The ACO and FIA have confirmed a new FIA World Endurance Championship class structure for the 2024 season. As expected, the LMP2 class will be removed from the championship in 2024, due to an increase in the size of the Hypercar class (with …
The ACO and FIA have confirmed a new FIA World Endurance Championship class structure for the 2024 season.
As expected, the LMP2 class will be removed from the championship in 2024, due to an increase in the size of the Hypercar class (with additional entries from Alpine, BMW, Lamborghini and Isotta Fraschini expected) and the previously announced introduction of LMGT3, which will replace GTE Am.
“We have to make choices as a consequence of success,” said ACO President Pierre Fillon at the annual Friday ACO conference at Le Mans. “LMP2 will remain the premier category in the European Le Mans Series and the Asian Le Mans Series.”
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1416]
While LMP2 cars will not be eligible for the full WEC season, there will be 15 spaces reserved on the Le Mans 24 Hours entry list for teams running in LMP2 in the European Le Mans Series, Asian Le Mans Series and IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
This news marks the end of all categories from the inaugural FIA WEC season in 2012, which featured LMP1, LMP2, GTE Pro and GTE Am machinery. It also means that for the first time, the WEC will feature just two full-season categories (Hypercar and LMGT3).
Richard Mille, president of the FIA Endurance Commission, confirmed the intentions for LMGT3 to be a class for Pro-Am teams. “GT is the heart of Le Mans,” he said. “We will emphasize gentlemen drivers, who are key in the WEC. The GT3 platform is the FIA’s most successful customer racing category. It’s a good platform to build on in the FIA WEC.”
Mille also confirmed that entry will not be exclusively limited to customers of brands who already compete in the WEC’s Hypercar category.
“Hypercar is increasingly important. What we wanted was to focus on the Hypercar automakers so they could intervene in the GT3 category, but we are open to makes which are not in Hypercar. Diversity is a criteria.”
WEC CEO Frédéric Lequien elaborated further on the eligibility requirements for LMGT3 entries into the 24 Hours of Le Mans after the press conference, telling RACER: “We will do the invitations, which is automatically linked to the results. And then, the other invitations — it’s the job of the Selection Committee.
“We want to let it be open, and to have the choice to have the diversity on the grid. We strongly believe that one of the strengths of the championship is to have diversity and different car manufacturers. The question is the number of places available on the grid. If we have enough places, I would say that we’ll be happy to welcome all the GT3 manufacturers — and at the moment they all want to come. So it would have been a negative signal to say that it’s only limited to the Hypercar manufacturers.”
Lequien confirmed that manufacturers can choose two different teams to represent them in the LMGT3 field, with each manufacturer limited to just two cars. Entries will be open from October to December this year.
Alpine revealed today at Le Mans its A424_β, the launch version of its forthcoming LMDh Hypercar, with which it will compete in the top FIA World Endurance Championship category in 2024. The French manufacturer has partnered with ORECA for this new …
Alpine revealed today at Le Mans its A424_β, the launch version of its forthcoming LMDh Hypercar, with which it will compete in the top FIA World Endurance Championship category in 2024.
The French manufacturer has partnered with ORECA for this new chassis, which will be powered by a 3.4-liter V6 turbocharged engine developed in collaboration with Mecachrome. The factory program in the WEC is set to be run by its longstanding partner team Signatech out of its base in Bourges, with a customer operation expected to follow later down the line.
This new program will mark the return of Alpine to the top class, after spending both the 2021 and ’22 seasons in Hypercar with a grandfathered A480 LMP1 chassis powered by a Gibson engine.
— Alpine Endurance Team (@SignatechAlpine) June 9, 2023
“Today we unveil the Alpine A424_β, the forerunner of our Hypercar designed to challenge the best competitors starting next year,” said Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi. “True to our values, this new prototype takes the A-arrow brand into the future; while following in the footsteps of our creations, beginning with Alpenglow and the A290_β. The Alpine A424_β is racy, elegant and distinctive with its iconic and emblematic design. It embodies both our present and our future thanks to the involvement and investment of our designers in its development.”
