Cadillac Racing has announced that Sebastien Bourdais will join the team’s full-season FIA World Endurance Championship pairing of Earl Bamber and Alex Lynn in the No. 2 Cadillac Racing V-Series.R for the season opener at Qatar on March 2. Bourdais, …
Cadillac Racing has announced that Sebastien Bourdais will join the team’s full-season FIA World Endurance Championship pairing of Earl Bamber and Alex Lynn in the No. 2 Cadillac Racing V-Series.R for the season opener at Qatar on March 2.
Bourdais, who competes with the Chip Ganassi Racing-run Cadillac Racing team as a full-season driver in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, is set to be the first of multiple guesting drivers for the WEC effort drawn from the Ganassi stable. The opening in the car alongside Bamber and Lynn follows the departure of Richard Westbrook from the lineup at the end of last season.
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While the announcement confirming Bourdais for Qatar gives no further specific details on which races will see a third driver, RACER believes that in most, if not all of the 6-hour events, the car will compete with just Lynn and Bamber.
Renger van der Zande is also confirmed as part of Ganassi’s plans for the WEC this season, although there is no indication of where the team’s other IMSA full-season driver will race. Neither Imola nor Spa will be possible due to clashes with his IMSA role.
Beyond that, the team’s announcement referred to “Bourdais, van der Zande and select CGT teammates” being involved in the WEC.
Ganassi’s pair of IndyCar champions, Alex Palou and Scott Dixon, were both part of the Cadillac driving team at the Rolex 24 last month. Asked at Daytona whether he would be making additional outings for Cadillac this season, Palou responded that he would like to “compete in as many races as possible” but admitted that any further races would be subject to his priority commitments with his IndyCar race and test schedule.
“When a team is fortunate enough to have such a strong stable of drivers to pull from, it just makes sense to utilize the talent when you have the opportunity,” said CGR director of operations Mike O’Gara. “Chip Ganassi Racing proved that in Daytona when we put Alex Palou in the No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R. Putting Sebastien Bourdais in the No. 2 for the Qatar events is going to give him a chance to refamiliarize himself with the WEC rules and regulations.
“It is also going to allow us to strengthen the bond between the U.S.-based IMSA team and the Germany-based WEC team. We know it is going to strengthen both programs and better prepare us for our 2024 attack on the 24 Hours of Le Mans.”
Jenson Button is set to join Hertz Team JOTA for the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship season in the team’s No. 38 Porsche 963 LMDh prototype in the Hypercar class. This move will see Button going full-time to the FIA WEC with the British team, …
Jenson Button is set to join Hertz Team JOTA for the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship season in the team’s No. 38 Porsche 963 LMDh prototype in the Hypercar class.
This move will see Button going full-time to the FIA WEC with the British team, after the 2009 Formula 1 world champion’s one-off appearance at the Le Mans 24 Hours this year as part of the NASCAR Garage 56 effort. It also adds to his recent Porsche LMDh drive with JDC-Miller at Petit Le Mans back in October.
Next season, Button will share the privately run No. 38 Porsche with Phil Hanson and Oliver Rasmussen. He is the final JOTA driver to be revealed ahead of the season opener in March at Qatar after the team confirmed that Hanson, Rasmussen, Norman Nato, Callum Ilott and Will Stevens will all form part of its expanded two-car Hypercar effort.
As part of the drive, Button will head to Le Mans for his third start. Prior to running at La Sarthe in the Hendrick Motorsports-prepped Camaro ZL1 back in June, Button competed with SMP Racing in LMP1 back in 2018.
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Button has been increasingly focused on sports cars since his Le Mans run with the NASCAR Garage 56 team. Motorsport Images
“I’m thrilled to be racing with Hertz Team JOTA in the 2024 World Endurance Championship alongside my teammates Oliver Rasmussen and Phil Hanson,” said Button. “Both already have a lot of experience in endurance racing and that is key. Endurance racing is about teamwork and there is no better team than Hertz Team JOTA to be taking on the big manufacturers in Hypercars. I’m already looking forward to the first race in Qatar but also know there’s a lot of work to be done so that we arrive prepared.”
Before the WEC season gets underway, Button will also compete at the Rolex 24 At Daytona in January as a one-off appearance. In what will be his Rolex 24 debut, he will drive in WTR Andretti’s No. 40 Acura ARX-06 alongside Jordan Taylor, Louis Delétraz and Colton Herta.
