WEC: KCMG penalized for Fuji G-Drive clash

The KCMG LMP2 squad has been handed a suspended drive-through penalty for the late-race clash involving its ORECA driven by Richard Bradley at the Fuji World Endurance Championship race earlier this month.

Bradley was initially reprimanded for the incident in which his ORECA-Nissan 05 was hit from behind by the G-Drive Racing Ligier-Nissan JSP2 driven by Gustavo Yacaman, as they battled over third place in the closing stages of the Japanese event.

This decision by the race stewards was subsequently suspended after Chinese entrant KCMG presented new evidence.

The new decision by the stewards follows analysis of the data by series technical delegates, which confirmed that the incident was caused by Bradley braking early as they approached Turn 10 at Fuji.

The analysis showed that Bradley braked 40 meters (160ft) earlier than on the previous 10 laps as well as changing to sixth gear on the straight, rather than staying in fifth. The stewards concluded that Bradley's defense of his position was "potentially dangerous for himself as well as the driver of the following car [Yacaman]".

The suspension of the drive-through will be revoked should there be any further infringement by KCMG.

The incident between Bradley and Yacaman followed two further clashes between the KCMG ORECA and the pair of G-Drive Ligiers. Bradley had been leading the class when he was nudged by Roman Rusinov in the other G-Drive entry before making his penultimate pit stop, after which a first contact with Yacaman resulted in a right-rear puncture. The second contact sent Bradley into the barriers, the resulting damage preventing him from continuing.

Victory for Rusinov and teammates Sam Bird and Julien Canal has given them a 12-point championship lead ahead of KCMG drivers Bradley and Matt Howson with two WEC rounds to go.

Originally on Autosport.com