BOYD LANDS LMP3 DEAL MATT AMES

THE VOICE OF NATIONAL RACING JAMES “Henry took me under his wing”

Formula Ford star Wayne Boyd will make the step up to the European Le Mans Series this year after securing a deal to handle one of United Autosports’ new LMP3 machines.

Northern Irishman Boyd, 25, will share one of the AngloAmerican team’s new Nissan-powered Ligier JS P3s with Briton Matt Bell and American Mark Patterson for the full ELMS schedule, which begins at Silverstone on April 16.

Boyd lifted the British Formula Ford title in 2008 and went on to be a race winner in British F3 and the American USF2000 Championship before budget issues stalled his career. He has since been restricted to a handful of Formula Ford 1600 events per year and last year won the Kent Festival to add to his 2014 Walter Hayes Trophy title.

“This is the biggest opportunity I’ve had in my career and I owe so much to United Autosports and [team co-founder] Richard Dean,” said Boyd. “I’ve known Richard for years and helped him out with corporate bits, and for him to give me this chance is amazing.

“I’ve got two very experienced team-mates in Mark and Matt and I don’t think any of us will be off the pace this season. They will help me get up to speed with the car quickly. We’re not going in to finish second, we want wins from the start and the championship is the goal.”

Boyd tested the LMP3 for the first time at a wet Magny-cours recently, before having his first dry running at Donington Park last week.

“The P3 is hugely different to what I know, but didn’t take too long to adapt to,” he added. “The biggest difference is the sheer power of it and having to be very controlled on the throttle out of tight turns to limit the wheelspin. It has less aero than an F3 car, but just a lot more power. Racing with a roof over my head also takes some getting used to as you have less vision, but within a few laps I felt comfortable.”