“It’s an honor to have Jenson Button — a hugely successful driver across many racing disciplines — competing full-time in the WEC next year,” said Frédéric Lequien, FIA WEC CEO. “With nine manufacturers in the Hypercar category next year, including star names such as Jenson confirmed on the grid, everything is now in place for the WEC to have its most spectacular season yet.”
The entry list for the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship season has been revealed. It features 37 cars from 14 manufacturers across the two classes, with a record 19 cars in Hypercar and 18 cars confirmed for the first season of LMGT3. In the …
The entry list for the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship season has been revealed. It features 37 cars from 14 manufacturers across the two classes, with a record 19 cars in Hypercar and 18 cars confirmed for the first season of LMGT3.
In the top class, of the teams previously in the championship, Ferrari AF Corse, Peugeot TotalEnergies, Porsche Penske Motorsport and Toyota Gazoo Racing all return with two-car efforts. They are joined by a single Cadillac Racing V-Series.R, a single Proton Competition Porsche 963 and a privately-entered AF Corse Ferrari 499P.
Initially, there were suggestions that the third 499P would be entered via a collaboration with Richard Mille, following his GTE Am effort with AF Corse this season. However, it appears that Richard Mille backing for the car is now off the table.
Instead, the car is set to race with No. 83, with Robert Kubica, who signed with AF Corse last week, the only driver listed. RACER believes Yifei Ye will join the Polish ace, while multiple sources suggest that the full-season trio will be completed by Robert Shwartzman.
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In addition, Hertz Team JOTA adds to the privateer pack, bringing a pair of 963s to the championship, scaling up from its single-car effort in 2023 which got underway at Spa-Francorchamps back in May.
The second Porsche will sport No. 12 as a nod to NFL legend Tom Brady’s shirt number – Brady is a key backer of Hertz Team JOTA’s Hypercar program – and has Will Stevens listed against it. The No. 38 sister car meanwhile has Oliver Rasmussen as the only named driver, the Dane carrying over from JOTA’s 2023 LMP2 program.
Adding to that, Iron Lynx brings a single Lamborghini SC63 to the championship, Alpine Racing has entered a pair of A424s, BMW Team WRT will run two M Hybrid V8s and Isotta Fraschini will be represented by a single Tipo 6 LMH Competizione.
The Lamborghini will race with No. 63, associated with the year that the Italian brand was founded (1963). Mirko Bortolotti is the only driver listed, but Iron Lynx confirmed that Daniil Kvyat will join him next season shortly after the list was published.
WRT’s BMWs feature Dries Vanthoor and Sheldon van der Linde in their line-ups. That means that both Vanthoor and van der Linde brothers will race next year, as Laurens Vanthoor is confirmed in the No. 6 Penske Porsche and Kelvin van der Linde is listed at AKKODIS ASP in LMGT3.
The only other notable driver confirmations come at Isotta Fraschini, with 2023 ELMS LMP3 champion Alejandro Garcia and Isotta test regular Jean-Karl Vernay listed.
Notably, news broke ahead of the entry list revealed that Isotta’s Tipo 6 will not be run by Vector Sport next year, following a breakdown in the relationship between the two parties. French LMP2 outfit and LMP3 chassis supplier Duqueine is expected to run the car for its maiden campaign instead.
As a result, Vector will not have a presence in the FIA WEC next season and instead shift its focus to a planned ELMS LMP2 campaign.
Also absent from the list is the Vanwall Racing Vandervell 680, which underperformed throughout 2023 and has been denied an entry due to the 37-car cap and the late addition of a third Ferrari 499P.
The Vanwall Racing Vandervell 680 will not be on the 2024 WEC grid. Motorsport Images
LMGT3, meanwhile, features 18 cars spread across nine two-car teams from as many manufacturers.
Of the manufacturers with Hypercar programs, BMW (Team WRT), Corvette (via Cadillac with TF Sport), Ferrari (Vista AF Corse), Lamborghini (Iron Lynx and Dames), Porsche (Manthey Racing and Manthey PureRxcing) and Lexus (via Toyota with AKKODIS ASP Team) all bring cars to the category.
The remaining OEMs represented are Aston Martin, which brings a car apiece for Heart of Racing and D’Station Racing, Ford with Proton Competition and McLaren with United Autosports. A number of drivers have been confirmed too.
At Aston Martin, Ian James is listed with Heart of Racing and Marco Sorensen is down to race with D’Station Racing in the No. 777.
