Prodrive end the long wait as Aston Martin grab glory

Aston Martin Racing drivers Nicki Thiim and Marco Sørensen have been crowned FIA World Endurance Championship's after taking victory in the season finale.
The Aston Martin team celebrate their 2016 World Endurance Championship glory in BahrainThe Aston Martin team celebrate their 2016 World Endurance Championship glory in Bahrain
The Aston Martin team celebrate their 2016 World Endurance Championship glory in Bahrain

It is the first FIA world title for Prodrive since Petter Solberg won the FIA World Rally Championship Drivers’ title in 2003 for the Banbury motor sport team.

Heading into the final race in Bahrain, the pair led the GT Drivers title battle by 12 points while the team controlled the GTE Pro championship with a two-point advantage.

While a third place finish would provide the necessary points to take the title, the Danes claimed victory in style by taking their second win of the season, securing the GTE Pro championship for Aston Martin Racing in the process.

After battling hard with the #51 Ferrari in the opening hours, the duo accrued a lead of over 20 seconds by the fifth hour. With their rivals pushing hard in the closing stages to close the gap, Thiim showed true class to maintain the advantage to the chequered flag.

Team boss Paul Howarth said: “What a fantastic day to get to the end of the season and for Marco and Nicki to claim the GT Drivers and GTE Pro titles. Credit to them and the way they drove and to all the team for helping them deliver these results.

“2016 has been an incredible journey for this team and for us to consistently prove ourselves against other world-class outfits is testimony to the professionalism of this team. I’m proud to have led them throughout this season and the team can travel home thoroughly proud of their achievements.”

Thiim said: “I made a big change to my racing career at the beginning of this season. I still can’t really believe that we now have our first WEC championship with Aston Martin.”

Sørensen added: “It’s absolutely amazing to win the championship and it’s even more incredible to win it with Nicki. We raced against each other in karting but to win a championship with him and Aston Martin Racing is fantastic.”