Serra's AMR WEC deal extended to COTA

Aston Martin Racing team principal Paul Howarth has confirmed to RACER that Daniel Serra's WEC deal has been extended to the round at Circuit of The Americas in September.

The Brazilian driver, who with Jonny Adam and Darren Turner, won the GTE Pro class at Le Mans, on his debut in the race, has earned himself more races with the team. The original plan was for him to compete in the No. 97 Vantage for just the first three races (Silverstone, Spa and the Le Mans 24 Hours).

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"We're looking to take him to the next two races, it strengthens our championship prospects having him in that car," Howarth told RACER. "He'll come along to Mexico and COTA and we'll review after that. He can't do all the races, we know he can't make Bahrain at the end of the season.

"We've got a heavy test program going on, and lots of work behind the scenes so he's a pivotal part of the team at the moment.

"His first Le Mans, was remarkable, just remarkable, because it's not just about the race, it's about the pressure of being in the team. He had a busy schedule up to Le Mans, and that was hard, because of his full season Brazilian Stock Car championship.

"But how he delivered and approached it, the calmness and the execution, was to the highest level I've seen from any driver in any sport. He deserved the outcome."

The move has left the No. 97 Vantage as the only car in the class with three drivers. While most teams scale back to two, to allow both drivers to get maximum track time in each car for the flyaway races, Howarth feels that having three could be an advantage.

"Not just because of his performance, though," Howarth said, when asked what the reason for his extended deal it. "I think personally, it will be interesting to see if the weather is harsh in places like COTA, then having three drivers can give us a gain in driver performance.

"They're all professional drivers, but it's important to give him a look at the other tracks as well. I want to try it, especially for Mexico and COTA, with the heat and in Mexico the altitude."