The WRT BMW line-ups are incomplete, though Augusto Farfus will race in the No. 31 M4 GT3 and Moto GP legend Valentino Rossi is now fully confirmed as part of the program, the Italian down to race in the No. 46.
Both Ferraris, which will run under the Vista AF Corse banner, have complete lineups. Thomas Flohr, Francesco Castellacci and Davide Rigon return as a trio in the No. 54. Simon Mann, Francois Heriau and Alessio Rovera will compete in the No. 55.
There is an interesting name at Proton Competition, as GR Racing FIA WEC regular Ben Barker is down to drive the No. 77 Mustang GT3, while Ryan Hardwick, who won the 2023 ELMS GTE title, will race in the sister car.
United’s confirmed drivers are also down to race, with Grégoire Saucy in the No. 59 and Marino Sato in the No. 95. Both are significant numbers for McLaren’s return to Le Mans in 2024. The winning McLaren F1 GT-R ran with No. 59 when it won the race overall, in 1995.
“We are delighted to have been confirmed for the 2024 WEC season and I would like to thank the Automobile Club de l’Ouest for our inclusion within a hugely competitive LMGT3 class,” said Michael Leiters, CEO, McLaren Automotive. “Motorsport is fundamental to our brand and we build our cars using technology from the race track to give them the supreme performance that our customers expect from a McLaren.
“It will be a very exciting season and extremely close between the teams,” Leiters, continued, “which is why we have nominated United Autosports as our racing partner. This team has an excellent reputation in the endurance racing arena, and I look forward to our return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans, in which we will see 720S GT3 EVO cars in action.”
There is one complete line-up at Porsche, with Manthey PureRxcing’s 911 GT3 R set to race with Aliaksandr Malykhin, Joel Sturm and Klaus Bachler. Only Richard Lietz is listed in the No. 91 sister machine.
Interestingly, PureRxcing has already qualified for Le Mans via an automatic invitation earned from its Bronze title in World Challenge. It is also competing in the Asian Le Mans Series over the winter and could claim another auto invitation by winning the GT class.
Lexus and Toyota both have previously confirmed drivers named, with Jose Maria Lopez and newly confirmed AKKODIS ASP racer Kelvin van der Linde placed against an RC F GT3 and Charlie Eastwood and Daniel Juncadella set to race in TF Sport Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs.
There are no surprises at Lamborghini either, with Claudio Schiavoni listed to race in the Iron Lynx Huracan and Michelle Gatting set to return to the WEC with Iron Dames.
With just 18 spots up for grabs, two manufacturers believed to have filed entries have missed out.
Mercedes is understood to have attempted to get in with GetSpeed, and Audi Sport hoped its planned two-car R8 LMS GT3 EVO II effort with Team Sainteloc would get over the line. Neither made the cut.
Sainteloc had been expected to take Audi back to Le Mans. Audi MediaCenter
For Sainteloc and Audi, this decision is believed to have come as a shock. RACER understands that neither party had been informed that it wouldn’t be on the grid until after it completed a three-day endurance test with Goodyear and other prospective manufacturers at Monteblanco just last week.
Frédéric Lequien, the CEO of the FIA World Endurance Championship, says the 2024 entry is a clear statement that sports car racing is currently experiencing a “golden era.”
“The sheer number of entries across both Hypercar and LMGT3 underlines the continued growth of FIA WEC and I’d like to take this moment to thank all our manufacturers and teams for putting their trust in us,” he said.
“To have an entry list featuring 19 Hypercars plus 18 LMGT3 entries representing 14 different manufacturers truly reflects the golden era of endurance racing that we are experiencing right now. The battles on track next season are going to be extraordinary and what’s even more exciting is that we are expanding our calendar to eight races so that even more fans can enjoy the action.”
French manufacturer Alpine has confirmed the six drivers that will compete in its pair of A424 LMDh prototypes in the FIA WEC’s Hypercar class next year. Alongside former Haas F1 driver Mick Schumacher ( click here for separate story), Alpine has …
French manufacturer Alpine has confirmed the six drivers that will compete in its pair of A424 LMDh prototypes in the FIA WEC’s Hypercar class next year.
Alongside former Haas F1 driver Mick Schumacher (click here for separate story), Alpine has employed a quartet of French drivers for the program, with Matthieu Vaxiviere, Nicolas Lapierre, Charles Milesi and Paul Loup Chatin. The final name is Ferdinand Habsburg, the Austrian moving to the team after spending the 2023 WEC season competing against it in LMP2 with WRT.
