Autosportfoto

Briton McNish crowned world champion

Britain's Allan McNish secured the 2013 FIA World Endurance Championship with a race still to run when the Dumfries-born ace brought his hybrid-diesel Audi home third in the latest race in China today (SAT).

McNish, a triple Le Mans 24 Hour race winner and a three-time American Le Mans Series champion, plus co-drivers Tom Kristensen (Den) and Loïc Duval (F) sealed the prestigious title with a solid drive in the Six Hours Of Shanghai race won by the Audi of out-going WEC champions Marcel Fässler (CH)/André Lotterer (D)/Benoît Tréluyer (F)today (SAT).

McNish becomes Britain's first sportscar world champion for 21 years and Scotland's first ever sportscar world champion.

"I have been waiting to win a World championship since 1985!" confirmed Allan. "I've had three cracks at a world title - in karting I finished third at Le Mans, that hurt because it was very close, but then in Formula One there wasn't really an opportunity, so it's third time lucky.

"I feel massively proud of what we accomplished this year. We came out the blocks fighting in the Silverstone opening race and went on to also win at Le Mans and in Texas. Today we drove a conservative race but I'm out to finish the season off in style in Bahrain at the end of the month."

The 2013 Le Mans 24 Hour race winning trio have recorded three victories plus three seconds this season and now a third placing around the3.39-mile Shanghai Grand Prix circuit earning them an unassailable 30.75-point lead with only a maximum 26pts available in the final Bahrain race later this month (30 Nov).

McNish/Kristensen/Duval started their Audi from fourth place on the 28-car grid knowing they required a fourth or better finish to clinch the world "crown".

McNish ran a lonely fourth from the green light but moved into third place behind the two Toyotas after an hour when the "sister" Audi collected a puncture due to on-track debris.

Having driven an opening 93mins stint in the dry and warm weather conditions, McNish was back in the car with a final 75mins run to the chequered flag following stints from Duval and Kristensen placed third after the retirement of the leading Toyota.

The Fässler/Lotterer/Tréluyer victory earned Audi its sixth WEC race win of the season.

McNish, heralded as the world's greatest sportscar driver in recent years, won the Le Mans 24 Hour races in 1998, 2008 and this year - scoring a further six top-three "podiums" in his 14 attempts in the legendary French "marathon".

The Monaco-based Scotsman won the North American-based ALMS sportscar endurance title with Audi in 2000, 2006 & 2007 - the latter being his last title success - while the 1988 Formula Vauxhall Lotus Championship was his most recent title success in Europe following multiple Scottish and British kart championship titles.

McNish also finished runner-up in the 1989 British Formula Three Championship (by just 3pts), 2004 European Le Mans Series (by 6pts) and 2012 FIA WEC (by 13.5pts) in his hugely successful motor racing career.

The eighth and final round of the series is staged in Bahrain on 30 November.