Following her first win in the Ultimate Cup, Belén García continues her adventure in endurance racing and will enter the 2023 Asian Le Mans Series in a Graff Racing LMP3 entry.
Having made her racing debut in 2019 in the Spanish Formula 4 championship – where she claimed an overall win at debut and secured the Female Trophy at the end of her rookie year – Belén García continue her trajectory in single seaters in the two following years, when she was selected for the all-female W Series championship.
After a positive debut campaign in W Series, García had a very strong 2022 – where the Catalan clinched her first podium finish and was fifth in the points' standings.
With the all-female championship on hold due to financial difficulties, García made her sportscar racing debut towards the end of the season, entering the final round of the Michelin Le Mans Cup at Portimao.
In her first outing in a LMP3 prototype, García impressed and showed big improvements despite an unlucky round that saw several red flags hampering her track time on the Portuguese circuit.
In November, though, García had another chance to get behind the wheel of the LMP3 Ligier – this time with French squad Graff Racing, in the Ultimate Cup season finale at Circuit Paul Ricard. García continued her learning process and claimed a remarkable victory despite a qualifying accident by one of her teammates forcing the crew to a recovery drive.
Belén has now announced she will enter the 2023 Asian Le Mans Series – contested over two consecutive weekends in Dubai and Abu Dhabi in February – to continue her work in endurance racing and at the wheel of the LMP3 Ligier JS P320. She will share the car with Eric Trouillet and Sébastian Page, in the #9 Graff Racing entry.
“This is my official debut in prototypes, now, in a full-time championship" – García commented, fully committed to her new racing adventure. "The Asian Le Mans Series is a very competitive event in which there is no margin for error, since its four appointments are held twice over two consecutive weekends”.
“I really want to start this new challenge, which I face with the hope of fighting for victory", she added. "We are going all out because I know we have the right equipment and the necessary group of people to achieve it”.
The Asian Le Mans Series, organized by the ACO, will feature four rounds in 2023, over two back to back weekends. The field has significantly increased, with 9 LMP2 cars, 15 LMP3 cars and 24 GT vehicles. It attracts teams from both across the Asian region, as well as European teams preparing for their ELMS campaigns.
The first four-hour race of the season is scheduled for 11th February at Dubai Autodrome, with the second round following on Sunday 12th. Teams and drivers will move to YAS Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi for the third and fourth rounds, to be held respectively on February 18th and 19th.