Like Schumacher, Habsburg is a new face at Alpine and says is thrilled to take on the challenge of racing in the WEC’s top class.
“It’s a step up from anything I’ve experienced in my motor racing career,” he said. “From the day I signed with Alpine, I realized that my childhood dream had come true.
“I immediately felt part of the team at Motorland, although the pressure was palpable for me. Beginning with an endurance format during testing can be difficult to get used to a new environment, but I immediately felt confident. I can’t wait to see what the 2024 season has in store for us, and I’ll give it my all so as not to betray their confidence.”
Chatin, meanwhile, returns to Alpine having won the 2014 ELMS LMP2 title with the Signatech Alpine and claiming a third-place finish in class at Le Mans during that season. Since then he’s become an ELMS LMP2 stalwart with French outfit IDEC Sport, the high point being a title win in 2019. He also won the 2024 IMSA LMP2 championship with PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports.
“I am so pleased to rejoin Alpine in Hypercar for the 2024 season,” he said. “I started my endurance career with Signatech Alpine in 2014, and it’s a team I’ve always followed.
“As a Frenchman, representing a French manufacturer at the highest level of world motorsport is a privilege, especially at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the biggest motor race in the world. It’s why I get up every morning. I sincerely thank the Alpine team for giving me this opportunity, and I can’t wait for the season to begin.”
The inclusion of Lapierre, Milesi and Vaxiviere feels natural, the trio joining as full-time drivers after playing key roles in the car’s testing to this point.
For Lapierre, his longstanding relationship with the French brand continues with this announcement. His record with Alpine includes three memorable Le Mans 24 Hours LMP2 class wins and two WEC titles.
“It’s an ambitious project, and I was quite proud when offered the chance to develop the car,” Lapierre said. “I’m particularly fond of the team. We have enjoyed success, and to return to the Hypercar program is a superb opportunity. We’re facing a new era in endurance racing, with a field more competitive than ever. And to continue to contribute to Alpine’s history and go head-to-head with some of the biggest names in motor racing is exciting.
“We will represent ‘Les Bleus’ and can’t wait to see the fans at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the other races in the championship.”
Alpine has not yet announced how it will divide the six drivers across its two cars. It will reveal that and the livery for the A424 in its debut season at a launch event for the program on February 7.
Introduction of a category for hydrogen-powered race cars at the Le Mans 24 Hours is being delayed a year to 2027, says Pierre Fillon, president of the Automobile Club de l’Ouest. Fillon cited hurdles created by safety concerns as the reason for the …
Introduction of a category for hydrogen-powered race cars at the Le Mans 24 Hours is being delayed a year to 2027, says Pierre Fillon, president of the Automobile Club de l’Ouest. Fillon cited hurdles created by safety concerns as the reason for the postponement.
“2026 is not realistic, it’s (now) 2027” Fillon said of the mooted Hydrogen category, which is set to be introduced ahead of a targeted hydrogen-only top class at Le Mans for 2030. “Because we have to spend some time working on the safety, it has taken longer than we expected. 2027 is more realistic.”
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Fillon emphasized that the ACO-led MissionH24 electric-hydrogen prototype, which is expected to begin track testing in early 2025, should be considered separately from the Le Mans hydrogen program.
“H24 is not for Le Mans. H24 is for the Michelin Le Mans Cup, ELMS maybe, but the target performance for H24 is GT3, not more,” Fillon said. “We are not a manufacturer. The car is just a laboratory to learn what we have to do in terms of safety and refueling. We have learned a lot with this car.”
With Le Mans 2027 less than four years away, however, it remains unclear how much interest there is for the new Hydrogen category. Back in June, Toyota expressed a clear intention to race a hydrogen-combustion prototype when it took the wraps off the GR H2 Racing Concept (pictured above) at Le Mans.
This followed an announcement in May from the ACO which confirmed that vehicles with a hydrogen combustion engine will be eligible, in addition to the hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles that were already confirmed to enter.
The GR H2 Racing Concept is powered by a hydrogen combustion engine, rather than a hydrogen fuel cell, designed with the intention of competing in the new hydrogen category.
Hyundai is also known to be looking at sporting options to run parallel with its hydrogen roadmap for consumer vehicles. Beyond that, though, with the current hybrid-powered LMH and LMDh rulesets booming, it remains to be seen if there is enough interest and incentive for manufacturers to sign up to a hydrogen-powered future at Le Mans to match the proposed timeline.