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1416]
The car underwent its first wind tunnel test last July, before engine testing began in December. Engine and gearbox coupling took place last month.
Signatech boss Philippe Sinault says the car will compete as the A424 (without the beta symbol), and is set for its first fire-up on June 28th, before a further shakedown in July and a first full track test at Paul Ricard during August.
“We will operate the tests with our current LMP2 team, with additional people and the full support of Alpine Racing and ORECA,” Sinault explained. “We plan to have many test drivers.”
Whether or not the A424 will compete in IMSA’s GTP class is not yet clear. RACER asked Sinault whether or not Signatech had aspirations to take the A424 to the WeatherTech series. “If Alpine asks, I would consider it,” was the answer. Currently Alpine does not sell road cars in North America.
General Motors has revealed additional details of how its Corvette customer GT3 program with the Z06 GT3.R is coming together for 2024. Over the coming months multiple announcements are expected, confirming customer teams in IMSA’s WeatherTech …
General Motors has revealed additional details of how its Corvette customer GT3 program with the Z06 GT3.R is coming together for 2024.
Over the coming months multiple announcements are expected, confirming customer teams in IMSA’s WeatherTech Sports Car Championship, SRO championships and the FIA World Endurance Championship. Eight cars are expected to compete in year one, explained Laura Wontrop Klauser, GM Sports Car Racing Manager.
“Our desired plan has been to launch in 2024 with four cars racing in IMSA — two in GTD PRO and two in GTD — two cars in the WEC and two in SRO America,” Wontrop Klauser told RACER. “Understanding the timing of the 2024 WEC race schedule helps us coordinate build schedules to ensure we can meet the race timing, assuming our WEC attendance is granted.”
In IMSA, the four cars are likely to be split evenly across the GTD and GTD Pro categories. How the GTD PRO effort will look is still being decided, though Corvette and the Pratt Miller organization behind it are keen to have some form of factory presence if possible.
“There is a plan in place to start confirming our customer teams, and I think fans will be very happy with the organizations we have chosen,” added Wontrop Klauser.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1416]
Tire testing with Goodyear and Pirelli is a key part of the development phase for the car still to come. RACER understands that the Corvette hasn’t yet tested on either Pirelli or Goodyear tires (for SRO and WEC competition), but opportunities are expected to arise over the summer months with both manufacturers.
The prospective GTD PRO team from IMSA will lead the way in terms of testing the car over the months to come.
“We’ve said for some time that we will have factory-supported teams around the world in a number of championships with the Corvette Z06 GT3.R,” Wontrop Klauser noted. “Ensuring all our customers are set up for success is important to us.
“One of the key elements of this is our IMSA GTD PRO team who, with our support, is taking the lead on optimizing the running of the car so we can lift all teams to higher performance.”
AO Racing’s Gunnar Jeannette takes RACER’s Marshall Pruett for a tour of the popular Porsche 911 RSR with the T-Rex livery – nicknamed ‘Rexy’ – at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Or CLICK HERE to watch on YouTube Presented by: RACER’s Trackside Report of …
AO Racing’s Gunnar Jeannette takes RACER’s Marshall Pruett for a tour of the popular Porsche 911 RSR with the T-Rex livery — nicknamed ‘Rexy’ — at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
RACER’s Trackside Report of the 24 Hours of Le Mans is presented by Michelin Motorsport.
Michelin, the leading mobility company, is working with tires, around tires and beyond tires to enable Motion for Life. Dedicated to enhancing its clients’ mobility and sustainability, Michelin designs and distributes the most suitable tires, services and solutions for its customers’ needs. Michelin’s ambition is centered around developing technology for sustainable mobility and uses its motorsport presence as a laboratory for innovation.
A global leader in motorsport performance for more than 100 years, Michelin continues to test new boundaries of innovation. Based in Clermont-Ferrand, Michelin is present in 175 countries, employs 132,200 people and operates 67 tire factories. Click to learn more.
