ANDY Meyrick is gearing up for a second crack at the 24 Hours of Le Mans race – a year on from his sensational debut in the world famous endurance test.

The 25-year-old driver from Delamere finished fourth on his Le Mans debut in 2010.

He was the first rookie to cross the line in the twice-round-the-clock classic, behind three podium-placed Audis.

He has since left the French ORECA Matmut team and signed up with Aston Martin Racing, who snapped up the young Englishman in March after being impressed with his form in last year’s race.

Meyrick, a former Chester King’s School pupil, will share the cockpit of his AMR-One 009 car with Mexican Adrian Fernandez and Swiss driver Harold Primat, taking it in turns to race in the 24-hour challenge.

He said: “It has been brilliant so far and I’m enjoying every minute of being with the team.

“I have found myself going down to the team headquarters in Banbury even when we aren’t testing so that I can be a part of it all.

“It’s been a hell of a lot of work, though, as we’ve been doing so much testing and development of the new prototype car to try and get it ready for the Le Mans series.

“We’ve achieved a lot in testing but we are still a little bit away from the ultimate performance that we are wanting to get to.”

Despite some troubled practice sessions on the Le Mans circuit over the last couple of months, the Chester-born driver is confident his team will be in good shape for when the main event arrives this weekend.

“Le Mans is one of the world’s most famous motorsport events and it is always a privilege to be involved,” said Meyrick, who has been testing the car at Spa in Belgium and the Italian Monza track.

“The Le Mans circuit is one of those tracks that evolves and you never can get used to and fully prepare for.

“One of my best friends is David Brabham, who has raced the Le Mans circuit 18 times, and he says that he learns new things about the track every time.

“It’s the biggest, most iconic race in the world and, although as a team we may be about three years away from being a winning side, we will certainly be going out there to impress and ensure we’re competitive.”

This will be the 79th running of the Le Mans race, which takes place at the Circuit de la Sarthe in France.