The full-season entry list for the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship season is set to be capped at 37 cars. This was confirmed by ACO president Pierre Fillon, WEC CEO Frédéric Lequien and FIA Endurance Commission president Richard Mille at an …
The full-season entry list for the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship season is set to be capped at 37 cars.
This was confirmed by ACO president Pierre Fillon, WEC CEO Frédéric Lequien and FIA Endurance Commission president Richard Mille at an end-of-season media roundtable in Bahrain last weekend. This cap has been put in place, Lequien said, due to garage space limitations at Imola and Circuit of The Americas.
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“37 is the right number. Fuji is not so bad, it’s Imola and Austin (that are the issue). So (37 cars) that’s the plan,” he said
When asked about the potential for the full-season grid to reach 40 cars “not for 2024,” was Lequien’s response. “It’s too complicated because of the refueling in the garage. If we have two cars in the same garage you need two refueling systems, and it’s unfair.
“We have to find a solution. The goal is to increase the grid (in future seasons).”
In addition to clarifying how many cars will be on the grid next year, Richard Mille also shed more light on the selection process for the LMGT3 class, confirming that teams will be turned away due to there being such a high level of interest for the category’s debut season.
“We will have to take these decisions, which is not easy,” he said.
The topic of automatic invitations for the Le Mans 24 Hours was also raised and an important clarification was made during this discussion. Any teams not in the FIA WEC that wish to compete in the ELMS LMGT3 class or at Le Mans via a guest entry, must run with a car that is being campaigned in the WEC’s LMGT3 class. Richard Mille explained, in simple terms, that this is the case “because of BoP.”
That decision means that any teams which earn an automatic invitation to the Le Mans 24 Hours via successes in the Asian Le Mans Series, Le Mans Cup or IMSA, would need to switch cars at La Sarthe if the OEM wasn’t represented in the FIA WEC that season.
Mille also confirmed that there will be two cars for each manufacturer in the WEC’s LMGT3 class, meaning the 37th space on the grid will almost certainly go to a Hypercar team. The split is therefore expected to be 19 in the top class and 18 in LMGT3.
RACER approached Fillon after the briefing and asked if Ferrari’s planned third 499P Hypercar would need to be a customer-run car by regulation if it was entered for the full season. The answer was “yes”. The car cannot be a full-factory entry, as the maximum number of factory cars per manufacturer will remain at two.
This was a frequent topic of conversation in the Bahrain paddock, as during the week Antonello Coletta, Ferrari’s global head of endurance and corse clienti, shed more light on Ferrari’s new stance on supporting a third 499P Hypercar for the FIA WEC. In addition to confirming that Ferrari will not support a 499P for an IMSA GTP program, he also made it clear that the brand isn’t interested entering a third car exclusively for the Le Mans 24 Hours.
“If we consider a third car it will be for a whole season, not just for Le Mans,” he said. “It’s not interesting for us to manage a third car for one race. It will probably be a customer (rather than a factory car).”
Antonello Coletta, Ferrari’s global head of endurance and Corse Clienti, has reiterated that Ferrari is open to supporting a third 499P Hypercar for the FIA World Endurance Championship, although it might not happen next season. “We consider that …
Antonello Coletta, Ferrari’s global head of endurance and Corse Clienti, has reiterated that Ferrari is open to supporting a third 499P Hypercar for the FIA World Endurance Championship, although it might not happen next season.
“We consider that our knowledge is OK to manage another car. I don’t know if we will have a third car or not, but we are ready for a third car,” he said. “If we have the right conditions for next year, it should be an option — it could be 2024 or 2025.”
In addition to reiterating that the manufacturer will not support a 499P for an IMSA GTP program, Coletta stated that Ferrari isn’t interested in adding a third car exclusively for the Le Mans 24 Hours.
“If we consider a third car it will be for a whole season, not just for Le Mans,” he explained. “It’s not interesting for us to manage a third car for one race. It will probably be a customer (rather than a factory car).”
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Coletta said the possible new entry could be run by its Hypercar partner team AF Corse but that this was not a certainty
“It depends on the circumstance,” Coletta said. “If AF Corse has a budget then it should be an idea to manage it with AF Corse. In any case, we need to manage all the engines and electronics. This is normal, like in F1 for customers.”
Another option could be an effort being backed by Richard Mille, like the current No. 83 GTE Am 488 EVO effort. “At the moment it should be an option, but it is not confirmed,” Coletta said of that prospect. He also noted that Lilou Wadoux (who currently drives the Richard Mille GTE Ferrari) sampling a 499P in Sunday’s WEC rookie test has nothing to do with driver selections for a third car.
