The no10 Ligier of Tom Dillmann and Alexander Mattschull finished with five podiums from the seven races, including three wins at Le Castellet, Le Mans and Monza, wrapping up the title in Belgium with one race to spare.The no43 Ligier of Jacques Wolff and Josh Skelton finished the season in 6th place overall, scoring three podiums, including finishing second to their teammates in the first Road to Le Mans race to take a 1-2 for the Swiss team.
LE CASTELLET
The first race of 2022 saw the no10 Racing Spirit of Leman Ligier of Alexander Mattschull and Tom Dillmann claim the 25 points for the first win of the season after a long battle with the no29 MV2S Forestier Racing Ligier of Jerome de Sadeleer and Louis Rousset.
A Full Course Yellow period early on to clear debris presented Alexander Mattschull with an opportunity at the restart to get ahead of de Sadeleer.After the pitstops the no10 Ligier of Tom Dillmann emerged behind the no11 Duqueine of Leo Weiss, with Dillmann quickly getting on to terms and passing Weiss for the position.The no29 MV2S Ligier had pitted one lap later and emerged from the pitlane just in front of Dillmann’s Ligier. Tom Dillmann swept past the leader at T3 just before the second FCY. The restart saw Dillmann pull away from the chasing pack and open up a comfortable lead, which he held until the chequered flag was shown.
IMOLA
A disappointing race for the team and the only time they finished outside the top 10.The race was interrupted by three Safety Car periods and four Full Course Yellows which caused many teams to change their strategies and the no10 Ligier took the chequered flag in 12th position at the end of the 110-minute race.
ROAD TO LE MANS – RACE 1
The first 55-minute Road To Le Mans encounter had everyone on the edge of their seats with both LMP3 front runners battling all the way to the chequered flag.The LMP3 victory went to the no10 Racing Spirit of Leman Ligier of Tom Dillmann and Alexander Mattschull, with Dillmann crossing the finish line after 12 laps just 0.9 seconds ahead of his teammate Josh Skelton to take a 1-2 for the Swiss team.
During the first part of the race the no6 ANS Motorsport Ligier was pulling away from the second placed no10 Racing Spirit of Leman Ligier of Alexander Mattschull as Nicolas Schatz got the hammer down to open up an 8 second gap.The no76 Reiter Engineering Ligier of Freddie Hunt was also on a charge and closing up behind the no10 Ligier.
After the pitstops the no76 Reiter Engineering Ligier of Mads Siljehaug was leading with Tom Dillmann chasing the Norwegian driver in the no10 Racing Spirit of Leman Ligier.Dillmann caught the leader at the second chicane and swept past into the lead. In the final few minutes Dillmann had been caught by his teammate Josh Skelton but the French driver used his skills to keep the British driver at bay and took the chequered flag to claim the victory.
ROAD TO LE MANS – RACE 2
A Safety Car period in the final 20 minutes of the race, to recover two stranded cars and repair the tyre barrier at Mulsanne Corner, meant the entire field were bunched up and waiting to be released for a two-lap dash to the chequered flag.
Mads Siljehaug was leading in the no76 Reiter Engineering Ligier after Freddie Hunt’s stellar drive in the first half of the race.The Norwegian driver had the pole sitter no11 WTM Racing Ligier of Leonard Weiss right behind him, with Duncan Tappy in the no25 Cool Racing Ligier in third and Tom Dillmann sitting in 4th place.
When the race went green Siljehaug got a good getaway, with Tappy passing Weiss for second place and Dillmann taking third place at the end of the race.
Because Duncan Tappy and Michael Benham were not a full season MLMC entry, the podium finish for Tom Dillmann and Alexander Mattschull gave them 9 points rather than 7 points for third place.
MONZA
The fifth race of the 2022 Michelin Le Mans Cup saw plenty of drama with two Safety Car and six Full Course Yellow periods during the 110-minute race at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza.
After starting in sixth place Alexander Mattschull handed the no10 Racing Spirit of Leman Ligier to Tom Dillmann, who fought his way up from 4th, overtaking the no29 MV2S Forestier Racing Ligier of Louis Rousset after a great battle to take the lead and take their third win of the season.
SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS
The race in Belgium started behind the Safety Car after heavy rain and the weather would play a role in the results of the final race of the season, which was won by the no40 Graff Racing Ligier.
In between the various Safety Car periods, Tom Dillmann was moving up the field in the no10 Racing Spirit of Leman Ligier and caught and passed Louis Rousset in the no29 MV2S Ligier, his nearest rival in the championship battle, for 6th place.This was enough for Dillmann to secure the LMP3 title for himself, Alexander Mattschull and the Swiss team.
PORTIMAO
With the pressure off after winning the 2022 titles in Belgium, the final race of the season in Portugal would see Alexander Mattschull and Tom Dillmann in the no10 Racing Spirit of Leman going for their fourth win of the season.
However, at the chequered flag, it was the no76 Reiter Engineering Ligier-Nissan of Mads Siljehaug which crossed the line at the head of the field, 2.5 seconds ahead of the no7 Nielsen Racing Ligier of Colin Noble, who had moved up from 5th to 2nd in the final few laps of the race, with Tom Dillmann taking the final podium position half a second behind Noble in the no10 Racing Spirit of Leman Ligier.
The championship win for Racing Spirit of Leman has guaranteed them a slot on the ELMS LMP3 grid next season if the Swiss team wish to move up in 2023.
CLICK HERE for the final Michelin Le Mans Cup points standings
