WEC: Bradley critical of 'questionable' G-Drive clashes

Richard Bradley has accused the G-Drive squad of 'questionable' driving and felt he was lucky to leave the Fuji 6 Hours without injury, as KCMG eagerly await the results of an ongoing FIA investigation.

The WEC LMP2 championship leaders were locked in a fierce battle for the category lead at Fuji but were victims in three separate clashes with its competitors during an ill-tempered race and were ultimately forced to retire from the race due to a damaged car.

The opening incident saw G-Drive's #26 driven by Roman Rusinov clip the back of Bradley in the KCMG but after a brief fuel stop was able to continue, albeit in third place behind Rusinov and #36 Signatech Alpine.

As Bradley rejoined he was again involved in a clash but this time by the sister G-Drive machine driven by Gustavo Yacaman which was a lap down at the time. Bradley suffered a puncture and was forced to pit again but was able to return to the action still in third place with 30 minutes remaining.

But the flashpoints weren't over as Yacaman once again hit Bradley on track which ultimately eliminated the KCMG team with just four minutes left on the clock.

The incidents have been reported to the FIA and are currently under investigation.

After the dust settled Bradley questioned the racing by both G-Drive cars which caused the accidents.

"It's disappointing to end a great race where the whole team performed well with some questionable moves from our opposition," Bradley said. "Luckily Oreca have built a very strong car and so I have no injuries. However with the performance we showed I feel confident that we can regain our championship lead in the upcoming races."

KCMG WEC team manager Erich Kolb says he was proud with how his team performed under the circumstances and will help the FIA with its investigation.

"It was a fantastic show for the spectators for almost six hours, thanks to the rain which makes it really thrilling with different strategies and change of the class leader a couple of times," Kolb said. "What happened at the end when Richard had a big shunt is still under investigation and we will support FIA as much as we can to prevent further incidents like this. I'm so happy that he escaped without serious injuries, also a big thank to ORECA for building a strong chassis."