In its ongoing bid to make motorsport increasingly sustainable, Michelin has introduced an exciting new high-performance racing tire that contains 63% sustainable raw materials. On Saturday, June 10, it will perform a parade lap of the Le Mans 24 Hours circuit on the H24 hydrogen-fueled endurance-racing prototype. Check it out.
Proton Competition has been announced as the first customer team for the Mustang GT3, with intent to campaign a pair of the new Ford race cars in the FIA World Endurance Championship, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans “This is a very important …
Proton Competition has been announced as the first customer team for the Mustang GT3, with intent to campaign a pair of the new Ford race cars in the FIA World Endurance Championship, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans
“This is a very important program and an exciting moment for our organization,” said Proton Competition team principal Christian Ried. “The Mustang is a great brand and this is an important step for our team. We look forward to joining with Ford starting in 2024.”
Proton Competition currently runs programs in a variety of series, including WEC and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, spanning the GTE, GT3 and LMP2 categories. Proton will also introduce a fourth Porsche 963 into the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s GTP category later this year. The Ehingen, Germany-based company will join Multimatic in racing the Mustang GT3. Multimatic was previously announced as Ford’s partner in GTD PRO in the WeatherTech Championship, where it will campaign two cars.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1416]
“We’re very excited about the partnership with Proton,” Mark Rushbrook, Global Director, Ford Performance Motorsports, told RACER. “What Proton represents as a team, how successful they have been, the way that they approach racing … they’re very focused, great people, great technical resources. So when we had the first opportunity to talk to them to be our first customer team, and for them to be able to apply for entering in the 2024 WEC season, it was a big opportunity for us and we really saw there were a lot of synergies with how they approach racing and and how we approach racing. We’re excited that they will be the first customer team and looking forward to seeing them on track.”
— Ford Performance (@FordPerformance) June 9, 2023
From the moment that Ford announced at Daytona in January 2021 that it would produce a GT3 car, inquiries began coming in from teams wishing to race the car in a variety of series, Rushbrook reported, and Ford Performance has been active in talking to them to find the right partners. While Ford Performance will prioritize getting cars to Multimatic and Proton, it is intent on building as many Mustang GT3s for which there is demand, and hopes to see customer teams competing with the car not only in IMSA and WEC, but SRO worldwide and any other series that feature GT3 cars.
“That’s what we like about this convergence, that it’s no longer GT and GT3 separate,” Rushbrook said. “We can compete as a factory as appropriate in IMSA GTD PRO, but we also can have customer teams competing in GTD — or even customer teams competing in GTD PRO if they choose — as well as SRO and WEC.
“We’re excited that we can design and homologate one car that can be sold around the world to compete in so many different series in a very meaningful way. Mustang is a global sports car, and we’re now finally able to go global racing as well. So it’s very important for us what we’re able to do with GT3 and customer teams.”
Against the backdrop of the world’s most famous endurance race, Ford Performance today fully unveiled the highly anticipated Mustang GT3 a year from the company’s return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans. “Ford and Le Mans are bound together by history,” …
Against the backdrop of the world’s most famous endurance race, Ford Performance today fully unveiled the highly anticipated Mustang GT3 a year from the company’s return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
“Ford and Le Mans are bound together by history,” said Ford Motor Company CEO Jim Farley. “And now we’re coming back to the most dramatic, most rewarding and most important race in the world. It is not Ford versus Ferrari anymore. It is Ford versus everyone. Going back to Le Mans is the beginning of building a global motorsports business with Mustang, just like we are doing with Bronco and Raptor off-road.”
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1416]
While Ford is eager to repeat past success at Le Mans, experienced most recently in 2016 with the GT but going back to its string of victories in the late ’60s with the GT40, it’s the convergence of sports car GT racing under the GT3 platform in 2024 — where GT3 cars can compete at Le Mans and in the World Endurance Championship, the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, SRO’s GT World Challenge series around the world and numerous other championships and races — that has driven Ford to jump into the ever-growing GT3 pool.
