Chris Buncombe

Christopher James Buncombe
Born	(1978-05-05) May 5, 1978 Taunton, Somerset, England
Occupation	Professional racing driver
Years active	1993–present
Known for	Victory in LMP2 category at 24 Hours of Le Mans (2007)

Christopher James Buncombe (born 5 May 1978 in Taunton, Somerset, England) is a British professional racing driver whose most recent participation at the Le Mans 24 Hours was in 2011. He became part of Aston Martin Racing at the close of 2009, making his debut in the Le Mans Series with a podium finish at Nürburgring driving the 008 Aston Martin LMP1. In 2007, Chris secured victory in the LMP2 category at the 24 Hours of Le Mans while competing for Binnie Motorsports in their Lola B05/40-Zytek.

Career

2020 Competed in the Silverstone 500 with Team Rocket RJN McLaren alongside Jenson Button

2019 Raced in the Blancpain Endurance Series representing Sky Tempesta Racing

2018 Achieved Blancpain Endurance GT Pro-Am Championship title with Strakka Racing Mercedes AMG GT3, partnering Nick Leventis and Lewis Williamson Finished as Runner-Up in the FIA GT Nations Cup driving for Team UK AF Corse Ferrari 488 GT3 Participated in the Asian Le Mans Series with United Autosports

2013 Took part in Spa 24 Hours with Nissan Team RJN GTR GT-3

2011 Contested the Le Mans 24 Hours with JOTA Sport Aston Martin GTE Also competed in the Le Mans Series at Silverstone

2010 Raced a single American Le Mans Series LMP2 event at Mid Ohio; also entered Le Mans Series LMP2 race at Hungaroring

2009 Served as factory driver for Aston Martin Racing's LMP1 #008 car during the Le Mans Series, playing a role in Aston Martin’s historic 1-2-3 finish at the ADAC 1000 km of Nürburgring, commemorating 50 years since their triumph at the same event in 1959

2008 Competed in Speedcar Series Nascar and participated in various races for JD Classics piloting Group C cars including Jaguar XJR-9 & Jaguar XJR-11

2007 Made debut appearances in both Le Mans Series and Le Mans 24 Hours with Binnie Motorsports, clinching the LMP2 class win at Le Mans driving Lola B05/40-Zytek

2006 Entered FIA GT1 Spa 24 Hours representing Team SRT in a Chevrolet Corvette C5-R

2005 Drove Red Bull Maserati MC12 for JMB Racing alongside Philipp Peter and Roman Rusinov in the FIA GT Championship

2004 Competed in FIA GT Championship for JMB Racing aboard #18 Ferrari 575M GT1 with teammates Karl Wendlinger, Tarso Marques, and Bert Longin

2002 Raced for RJN Motorsport Nissan in FIA European Touring Car Championship

2001 Participated in British Formula Renault with Manor Motorsport

1997–2000 Contested British Formula Renault before joining factory Nissan Motorsports Europe; raced Nissan Primera in Benelux Championship (1999) and Spa 24 Hours (2000) with RJN Motorsport

1995–1996 Awarded Formula Vauxhall Junior Young Driver Scholarship and competed in British Formula Vauxhall Junior Championship

1993–1995 Karting career highlighted by competition in British Super One Championship

1988–1993 Engaged in schoolboy motocross competitions

Family History

Chris Buncombe descends from a family deeply rooted in motorsport. His grandfather John Buncombe was active as a racer during the 1950s and '60s. His father Jonathan Buncombe enjoyed a racing career spanning more than two decades, representing manufacturers such as Ford and GM. Chris' brother, Alex, is a Factory Nissan Nismo driver and secured the Blancpain Endurance Series championship in 2015; he has competed for Nissan across multiple platforms including GT3, GT4, Australian V8 Supercars, Nürburgring 24 Hours, Petit Le Mans, and the Le Mans 24 Hours within LMP1.

24 Hours of Le Mans results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Pos.	Class Pos.
Template:24hLM	Binnie Motorsports	William Binnie Template:Country data GBRTemplate:Namespace detect showall Allen Timpany	Lola B05/42-Zytek	LMP2	318	18th	1st
Template:24hLM	Template:Country data GBRTemplate:Namespace detect showall Jota	Template:Country data GBRTemplate:Namespace detect showall Simon Dolan Template:Country data GBRTemplate:Namespace detect showall Sam Hancock	Aston Martin V8 Vantage GT2	GTE Pro	74	DNF	DNF