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Le Mans / ALMS
LE MANS: Fernandez Leaves Aston Martin Racing
Popular Mexican driver pulls plug on remainder of FIA WEC season with Aston Martin Racing, aims for return to U.S. racing...
Adrian Fernandez will no longer drive for Aston Martin Racing in the FIA WEC. (Photo: LAT)
Adrian Fernandez has cut short his FIA World Endurance Championship program with Aston Martin Racing, announcing Wednesday that he will not compete in the remaining rounds in Brazil, Bahrain, Japan and China this season.
The 47-year-old Mexican ace had teamed with Darren Turner and Stefan Mucke in AMR's factory Aston Martin Vantage V8 in the GTE-Pro ranks. While the trio recently claimed a podium finish in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Fernandez did not drive in last month's Six Hours of Silverstone, due to a late change in the driver rotation mid-race.
“I would like to thank Aston Martin Racing for the opportunity they have given me the past three years,” Fernandez said. “The new FIA WEC has put together a fantastic schedule for this year but, to be honest, my focus and preference is on competing in North America.
"The team and I mutually agreed to end our relationship early so we both can focus on our future plans and Lowe’s was supportive of this decision."
Fernandez joined AMR in 2010 as a factory driver, competing in select American Le Mans Series, European Le Mans Series and Intercontinental Le Mans Cup events in their LMP1-class Lola-Aston Martin.
The 2011 season brought challenging times to the British manufacturer, which shelved its self-built AMR-One prototype mid-season and reverted to its grandfathered Lola-based Aston Martin for the final ILMC rounds.
For this season, Fernandez was in his third and final year of his contract with AMR when they shifted focus to the GT category, which undoubtedly took some adjusting for the former open-wheel star.
It's unclear what Fernandez's future will hold, although he's hoping to return to the U.S. racing scene on a more consistent basis. Fernandez won the 2009 ALMS P2 championship with his Lowe's Fernandez Racing squad but was forced to close his team's doors due to lack of budget less than a month later.
“I am not retiring," he said. "With the recent and exciting announcement of the unification of sports car racing here in the States, I am very enthusiastic about the prospects moving forward. Racing is still in my blood and I still feel very competitive.
"I plan to take my time to look at possible opportunities for next year and, in the meantime, I will enjoy my beautiful kids and do all the other things that I haven’t done in 31 years of my racing career.
"I am excited about this next chapter. I want to find a team environment in sports car racing that is competitive while at the same time fun, and a place where I use my experience to contribute to its success.”
John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at
The 47-year-old Mexican ace had teamed with Darren Turner and Stefan Mucke in AMR's factory Aston Martin Vantage V8 in the GTE-Pro ranks. While the trio recently claimed a podium finish in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Fernandez did not drive in last month's Six Hours of Silverstone, due to a late change in the driver rotation mid-race.
“I would like to thank Aston Martin Racing for the opportunity they have given me the past three years,” Fernandez said. “The new FIA WEC has put together a fantastic schedule for this year but, to be honest, my focus and preference is on competing in North America.
"The team and I mutually agreed to end our relationship early so we both can focus on our future plans and Lowe’s was supportive of this decision."
Fernandez joined AMR in 2010 as a factory driver, competing in select American Le Mans Series, European Le Mans Series and Intercontinental Le Mans Cup events in their LMP1-class Lola-Aston Martin.
The 2011 season brought challenging times to the British manufacturer, which shelved its self-built AMR-One prototype mid-season and reverted to its grandfathered Lola-based Aston Martin for the final ILMC rounds.
For this season, Fernandez was in his third and final year of his contract with AMR when they shifted focus to the GT category, which undoubtedly took some adjusting for the former open-wheel star.
It's unclear what Fernandez's future will hold, although he's hoping to return to the U.S. racing scene on a more consistent basis. Fernandez won the 2009 ALMS P2 championship with his Lowe's Fernandez Racing squad but was forced to close his team's doors due to lack of budget less than a month later.
“I am not retiring," he said. "With the recent and exciting announcement of the unification of sports car racing here in the States, I am very enthusiastic about the prospects moving forward. Racing is still in my blood and I still feel very competitive.
"I plan to take my time to look at possible opportunities for next year and, in the meantime, I will enjoy my beautiful kids and do all the other things that I haven’t done in 31 years of my racing career.
"I am excited about this next chapter. I want to find a team environment in sports car racing that is competitive while at the same time fun, and a place where I use my experience to contribute to its success.”
John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at
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