“It has come about for a lot of different reasons,” explained Mark Rushbrook, Global Director at Ford Performance Motorsports, ahead of the unveiling. “Part of it is internal to our company, and the way that we’re able to value motorsports in new and different ways than before. But also, it’s a lot of what’s happened in the racing world, especially in sports car racing. And with the convergence of the GT classes, we can with one car, one designed and one homologated car, race it globally.
“In factory racing, in IMSA, where it’s appropriate to do it, but around the rest of the world — in series like WEC, including Le Mans, SRO — we can race in true customer racing, getting Mustangs out there for customer teams to compete with. That is great for us, because Mustang is one of our icons. It is a halo for us in many ways. And as we’ve committed to the seventh-generation Mustang for the for the road with a full lineup of vehicles, we’re doing the same thing on the racetrack.”
[lawrence-related id=327906]
Based on the Mustang Dark Horse, the performance pinnacle of the 2024 Mustang lineup, the Mustang GT3 has been developed in conjunction with Multimatic, which will run the car in IMSA GTD PRO competition while Proton Competition campaigns the car in WEC. Development of the 5.4-liter Coyote V8 engine has been carried out by M-Sport, Ford’s partner in the World Rally Championship. The Mustang GT3 features revised engine placement, a bespoke short-long arm suspension, a rear-mounted transaxle, carbon fiber body panels, and a unique aero package. One of the standout elements of that aero package is the swan-neck mount for the rear wing that mounts to the car midway between the rear and the roof.
“It’s very good functionally, to tie into some good structure and provide clean airflow. But it’s also very striking from a visual perspective,” Rushbrook, told RACER, adding on to some other technical elements of the car.
“The fender vents, the way the air is channeled to flow — not just over the car and under the car, but through the car to efficiently get the drag and downforce targets that we need to hit, but also the cooling requirements. And then it’s taking that great Coyote naturally aspirated V8 engine, working with M-Sport as a great engine partner to develop that and hit the power targets that we need to be competitive in the class.
“We’re able to get the engine in the race car a little bit lower, a little bit further rearward to give it better inertia characteristics, lower center of gravity, and reduce the yaw inertia as well. So it’s really working with Multimatic as a great vehicle engineering partner to optimize every system, every component in the car for optimum performance on the track.”
The Mustang GT3 was presented in a colorful Troy Lee-designed livery, complete with new Ford Performance branding that will be featured on all the company’s racing vehicles. Rushbrook says that while Ford Performance doesn’t expect teams to copy the livery, they would love for them to take some common elements from it.
In addition to Proton and Multimatic running the car in their respective championships, Ford Performance hopes to see the car in customers’ hands competing across the world, and the company has fielded inquiries from teams wishing to campaign the car in a variety of championships and races. Rushbrook said the intent is to supply as many cars as demand dictates.
Joining the Mustang GT3, which will make its competition debut at the 2024 Rolex 24 At Daytona, the Mustang Dark Horse will also form the basis of a new GT4 car as well as spawn two other track-only versions, the R and S.
United Autosports is set to join the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in 2024, with a pair of LMP2 class ORECA 07 Gibsons for the full season. The Anglo-American team, which has been competing in the FIA WEC’s LMP2 category since 2019, has …
United Autosports is set to join the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in 2024, with a pair of LMP2 class ORECA 07 Gibsons for the full season.
The Anglo-American team, which has been competing in the FIA WEC’s LMP2 category since 2019, has opted to place its headline 2024 prototype racing program in IMSA due to the incoming changes in the WEC’s class structure.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1406]
From next season LMP2 has been dropped from the World Championship due to a combination of growth in the Hypercar field and the introduction of the LMGT3 class, which is almost certain to be oversubscribed.
United’s co-owners Richard Dean and McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown had been working to find a solution that would allow the team to stay in the FIA WEC for next season. RACER understands that on two separate occasions, with two separate major OEMs, United came extremely close to confirming a factory deal for Hypercar.
