4 HOURS OF SILVERSTONE: IRON DAMES CONTINUE ELMS TITLE FIGHT

In the European Le Mans Series, Michelle Gatting, Sarah Bovy, and Célia Martin resumed their pursuit of the LMGT3 championship title at the 4 Hours of Silverstone, with the category returning to the United Kingdom for the first time in six seasons.

On Saturday, Célia represented the Iron Dames in Qualifying and despite facing changeable damp conditions, extracted maximum pace from her #85 Porsche 911 GT3 R LMGT3 to secure pole position for the race.

The French racer led the LMGT3 class to green on Sunday and over the course of a stop-start opening hour – which was disrupted by three Safety Car deployments and one Red Flag – remained at the head of the field.

A second Red Flag in as many hours opened the next phase, and after resuming the race at the front, Célia pitted with two hours and 47 minutes remaining. Unfortunately, a slow stop relegated her to ninth although she quickly set out to fight back up into the lead.

Sadly, Célia was forced to serve a drive-through penalty at the end of the second hour following light contact with the #66 Ferrari and rejoined in second. After a further 21 minutes at the wheel, she handed the car over to Sarah with one hour and 46 minutes to go.

Sarah rejoined the race in 10th but returned to the pit lane soon into her stint to fit wet-weather tyres when heavy rain started to fall across Silverstone Circuit. In the face of tricky conditions, the Belgian continued to make progress and battled up to eighth before Michelle stepped into the cockpit.

Michelle completed the final 42 minutes of the 4 Hours of Silverstone and resumed the race in 11th. Over the final hour, the weather conditions continued to deteriorate and due to poor visibility, the Red Flag was shown in the final eight minutes, with the race not being resumed.

Michelle, Sarah and Célia will conclude their 2025 European Le Mans Series season on 18 October for the 4 Hours of Portimão where the Iron Dames will fight for the LMGT3 championship title.

RESULTS

Michelle, Sarah, and Célia: 10th (LMGT3)

“It was a very disappointing result today, especially if we think about the race within the context of the championship. The start was very chaotic and at times, difficult to navigate. We had very good pace this weekend, and it’s a shame not to come away with the result we knew that we were capable of. Despite this, we’re still in a good spot, but we still need to understand what happened before heading to Portimão.”

Célia Martin

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