It was a hugely disappointing end to a promising opening weekend in the new category for Sam which had seen the striking black and silver Aston Martin Vantage GTE running well in the earlier free practice sessions. The new regulations for the 2022 season then saw Sam’s Bronze-rated teammate, Ahmad Al Harthy, show the potential for the weekend as he set up P2 for Sam to start the race from.

Sam’s impressive start to the 4 Hours of Le Castellet saw him maintain position off the line, before making a move up to lead the GTE class during the opening lap. Having made the move stick, he settled into his rhythm, but a badly judged lunge from a misplaced LMP2 competitor approaching the final corner saw significant contact with the rear corner of Sam’s Vantage GTE, before further front-end contact caused terminal damage.

“Not exactly the race we were hoping for, but everything up to the point of retirement had been looking really promising. The earlier sessions of the weekend had gone well, and we definitely showed we have the pace to push at the front. It was a case of wrong place at the wrong time, but these things happen. It certainly hasn’t detracted from the experience, and the Oman Racing with TF Sport crew had given us a great car, which Ahmad showed in qualifying. Hopefully we can get a better run at things in Imola next month, and hopefully have a chance to really push for a strong result to get the season going.”