However, neither came together in time and the timeframe to build a new LMGT3 program, with no certainty of gaining entries at this stage, is simply too short.
“We are going to step away and race in IMSA and see how the marketplace in the WEC develops in both Hypercar and LMGT3,” Dean told RACER.
Its 2024 IMSA program will run out of a new, larger facility in the USA, which will replace its current space in West Palm Beach Florida. The team is already in talks with a number of drivers.
This will not be the team’s first foray into the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. In 2018, it competed in three of the Michelin Endurance Cup rounds with the Ligier JS P217 platform. That year, its Rolex 24 effort was spearheaded by Fernando Alonso and Lando Norris. A more recent program saw the team field an ORECA at select IMSA rounds in 2021 and 2022.
This new IMSA full-season campaign will run alongside continued ELMS and Asian Le Mans Series programs in 2024. Dean says the team remains keen to continue supporting the prototype classes in ACO-rules racing outside of the FIA WEC going forward.
“LMP2 is definitely still appealing to us,” Dean told RACER. “When you are an aspiring Hypercar team like we are, it’s the best place to be in terms of relevance if you want to make that step. It’s the obvious training ground.
“From a business perspective, these are still amazing cars to drive, there is a lot of desire from drivers to drive them. The fact that the ACO will keep accepting LMP2 entries at the Le Mans 24 Hours is a hugely attractive reason to stay in the category.
“Even if we are successful in building a Hypercar team, I like to think we would still stay in LMP2. It’s a college for people who want to race in prototypes. We love LMP2. The ELMS and Asian Le Mans Series are strong and the ORECA is an incredible car for the money.”
Dean also told RACER that the team has kept an open dialogue with the ACO throughout its decision-making process in the run-up to today’s news.
“We have wanted to make this announcement earlier, but we wanted to respect the ACO and let them make their announcement on the future of the LMP2 category first,” he said.
“This move to IMSA doesn’t affect our commitments to the ELMS and Asian Le Mans Series and our desire to compete in both going forward. We also have a desire for two cars at Le Mans again next year. We love the places that ACO racing can take us.
“In the meantime, we are going to throw everything at IMSA and take on this new challenge.”
The final Free Practice session for the centenary 24 Hours of Le Mans saw Ferrari’s No. 51 499P top the times with a 3m27.275s from James Calado. The session was a was punctuated by an electrical breakdown for one of the Peugeot TotalEnergies 9X8 …
The final Free Practice session for the centenary 24 Hours of Le Mans saw Ferrari’s No. 51 499P top the times with a 3m27.275s from James Calado.
The session was a was punctuated by an electrical breakdown for one of the Peugeot TotalEnergies 9X8 Hypercars. In Free Practice 3, it was the No. 94 Peugeot that went back to the pits with a trail of smoke behind it. This car was fine for Free Practice 4 – this time, the gremlins struck down the No. 93 car.
Jean-Eric Vergne was exiting the first Mulsanne Chicane when the lights began to flicker on and off in the darkness. Vergne rolled the Peugeot to a stop along the right side of Les Hunaudieres, and a Slow Zone was declared for a few minutes.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1416]
Race director Eduardo Freitas didn’t like how some unnamed drivers were running to the right instead of the left, so he decided to red-flag the session for 20 minutes.
The other notable story out of the Hypercar class came from Cadillac Racing. After the No. 3 Cadillac V-Series.R caught fire in the Hyperpole session, the fire-damaged car was returned to the garage to assess the damage caused by what Cadillac Racing confirmed was a burst high-pressure fuel hose. But it did not take any further part in Thursday track activities.
Glickenhaus Racing ended up second, Esteban Gutierrez just a second off the No. 51 with a 3m28.278s in the No. 709 SCG 007, ahead of Will Stevens in the Hertz Team JOTA Porsche 963.
There was little drama at all in LMP2; no major incidents to report, and all 24 cars were able to get significant track time. Dries Vanthoor in the No. 923 Racing Team Turkey Oreca 07-Gibson was fastest on a 3m36.229s.
