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American LeMans
ALMS: 10 Questions With Jonny Cocker
Drayson Racing's Jonny Cocker, fresh from a breakout weekend at Okayama, reflects on the move to LMP1 and the challenges ahead.
John Dagys  |  Posted November 06, 2009   Chicago, IL
A move to LMP1 has been a big step up not only for the team, but also both of its drivers, who are also new to prototypes. (John Dagys)
If one team needed a turnaround heading into the Asian Le Mans Series rounds last weekend, it had to be Drayson Racing. Following the massive step up to LMP1, the British team suffered incidents at both American Le Mans Series season-ending races, leaving drivers Paul Drayson and Jonny Cocker with limited time in the Lola B09/80 Judd.

But their fortunes improved at Okayama, where the Dale White-led team looked like prototype seasoned veterans. A star also emerged in the form of Cocker, as the 23-year-old prototype rookie impressed with his performance all weekend. Cocker put the Judd-powered machine on the pole, set both races’ fastest laps and made a daring late-race move on an Audi R10 TDI to finish fourth in race two.

We sat down to discussed the team’s breakout run and the jump to LMP1 with Jonny for the latest installment of “10 Questions.”

DAGYS: How does it feel to end the season on such a high note with the strong run in Okayama? 

COCKER: It was the dream end to the year for sure! I think everyone at Drayson Racing truly deserves the success that we had at Okayama. It was so nice to be at the front of the grid and show what were all really capable of.

DAGYS: At the start of the year, would you have ever imagined yourself sitting here with a prototype drive, earned an overall overall pole and having turned the fastest lap in both end-of-season races?

COCKER: Certainly not. I knew that down the line prototypes would be my focus, but never really this early on in my career. I would like to thank Paul and Elspeth for the fantastic opportunity.

It’s great to have the experience of the last three weekends racing the Lola LMP1 car heading into next year. I think it’s really going to give us a big advantage. Turning up at Sebring with a new LMP1 car and limited driving experience would have been incredibly hard!


DAGYS: From the seat of a prototype, how did the Okayama Circuit compare to Laguna Seca and Road Atlanta? Were you able to take anything you learned at those tracks and apply it over there? 

COCKER: It’s funny actually. All three tracks have a very different feel to them; Road Atlanta with the very high speed corners and Okayama with the very slow technical corners. Laguna Seca, I felt, was somewhere in between the two. The car felt very different at each circuit. As the speed builds, so does the downforce and the car changes character completely. It’s a very different driving experience to what I have ever been used to but I love it! I love the challenge of being put in at the deep end and having to adapt.
Cocker scored his first career LMP1 pole in on his third race last weekend in Okayama. (John Dagys)


DAGYS: How do you think this recent international success compares to your other accomplishments (British GT Champion, Porsche Carrera Cup Asia Champion) at the national level? 

COCKER: Getting pole at Okayama is something that I will never forget. It was a pretty special moment for me personally. Of course, winning a championship is great, but for sure this is at a different level. It’s so nice to establish myself against some of the best sports car drivers in the world today.


DAGYS: Are you surprised at how quickly Drayson Racing has developed as a team? What do you think has helped them become so competitive right out of the box?
 
COCKER: Not really. Everyone that’s involved in the Drayson Racing team is fantastic. We have all had a lot to learn in a very short space of time but I think that really makes you stronger and I’m sure that everyone will take a lot from that experience. The Lola Coupe chassis and Judd engine are a perfect match. I think we all knew deep down that this was possible but maybe not quite so soon!

DAGYS: What has been the biggest challenge as a driver in shifting from a GT car to a prototype? 

COCKER: I think that there are so many differences between a GT and LMP1 car that it’s hard to say. I love driving both cars but the sheer speed of the LMP1 car has to be the biggest thing that I felt needed adapting to. It’s pretty incredible just how fast you can go through a high speed corner and the way that the car feels different as the speed and aero loadings increase. It’s quite an amazing experience.

DAGYS: Have you had to make any changes to your driving style since getting behind the wheel of the prototype? 

COCKER: I have always had a pretty smooth driving style and I think that suits driving this car. It’s just a case of being very precise and trusting the car. I felt for the first time really that I was on top of the car at Okayama. It’s taken a couple of races but I’m looking forward to building on my experience and improving prior to Sebring.


DAGYS: Paul seemed to get up to speed fairly quickly at Okayama and was running competitive lap times in both races. In what ways are you helping him get acclimated to prototype racing? 
Drayson and Cocker put in a season-best fourth place finish in race two at Okayama. (John Dagys)

COCKER: Paul did a fantastic job all weekend. We always work hard together over the course of the weekend to keep improving his pace. Usually that means making sure that any differences in lines or gears are quickly ironed out. Then it’s a case of concentrating on the corner entry speeds and braking points. There are big chunks of time to be had on the brakes in the P1 car just because you can brake so late.  

Of course, it’s been pretty difficult for me to tell Paul exactly what the right thing to do is when I’m still learning the car for myself, but I think we both made a big step forward in the learning process in Japan. We can both build on that!”

DAGYS: Is there any areas of the car, team, etc that you think could be improved on for next year? 


COCKER: We already have a pretty detailed development program for the winter and feel that it will improve the performance of the car. All of the other teams and drivers have a huge amount of experience so we have a little catching up to do! The really exiting thing about this is we’re only just getting started. With such limited experience and such a strong result in Japan I’m feeling confident about the prospects for next year.


DAGYS: Do you have any off-season racing plans, or will the focus be primarily on testing and training?

COCKER: I’ll continue to work hard on my strength and fitness over the winter. That’s one of the big differences between the LMP1 and GT2 cars; the physical effort is pretty high! I want to be in the best shape I can possibly be in. Now I have some experience of driving the car I can target those areas and make sure I’m fully prepared for the first race. We will also be testing as a team in Europe with the LMP1 car and I’m already really looking forward to getting back into the car. 
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