FoS Favourite Jann Mardenborough lands top Nissan Le Mans drive

Nissan Academy driver Jann Mardenborough had already made a bit of a name for himself before arriving at the Festival of Speed last year, but that didn’t stop him cementing his reputation with a record-breaking road car run up the Hillclimb.

A blistering display in the Nissan GTR clinched overall victory in the Supercar Shoot-out, and if you haven’t already seen it you need to watch our highlights package here…

Now Jann fans have more good news. Word from NISMO in Japan is that he’s been selected to partner fellow GT Academy/PlayStation graduate Lucas Ordonez and pilot one of a pair of  innovative GT-R LM Nismo challengers at the 2015 Le Mans 24-hour race. It’s a big ask to expect a strong result from Jann at the French classic with a brand new car on its first outing, but it’s guaranteed to be fascinating to watch – especially as the two newcomers will share the car with the much more experienced NISMO driver Michael Krumm.

Check out the official announcement on the YouTube video above…

So what exactly has Jann Mardenborough done in his career so far?

Name: Jann Mardenborough
Age: 23
From: Cardiff
2011: Wins PlayStation GT Academy; selected races in GT Cup and Britcar Series.
2012: 6th in British GT Championship (1 win); 3rd in SP2 class at Dubai 24 Hours.
2013: 3rd in LMP2 class at Le Mans 24 Hours; 21st in FIA Formula 3 European Championship; 6th in British F3 Championship; 10th in Toyota Racing Series.
2014: 3rd in LMP2 class at Le Mans 24 Hours; 9th in GP3 Series (1 win); 2nd in Toyota Racing Series (3 wins); breaks road-car record at Goodwood Festival of Speed.
2015: Factory Nissan LMP1 driver at Le Mans and in FIA World Endurance Championship; Factory Nissan GT driver in Blancpain Endurance Series.
Trivia: Jann’s father Steve was a professional footballer who played in England’s top flight for Wolves and scored his only goal for the club at Anfield against then champions Liverpool. He played a key role in the Cardiff City and Darlington sides that became League Two champions in, respectively, 1987/88 and 1990/91.