Job van Uitert was second-quickest in the Panis Racing No. 65, and Mirko Bortolotti was third in the Prema Racing No. 63.
Tom van Rompuy had the fastest time amongst the Bronze-rated drivers in the LMP2 Pro-Am sub-class, driving the DKR Engineering No. 43.
In GTE Am, JMW Motorsport’s Ferrari 488 GTE EVO ended the session with the fastest time, Louis Prette’s 3m52.965s achieved despite its five minutes stop and go penalty for a yellow flag infringement: time added to the one-hour session in compensation for the red flag delay absorbed the penalty which might have otherwise been taken during the race.
The shorter-than-usual final practice session placed the D’Station Racing Aston Martin under pressure, not least its rookie driver. Casper Stevenson’s requirement was clean laps in the rebuilt No. 777 car to complete the work by TF Sport and get the car officially back into the race. The young Brit delivered, a 4m01.206s the best of the five needed as his minimum requirement,;the time falling within the 110% regulation.
That didn’t take the pressure off the team, though. Tomonobu Fuji and Satoshi Hoshino still needed five qualifying laps each, but adjustment of the session time to compensate for the red flag let the Japanese drivers off the hook. Fuji just scraped by in the final seconds.
Two cars sat out the session: the No. 25 ORT by TF Aston Martin and the No. 911 Proton Competition Porsche.
Ferrari AF Corse has locked out the front row for the 100th anniversary running of the Le Mans 24 Hours, after Antonio Fuoco and Alessandro Pier Guidi produced blistering times in the team’s pair of 499Ps during tonight’s Hyperpole session. It was a …
Ferrari AF Corse has locked out the front row for the 100th anniversary running of the Le Mans 24 Hours, after Antonio Fuoco and Alessandro Pier Guidi produced blistering times in the team’s pair of 499Ps during tonight’s Hyperpole session. It was a landmark result for the Italian manufacturer, which will start the French endurance classic from pole for the first time since 1973.
The two works drivers traded provisional pole times during the 30-minute session, with Pier Guidi in the No. 51 setting an astonishing 3m23.897s benchmark time on his first flying lap. This easily eclipsed the 2022 pole time (a 3m24.408s by the No. 8 Toyota) and was the first time of the week to dip under 3m24s.
After Pier Guidi set the bar, Fuoco in the No. 50 made it his mission to raise it, and with eight minutes left set a remarkable 3m22.982s. This was an improvement of almost a second, putting him 0.7s up on his teammate. What was most impressive was that the lap was set despite the Italian losing time at Indianapolis when he came up behind the No. 57 Kessel Ferrari on the entry to the slow left-hander.
Fuoco’s lap was also nearly a full second faster than the previous qualifying lap record set in the admittedly young history of the Le Mans Hypercar class, a 3m23.900s, set by the Toyota GR010 HYBRID in 2021.
— FIA World Endurance Championship (@FIAWEC) June 8, 2023
“It was a really good lap, really tough qualifying. My first lap was slower than the sister car, then I put it all together. It’s something special, to be honest!” Fuoco said. “I want to enjoy the moment, then we will think about the race.”
While the Ferraris were pushing for improvements, the remaining six cars in Hypercar were also pushing to challenge the 499Ps. Kamui Kobayashi in the No. 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing GR010 HYBRID was on course to move up the order from fourth, but halfway through his most promising flying lap local hero Sebastien Bourdais in the No. 3 Cadillac Racing V-Series.R stopped on the Mulsanne Straight, with the rear end of his car on fire. Replays showed the car briefly bursting into flames before the fire settled under the car.
Thankfully Bourdais was able to climb out of the car unharmed. It was a major blow for Cadillac though, after it had opted to change the engines on all three of its V-Series.Rs earlier in the day to ensure its fleet had fresh motors for Hyperpole and the race. Adding to the misery was the news that filtered through shortly after that Bourdais’ best time, a 3m24.908s that briefly put him third overall, would be deleted by regulation because he caused a red flag. As a result, the car dropped to eighth (last) by the end of the session, with its best time a 3m25.521s.
