just in time for a runway shakedown at Turweston and a brief test at Donington before it’s debut at Mugello.

At Mugello the freshly restored Courage was to be driven by James Littlejohn and DK’s Harvey Stanley (who as a newcomer to the aero characteristics, serves as an indicator of how well an amateur driver could take to the car). In Qualifying, Littlejohn put the car on the front row of the grid, splitting the more powerful LMP1 cars and Harvey’s time would have still held pole position amongst the LMP2 class - impressive for a car fresh from restoration and with limited testing. In Race 1, despite the lengthy pit stop penalty for having an elite driver in the car, the Courage finished Third Overall and 1st in Class, and in the second race the car scored another dominant LMP2 win by over 40 seconds and another podium, (just 1.4 seconds behind the LMP1 car in 2nd) – in both races the car was just 0.5 seconds from setting the fastest lap, but beaten by the rapid Christian Glasel in his MG LMP1 car. Interestingly whilst James Littlejohn demonstrated the cars devastating outright pace, by the end of race 2, Harvey Stanley was within 1.2 seconds of Littlejohn - crucially demonstrating the car’s potential for the gentleman historic racer in this up and coming series…

Elsewhere at Mugello Harvey was also busy with great friend of DK; Richard Cook. The pair hustling Richard’s dark blue AC 289 Cobra to yet another podium in the 2 hour “Sixties Endurance” race on Saturday night, an excellent start to a championship campaign, and a 100% podium record for DK in the 2023 Race season, a feat which DK’s Managing Director, James Cottingham will be looking to extend on Easter Monday as he contests rounds 1 & 2 of the 2023 British GT Season.

The following weekend sees further action at the 80th Goodwood Members Meeting… Racing in 2023 is well underway.