“If Lilou Wadoux or Robert Schwartzman are in the rookie test in the Hypercar it’s because they are official drivers of Ferrari. It is normal to organize the rookie test with our drivers. It’s completely separate,” he pointed out.
Coletta said Ferrari still hasn’t decided whether or not it will carry out significant upgrades to the car for next season.
“We have not decided if we will spend the budget for the improvements on our car, or if we improve little parts without changing the homologation on the car,” he explained. “If we decide to change some consistent parts of the car, we will decide probably before January, but at the moment this is not in our plan.
“At the moment the car, we consider that it will be exactly the same for next year. For us our car is ‘OK’. We had a chance to demonstrate in the first part of the season that the car is probably not the best car, but it is not a bad car.”
The FIA World Endurance Championship will utilize a new two-part qualifying system from 2024, following approval at the third FIA World Motor Sport Council meeting of 2023 in Geneva. The new “enhanced” system, which will be used for both the …
The FIA World Endurance Championship will utilize a new two-part qualifying system from 2024, following approval at the third FIA World Motor Sport Council meeting of 2023 in Geneva.
The new “enhanced” system, which will be used for both the Hypercar class and the new LMGT3 category, will be split into two parts. Each class will take to the track for a 12-minute session followed by a 10-minute-long Hyperpole session for the 10 fastest cars.
Like the current system, which features 15-minute sessions for Hypercar, LMP2 and GTE Am, each class will qualify separately. To this point, “Hyperpole” has only featured at the Le Mans 24 Hours.
At the meeting — which was chaired by FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem with FIA Deputy President for Sport Robert Reid and WMSC members joining in person at the FIA’s offices in Geneva and via video conference — the technical regulations for the new-for-2024 LMGT3 class were also approved.
The new GT class will be based on the FIA’s existing GT3 technical platform and replace the outgoing GTE AM class. The cars will feature several WEC-specific adaptations such as luminescent number panels, leader lights and torque meter sensors.
While missing out on victory at the centenary edition of the Le Mans 24 Hours back in June came as an enormous disappointment for everyone involved in Toyota Gazoo Racing’s Hypercar program, securing the FIA World Endurance Hypercar manufacturers’ …
While missing out on victory at the centenary edition of the Le Mans 24 Hours back in June came as an enormous disappointment for everyone involved in Toyota Gazoo Racing’s Hypercar program, securing the FIA World Endurance Hypercar manufacturers’ title on home soil last weekend at Fuji Speedway ensured that its 2023 campaign was still a successful one.
The pressure has been on Toyota Gazoo Racing to perform all season long, up against renewed competition in the Hypercar category. By winning races and a manufacturers title, its unmatched performances since Porsche walked away from LMP1 in 2017 look far more impressive. If it had struggled to do so against this new crop of competition, questions would need to be asked about the level of time and resources pumped into its WEC program.
It’s been clear since the cars hit the track at Sebring that Toyota has never been more desperate for success. It will come as somewhat of a relief then, that Ferrari’s historic performance at Le Mans proved to be a blip in an otherwise stellar season for the Japanese brand.
The No. 7-led 1-2 finish last weekend extended its win streak on home turf to six races and added to its impressive record this season, which includes wins at Sebring, Portimao, Spa, Portimao and now Fuji. Toyota has been the class of the field in 2023, with a mature GR010 HYBRID platform and a set of drivers that more often than not have been both relentless and ruthless in their execution.
The Fuji triumph didn’t come easy, though, making the taste of the victory champagne all the more sweet. At each of the previous rounds this season, the Ferrari AF Corse effort has been Toyota’s greatest threat; it was therefore hugely encouraging from a neutral perspective that on a weekend where the 499Ps struggled for outright pace on race day, another manufacturer was able to step up.
Although Ferrari couldn’t offer a challenge to Toyota at Fuji, Porsche piled the pressure on right from the start. Motorsport Images
Enter Porsche, which led almost four of the six hours, thanks to a herculean effort from Laurens Vanthoor and later Kevin Estre in the No. 6 963. The sudden uptick in form and performance from the Penske-run operation came as a pleasant surprise, after a frankly underwhelming trundle through the first five races. Vanthoor muscled past Conway into Turn 1 at the start and didn’t look back.