Cadillac Racing engineers have determined that a burst high pressure fuel hose caused the fire, and Cadillac Racing and Dallara engineers and the Chip Ganassi Racing crew are working to prepare the car for the race.
When the session went green again, Ferrari AF Corse opted to stay in the garage, confident they wouldn’t improve. On the other end of pit lane, Toyota sent both GR010 HYBRIDs out for a final stand, but neither Kobayashi nor Brendon Hartley in the No. 8 sister car could split the Ferraris or come close to pole. In fact, no Hypercar came within a second of pole-setting No. 50.
“We have no words. For all these people it’s less than a year since the car first turned laps at Fiorano. This is for all the people working on the project,” Fuoco’s teammate Miguel Molina said.
Both Toyota drivers did set better times, although Kobayashi lost his best tour to a track limits violation and dropped to fifth. Hartley’s best time in the No. 8 — a 3m24.451s at the end of the session — put him and his teammates third on the grid, a tenth up on the fastest of the two Penske Porsches that made it into the session, the No. 75. It was an interesting strategy from Porsche, which opted to keep its cars in the garage for half the session, before setting times late on.
The No. 75 guest-entered IMSA car will start fourth, while the No. 5 WEC entry will start from seventh, behind the No. 7 Toyota and No. 2 Cadillac.
Paul Loup Chatin was in brilliant form for IDEC Sport to take pole in LMP2. Alexander Trienitz/Motorsport Images
In LMP2, Paul Loup Chatin was the man of the half-hour, setting a blistering 3m32.923s in the IDEC Sport No. 48 ORECA to beat JOTA to the class pole. The Frenchman the only driver in the class to set a time under 3m33s. Pietro Fittipaldi ended up second in the JOTA example, which continued its fine showing of pace in the session and was just a tenth off.
“I am so proud of this. I am proud of Pau Loup, and the team — big respect,” IDEC Sporting Director Nicolas Minassian said. “To do this at Le Mans at the hundred years, it’s all aligned. There’s a long way to go but we have to enjoy what’s here,”
The top five in LMP2 was completed by the No. 41 WRT, No. 47 COOL Racing and No. 63 Prema ORECAs.
Ben Keating set up a great GTE sendoff for the Corvette C8.R by taking the GTE Am pole in the car he’ll share with Nicky Catsburg and Nicolas Varrone. Motorsport Images
In GTE, Ben Keating put the factory Corvette Racing team atop the times for the final GTE race at Le Mans. The Texan was fast throughout the session and sat on provisional pole before the red flag. He then went out for one final lap and set a 3m52.376s to improve by 0.8s and set pole by over a second. If Keating continues this form in the race, the Pratt Miller-run team will be extremely hard to beat this weekend…
Corvette will be joined on the front row by the ORT by TF Sport Aston Martin. Ahmad Al Harthy put in a fine effort ahead of his first start. The Omani driver reeled off a 3m53.905s which secured second. The No. 54 Ferrari will start third after a strong showing from Thomas Flohr.
This story has been updated since it was originally published to include additional details about the fire on the No.3 Cadillac.
Ferrari AF Corse’s No. 50 499P ran fastest in a sun-soaked Free Practice 3 at the Le Mans 24 Hours ahead of the Hyperpole shootout. Antonio Fuoco set a flying lap of 3m26.579s within the final 15 minutes to lead the way. The sister No. 51 spent half …
Ferrari AF Corse’s No. 50 499P ran fastest in a sun-soaked Free Practice 3 at the Le Mans 24 Hours ahead of the Hyperpole shootout. Antonio Fuoco set a flying lap of 3m26.579s within the final 15 minutes to lead the way.
