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MIKE NEWTON

Mike Newton, LMP2 winner Le Mans 24 Hours 2005Those who don't get paid to race are often termed 'gentlemen drivers'. They represent a select group that has, over the years, included some of the finest talents in motor racing. Mike Newton, the highly successful CEO of the AD Group and founder of Dedicated Micros, entered those ranks in 2003 and is now widely recognised as one of the best. Indeed, he frequently puts so-called professional drivers in the shade with his consistent lapping and fast times.

He first paired up with Thomas Erdos to contest the FIA GT Championship in 2003, sharing a Saleen S7-R prepared and managed by RML, and they've raced together ever since - Le Mans, Bathurst, Daytona and the Spa 24 Hour races included.

Until the start of the 2009 season, Mike and Tommy had shared a succession of MG Lola sports prototypes, all prepared by RML. That relationship began with the the EX257 in the Autumn of 2003, when the team competed in the inaugural round of the Le Mans (Endurance) Series, and ended in September 2008 as the MG EX265c made its one and only racetrack appearance in the LMS season finalé at Silverstone. In 2009 Mike co-raced the team's Mazda AER powered Lola B08/86, but from the start of 2010 the RML AD Group Lola has been re-engineered to employ the naturally aspirated HPD LM-V8. This change was rewarded with a string of good results and the Le Mans Series LMP2 drivers and team titles.

Mike Newton, Le Mans 24 Hours 2003, Saleen S7RNewton's two major passions are flying and motor racing. He began racing Formula Ford 1600 in 1985, and between 1995 and 1997 was a regular top-placed finisher. His innovative all-wheel steering Formula Ford was so successful that it was subsequently banned, but not before Mike had established something of a reputation, not only as a promising driver, but also as a man with engineering and technical acumen.

Mike has raced seven times in the Le Mans 24 hours, claiming 6th in class in 2003 (Saleen) on his debut, then helping the EX257 to its most enduring 24-hour run ever in 2004, before winning LMP2 in 2005 and again in 2006. He has also completed the Spa and Bathurst 24 Hour races, and has been a regular competitor in the Daytona 24 Hours, with a best finish of 4th in the Daytona Prototype class.

Mike Newton, CEO AD Group and Racing DriverFollowing on from a pair of class wins at Le Mans, Mike then took the LMP2 driver's title in the Le Mans Series in 2007. Other personal motorsport landmarks include: victory in the 2002 Daytona Grand-Am finalé (GTS class) in a Saleen S7-R; driving his Ford Falcon EL to class victory in the 2001 Nürburgring 6 Hours; and finishing sixth overall in the Super Touring feature race at Bathurst in 1999.

In 2010 Mike shared the RML Lola HPD at Le Mans with Tommy Erdos and Andy Wallace. In a race that saw just about all records for distance and speed broken, the threesome finished in an impressive 8th position overall, fifth petrol-engined car home, and took third in LMP2. The result also placed Mike and Andy as the highest-finishing British (or Commonwealth) drivers in a British car in the 2010 24 Hours, and the two were subsequently awarded the Woolf Barnato Trophy from the BRDC (British Racing Drivers Club).

Mike was back at Le Mans again in 2011, co-driving the RML AD Group HPD ARX-01d to fourth in LMP2. It was the high point in a season that was marred by debilitating technical regulations that denied the HPD the speed it deserved, and left Mike frustrated by a lack of results.

Mike Newton was named Britain's Top Entrepreneur by Management Today magazine in 2005, in association with RBS, and the AD Group is one of the UK's fastest-growing companies. Dedicated Micros - the company Mike founded in 1982, celebrated 25 years of cutting-edge technology in 2007, and AD Group, was ten years old in 2008.

Mike is married to Ann. They live in Cheshire, and have twin girls.

Mike Newton driving with RML AD Group


Birthdate 14th April 1960
Nationality
English (Born Manchester)
Status
Married with 2 children
Helmet
White with Red & Blue stripes
Race Debut
1985 (Formula Ford)
Highlights
1995: Runner-up Champion of Oulton FF
1996: Champion of Oulton FF
1997: Champion of Oulton FF
1999: Bathurst 500 kms, 6th
2001: Nürburgring 6hr, 1st SP7
2002: Daytona 3hr, 1st GTS
2004: Daytona 24hrs, 4th DP
2005: Le Mans 24 Hrs, 1st LMP2
2005: Runner-up LMS LMP2
2006: Le Mans 24 Hrs, 1st LMP2
2006: Runner-up LMS LMP2
2007: Champion LMS LMP2
2010: Champion LMS LMP2
2010: Winner of the Woolf Barnato Trophy
Le Mans
2003: Saleen S7R (GNM) not classified
2004: MG EX257 (RML) retired (engine)
2005: MG EX264 (RML) 1st LMP2
2006: MG EX264 (RML) 1st LMP2
2007: MG EX264 (RML) retired (engine)
2008: MG EX265 (RML) retired (accident)
2009: Lola Mazda (RML) retired (engine)
2010: Lola HPD (RML) 3rd LMP2, 8th o/all
2011: HPD ARX-01d (RML) 4th LMP2, 12th o/all
Notes
Founder and CEO of AD Group
2005: Winner of UK Entrepreneur of the
Year award
2007: Winner Independent on Sunday’s
Indy 100 for booming businesses
2008: Elected Vice President of the
British Motorsport Marshals Club

Mike Newton in the cockpit; MG Lola EX265, 2008