“They were good, and we were stuck behind the Ferraris for too many laps,” admitted No. 7 Toyota driver Conway, when asked to assess Porsche’s pace. “But once I got clear our pace was similar and by the end of my stint, I was able to get closer. They didn’t give an inch, though, so it was good fun.
“We felt like they were pretty good after following them (Porsche’s 963s) in practice,” Conway continued when asked if Toyota expected Porsche to be in the mix pre-race. “The 963 looked particularly strong in the final sector and last corner.”
When the two Toyotas finally caught the No. 6 during Estre’s middle stint, it was fascinating to watch the Frenchman put in a methodical, confident performance through traffic to hold Jose Maria Lopez and eventually Ryo Hirakawa at bay.
“You could see the effect that sitting behind someone has, it really forces you to eat your tires,” Conway pointed out.
“I was happy with the pace,” Lopez added when asked about his efforts to take the lead. “But I got stuck for almost a full stint behind Kevin and damaged my front tires.
“He made no mistakes and in the places where I could pass, he was spot on. He gave me no chance to take the lead. So when Ryo came up behind me, he was on fresher tires so it was only fair he was allowed to have a go.”
Nevertheless, Kobayashi in the No. 7 and Brendon Hartley in the No. 8 managed to finish the job, coming home a lap ahead of everyone in the Hypercar field bar the No. 6 Porsche.
Andre Lotterer ended up crossing the line 47 seconds off the No. 7, unable to keep up once the floodgates opened just before he climbed in when Ryo Hirakawa found a way past Lopez and finally Estre at Turn 10 to give Toyota the lead. From there, team orders coming into play in the late stages, allowing the No. 7 crew to move back into the lead for the first time since the opening seconds of the race, would be the only twist in the final two hours.
It wasn’t the lights-to-flag victory many expected when it became clear that Ferrari wouldn’t be in the mix for the win if the race was held in dry conditions, with lots of green-flag running. It was, however, another showcase of Toyota’s ability to overcome adversity and find a way to win on an afternoon when things weren’t necessarily going to plan.
All the Toyota team pulled as one to bring home the manufacturers’ crown in style, but will they be as accommodating when battling each other for the drivers’ title? Motorsport Images
The million-dollar question is whether or not Toyota always had a little bit extra in reserve. Was anyone in its garage actually concerned by Vanthoor’s ability to create a healthy lead in the race’s opening stint, after pushing past Conway at the start?
When the manufacturers’ trophy reaches the colossal cabinet in the foyer of Toyota Gazoo Racing’s European headquarters in Cologne, it will take pride of place. On a season in which Toyota was pushed to its limits for the first time in years and challenged with setting the bar each weekend, it has passed almost every test.
“It means so much to us. There are so many people involved and it’s been a hard year,” Lopez told RACER. “Being here for so long meant people expected so much from us, even with BoP. The game has changed here but it’s important that we fight.”
The next task for Toyota is ensuring one of its two crews takes the drivers’ championship in November when the WEC heads to Bahrain. Currently, the No. 8 crew hold the advantage over the trio in the No. 7.
With a 31-point deficit to overcome, Ferrari’s Le Mans winners in the No. 51 are still technically in the hunt. But James Calado, Alessandro Pier Guidi and Antonio Giovanazzi will be under no illusions that things must go horribly wrong for Toyota for them to claim the title.
It will be interesting to see whether Toyota manages the race and attempts to reduce all risks when the sun sets on race day. Lopez, for one, expects it will let the battle play out.
“We are always thinking of the team — the most important thing in Japan was to secure the manufacturers’ title,” Lopez said. “But in Bahrain, it will be a straight fight. It always has been this year. The fastest car will be ahead. We have proven over the years that we don’t have incidents when we are fighting each other.”
The final pieces of the Hypercar and LMGT3 jigsaw for the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship season are coming together rapidly, with the manufacturers and teams in play moving to make their submissions ahead of next season. But there are still …
The final pieces of the Hypercar and LMGT3 jigsaw for the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship season are coming together rapidly, with the manufacturers and teams in play moving to make their submissions ahead of next season.
But there are still many question marks as the race for grid spots reaches its final stages, particularly in the LMGT3 category, In addition to the total number of full-season grid spots being available being a key factor, the number of Hypercars entered for the full campaign is also going crucial in determining how many GT3 manufacturers will get the nod.