The sister No. 51 spent half the session undergoing transmission repairs, but once that was done, it took to the track and ran trouble-free to the checkered flag – and Alessandro Pier Guidi went second-fastest with a 3m27.013s.Toyota Gazoo Racing dove right in from the start of Free Practice 3, logging laps and setting early benchmark times. The No. 7 Toyota GR010 Hybrid was third-fastest courtesy of a 3m27.580s set by Kamui Kobayashi, and the No. 8 Toyota was fourth, just 0.2s in arrears. Both cars completed upwards of 36 laps.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1416]
Three cars completed 40 laps, including the No. 8 Toyota, and two Porsche Penske Motorsports 963s, the No. 5 and No. 75. Customer squad Hertz Team JOTA also flashed some pace and made up for the time lost in Qualifying Practice yesterday, going fifth-fastest, while the Penske factory cars were sixth, eighth, and ninth.
Cadillac Racing took extra care to make all was good with its two Cadillac V-Series.Rs, the blue No. 2 and gold No. 3, ahead of Hyperpole this evening. The No. 2 had to end its session early with a fuel cell problem which the team hopes will be resolved before the two-hour interim is finished. In the meantime, Action Express Racing’s No. 311 went seventh-fastest. Prior to the session, RACER understands that all three Cadillacs underwent a planned engine change.
But there was also a worrisome sight in the last half-hour for Peugeot. The No. 94 9X8 limped back into pit lane with smoke coming from the back; the smoke too thick to be a mere body rub.
All 24 LMP2 cars were back in action this afternoon after a change of chassis put Tower Motorsports back in the game with a rebuilt No. 13 Oreca 07-Gibson.
Only the No. 28 JOTA Oreca went for a push lap. Incredibly, Pietro Fittipaldi’s 3m34.071s was the fastest lap of the weekend through four sessions. With his pace so far this week, he looks to be a solid bet to put the “Mighty ’28” on pole.
Most LMP2 entrants didn’t go for a time, but Pietro Fittipaldi wasn’t shy about leaning on JOTA’s No.28 ORECA. Motorsport Images
LMP2 action saw a number of runners and riders finding the limit and stumbling somewhat over it. Ferdinand Habsburg had his dramas early when he spun off and hit the barrier at Indianapolis Corner. Good news, however, is that the No. 31 Team WRT Oreca was able to get back on track in the last 30 minutes.
Super Bronze, Salih Yoluc, did clip too much of the grass on the transition from the Forest Esses to Tertre Rouge in his No. 923 Racing Team Turkey Oreca but came away with only minor damage.
It was also an eventful session for Anglo-Venezuelan driver Manuel Maldonado. He went off at Arnage just over an hour into FP3, then with eight minutes left, the sight of the No. 65 Panis Racing Oreca hitting the gravel at the second Mulsanne Chicane brought out a full course yellow and effectively ended the session.
With the exception of the D’Station Racing Aston Martin (that is now fully built up ahead of FP4), all GTE-Am teams found track time, mostly circulating a couple of seconds shy of qualifying times as race performance came into focus.
The early pace-setter was Iron Lynx’s Matteo Cressoni, the No. 60 Porsche the best of seven 3m54s laps at the top of the GTE-Am timing screen.
With no Porsches featuring in Hyperpole, this was all about race setup, fuel loads and tire performance. Ben Barker was the first into the 3m53s range for GR Racing before Francesco Castellacci pushed back for AF Corse and Ferrari, a 3m53.681s would remain the session’s best. The No. 54 Ferrari will be among the GTE-Am Hyperpole contenders.
Northwest AMR’s Ian James exited the Ford Chicane awkwardly, a rubbing tire slowing the car to a crawl along the pit straight. The No. 98 Aston Martin driver sensibly brought the car to rest at pit out. Intervention to recover and return to its garage saw the car sit out the rest of the session while a broken wishbone was replaced.
The fan-favorite Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Garage 56 entry spent most of the session in its garage taking on the fresh engine that should see it through the race. With 20 minutes of the session to go Jenson Button’s out lap was spoiled by a puncture, a 3m52.752s his restorative best before returning to the garage.
