Ensuring a return on investment may prove extremely tough. There is money to be made on spares, but the fight to get customers to commit will be fierce from all sides if they expect to turn a profit in the short to medium term.
A senior manufacturer representative told RACER, “We believe that to make our money back and begin to go into profit, we need to have six cars running over a five-year period.”
Is a five-year wait for a return on investment viable? Does it make sense for anyone other than ORECA and its bulging book of current customers? That is yet another complex element of this debate.
Speaking of ORECA — the dominant player in the current marketplace — it finds itself in an odd position.
On one hand, a delay to the ruleset would be beneficial as it would enable it to continue selling 07 chassis to its large customer base. On the other, it is actively developing its new LMP2 car, which will be based on the LMDh chassis used by Acura and Alpine in GTP and Hypercar.
ORECA is confident it will continue to offer the best product, is prepared to have a car on track testing during Q2/Q3 2025 should it need to and has already engaged with its current customers about its future position in the LMP2 market. In the background it is also working on an outline production plan, which will likely need to be scaled up from 10 cars per year to meet demand.
The other three manufacturers appear to hold mixed feelings. Ligier is keen to return to the sharp end of LMP2 as soon as possible, alongside its dominant position in the LMP3 sphere and involvement with Lamborghini in LMDh.
In general, it is believed to be pushing hardest for a 2026 debut. Dallara and Multimatic, on the other hand, have been described by teams as “more relaxed,” leaving Ligier as a lone voice pushing hard to move the ruleset along.
However, despite rumors suggesting otherwise, Multimatic and Dallara are known to be fully engaged in the process and just as serious about re-entering the marketplace; the difference is they are less worried about the timeline.
Pierre Nicolet, the CEO of Ligier Automotive, was the only representative from a manufacturer prepared to go on the record for this story.
“We are committed to the ruleset, and to 2026 should it happen,” he told RACER. “The CFD work has started, we have new staff dedicated to delivering it and everything is in place for the start of racetrack development by the end of Q1 2025, ahead of an anticipated homologation for the latter part of the year.
“In this case, we would be open for business, with 10 cars ready to sell in Year 1 to customers racing in ELMS, IMSA, Asia, anywhere the cars are able to race. We are ready.
“The new set of regulations strongly pushes to stop the cost escalation, with a cost cap on specific parts and an overall cost cap. The sporting regulations also prevent bodywork wear to prevent damage-related costs we see in the current regulation.”
So what is the case for going ahead with 2026?
“The perfect time is now,” one source from an LMP2 supplier told RACER, because the marketplace is in such a strong position. If you change the ruleset as planned, they pointed out, the take-up will be strong purely because Hypercar is experiencing a boom” period, with manufacturers in record numbers and dozens of factory seats to fight for. The demand for race seats in LMP2 has never been so high because the top rung on the ladder has never been so attractive.
Delay the LMP2 ruleset and you risk introducing it at a time when the top class is either smaller, features fewer factory cars or is in a transition to new rules. This would make LMP2 a tougher sell. By bringing in next-gen P2 sooner rather than later, you allow time for the marketplace to settle before the top class moves into its next era.
This would also allow teams to race with cars based on LMDh chassis ahead of deciding whether or not to go racing in Hypercar or GTP in the future. Next-gen P2 is non-hybrid (and therefore more privateer friendly), but with the base chassis proposed, you could theoretically upgrade to an LMDh, or utilize any spare chassis that hasn’t been raced for future LMDh programs.
By delaying, you’re also putting off teams that are currently on the outside of LMP2 and looking in. Why buy an ORECA 07 now? It is unclear how much longer you can use it and the level is so high. Coming into a spec formula and trying to match teams that have been racing for almost a decade is beyond intimidating.
So, why delay the inevitable? Well, the most common response to any question asked to team managers about the future of LMP2 is a variation on: “It works so well. Why are they changing it?”
If a delay happens, the pushback from the teams in recent weeks as the future ruleset has become more of a pressing issue will be the key factor in the decision.
There are many reasons why teams are apprehensive to vote for change when things are so strong right now. However, it appears that some of the key fears are based on a lack of clarity rather than firm decisions.
That’s become an overarching theme. With no defined set of rules published and no delivery date to work towards, trying to unpick facts from rumors has been a real challenge.
This leaves us with the final item on the agenda: what a delay looks like and means for the future.
If 2026 is not delivered, then we will almost certainly see the new LMP2 cars debut between 2027 and 2030. Talks are ongoing in the background between the rule makers, suppliers and the current band of LMP2 teams. This, RACER understands, includes a survey that was sent to the ELMS teams after the last race in Barcelona, asking for opinions on the proposed new rules and a delay.
There is also talk of a conference-style meeting being organized by LMEM, which would allow the teams and all four manufacturers an open forum to discuss the new ruleset and answer key questions.
From the rule-maker side, it has become clear to RACER via background conversations that a concerted effort is being made to listen to current LMP2 teams over the key voices within the suppliers, as the overwhelming majority of them have made it clear that a delay is preferable. It is hard to justify ruling against them. The rule-makers are also keen to take into account the current financial situation globally and its impact on the sport at this level moving forward before making the final call.
Once we get into the weeds of 2027 and beyond, that would place the debut of the new LMP2 regulations during a transitional period for the top class, with hydrogen regulations on the agenda, along with a likely extension of the current Hypercar ruleset. Such wholesale change to the prototype marketplace in such a short space of time would surely bring with it an additional set of challenges.
A single-year delay seems most logical. But if opting for even more breathing room is the chosen route, it must be managed carefully.
Are the proposed regulations fully fit for purpose? Is there a case for a total “blank sheet of paper” rethink as has been suggested? What do the teams think? Are the suppliers happy and capable of delivering high-quality products in the time made available?
These are all questions that must be asked and answered to ensure the future ruleset for LMP2 is effective at delivering good racing, with cars that aren’t too expensive to buy and run.