As it stands, the current two-car efforts from Toyota, Peugeot, Porsche and Ferrari are set to return in 2024, along with two Alpine A424s, two WRT-run factory BMW M Hybrid V8s, a Chip Ganassi Racing Cadillac, a Vector Sport-run Isotta Fraschini Tipo 6 LMH Competizione, an Iron Lynx Lamborghini SC63 and a customer Porsche 963 apiece for JOTA and Proton.
That brings the total to 17 without either Vanwall or Glickenhaus returning or any of the additional cars being worked on in the background.
A second Ganassi-run Cadillac for the WEC has been under active consideration for a while now and there also are proposals from two separate teams for a second Isotta Fraschini Tipo 6 LMH Competizione. RACER understands that the two are LMP2 team Duqueine and Swiss GT squad Emil Frey Racing (which was in the initial mix for the Isotta WEC contract). However, it is thought unlikely a second Isotta will be granted an entry for 2024.
Porsche’s customer teams are looking to double up, too. Hertz Team JOTA’s second car is thought to be all but ready to go for 2024 and Proton is close to confirming that two of its four 963s will compete full-time next year. The big question mark for Proton is its IMSA program. Originally it planned to compete in both championships full-time, but the calendar clashes have created significant hurdles for the German team to overcome.
Depending on how many of these efforts come together, Hypercar could be anything from 17 to 23 cars strong. If it reaches or exceeds 20, then there will be nerves aplenty for the GT3 manufacturers without top-class efforts looking to nominate cars.
What do we know at this stage about the look of LMGT3?
Ferrari (AF Corse), Lamborghini (Iron Lynx), BMW (Team WRT), Porsche (Manthey) and Corvette (TF Sport) are essentially locked in for two-car efforts through the brands and/or ownership groups having factory Hypercar programs.
Also looking a certainty is a Lexus RC F GT3 entry from SRO regular and current Mercedes GT3 customer ASP, as the upcoming Lexus-badged, unnamed GT3 contender continues its development program for a future debut. While Lexus has no presence in Hypercar, ASP’s path to the grid is possible via Toyota’s successful and continuing Hypercar program with the GR010 HYBRID.
Ford’s new Mustang GT3 looks almost certain to feature in LMGT3 as well, despite no recent movement from the Blue Oval to go racing in the top class. The chances of this effort being accepted come down to its nominated customer Proton Competition. Proton is one of the most loyal customer teams in the WEC, an ever-present in the GT ranks and has moved into Hypercar with Porsche this season. The selection committee is believed to be willing to give priority to loyal teams as well as manufacturers, making Ford’s move to sign Proton look increasingly intelligent and tactical.
These are already numbers that are approaching the glass ceiling set for full-season entries set by Le Mans Endurance Management, which had planned to cap the entry at around 36 cars. However, discussions are underway aimed at accommodating as many Hypercar and LMGT3 manufacturers as possible.
There are a variety of factors in play, including garage capacity at some circuits and the willingness of LMGT3 teams to share garage facilities and air freighting space. Sources have indicated that just one leg of the WEC’s global tour next year will require air freight: the trip to Fuji after the race at Circuit of The Americas.)
Will an Evo version of Aston Martin’s Vantage put AMR back in the game? JEP/Motorsport Images
So who else is in play for an LMGT3 entry, and how good are their chances?
Aston Martin has been a firm supporter of the WEC since its inception and Aston Martin Racing is known to be keen to get the nod with a revised Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3. The car is set to benefit from an Evo kit next year, which is already being track tested. The ongoing work on the revival of Aston Martin’s shelved Hypercar program with the Valkyrie will also help its case for inclusion.
Also regarded as a distinct likelihood is McLaren with its 2023 evo-spec 720S GT3. The battle for the factory nomination has been raging in the background for some months, with four teams putting in full proposals, although it is believed United Autosports is now set to get the nod.
The case for the UK-based supercar factory is still boosted by the prospect of a future Hypercar effort, although this has been delayed as the core McLaren Automotive concern restructured its finances and supply chain.
If McLaren is successful in getting an entry, there’s a tight critical path for United Autosports to gather the staff and equipment ahead of the start of the season, alongside its continuing programs in LMP2 and LMP3 in both the USA and Europe.
Beyond that, Honda and Merccedes-AMG are understood to have interest from a mix of current and new customer teams. Both are believed to have plans to propose solo cars from two different customer teams. Finally, Audi is believed to have significant interest from multiple current customers in fielding the R8 LMS GT3 Evo2.
Will the grid have space for all of the above? No, but it is clear that LMEM is pushing hard to ensure as many brands as possible can take part in the 2024 season.
