24 Hours of Le Mans: F1, GP2, Formula E, and IndyCar drivers in action

Formula 1 drivers

Several current and former Formula 1 drivers are participating in the 24 Hours of Le Mans this year. The most publicized is undoubtedly the Force India driver, Nico Hülkenberg, who is taking advantage of a weekend off from the premier discipline of motorsport to try his luck on the Le Mans circuit. The German will attempt to forget a rather dull start to the Formula 1 season at the wheel of an aging race car. He will be driving a Porsche with real chances of final victory.

Alongside him, he will reunite with drivers who have had quite a long experience in Formula 1, such as Sebastian Vettel’s former rival, Mark Webber, who will try his luck for the second consecutive year. There are other veterans of the discipline as well: Alexander Wurz, former Benetton and McLaren driver, but also Nick Heidfeld, who raced notably for Sauber and Jordan, or Giancarlo Fisichella, who remained associated with Ferrari in the LMGTE Pro category where he will compete against Jan Magnussen, father of Kevin and former McLaren and Stewart GP driver.

Among those who made only a brief appearance in the discipline, lasting one or two seasons or a few Grand Prix, there are former Minardi drivers like Pedro Lamy or Gianni Bruno, but also Stéphane Sarrazin (one race with Prost GP), Anthony Davidson (ex-Super Aguri), Sébastien Buemi (ex-Toro Rosso), Kazuki Nakajima (ex-Williams), Tiago Monteiro (ex-Jordan), André Lotterer (ex-Caterham), Luca di Grassi (ex-Virgin Racing), Max Chilton (ex-Marussia), and Karun Chandhok (ex-HRT).

GP2 drivers

This season, four GP2 drivers are participating in this edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Mitch Evans will be participating for the first time in the LMP2 category, where he will compete with the Jota Sport team. The Auckland native competes in GP2 under the Russian Time colors, where he is currently 4th in the standings. Nathanaël Berthon is also competing in LMP2. He will be driving a Murphy Prototypes on the 24-hour circuit and has achieved a podium finish this season at the Sakhir circuit with a modest Lazarus at the beginning of the year.

His teammate, Zoel Amberg, will also make his first appearance at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with Team Sard-Morand. The most recent GP2 winner, Richie Stanaway, will also participate in this legendary race. The New Zealand driver will compete in LMGTE Pro with the Aston Martin Racing team.

Formula E drivers

Several Formula E drivers, including some of the top ones, are competing at Le Mans. Sebastian Buemi first of all, who is in the running for the title in Formula E, will also be vying for victory at the wheel of his Toyota Hybrid, alongside Kazuki Nakajima and Anthony Davidson. On another Toyota, the Frenchman Stéphane Sarrazinwill team up with Alexander Wurz and Mike Conway.

Also in the running to become the first champion in the history of Formula E, Brazilian Lucas di Grassi will drive his Audi alongside Frenchman Loïc Duval, who is also involved in the discipline.

The French contingent is definitely well represented, as e-Dams driver Nicolas Prost will race in LMP1, but with a slightly more modest team, with Rebellion, and in a non-hybrid car. He will team up with Nick Heidfeld. The ninth in the world championship, Daniel Abt, will try to do his best in the other Rebellion.

The former HRT driver, Karun Chandhok, signed with Mahindra Racing in Formula E, will pave the way in LMP2 with the Murphy Prototypes team, alongside Frenchman Nathanael Berthon.

Winner of the second e-Prix in Malaysia with Virgin Racing, but less successful afterwards, Sam Bird will serve in LMP2 with the Russian team G-Drive Racing.

IndyCar drivers

Six participants from the American series, former or current, will be present this weekend at Le Mans. Australian Ryan Briscoe has only participated in two races this year but nevertheless has 8 victories to his name in the discipline. He will compete in the 24 hours in the LMGTE Pro category alongside another former CART participant, Jan Magnussen.

On the French side, Tristan Gommendy will be present in LMP2. He went through IndyCar in 2007 but didn’t really shine there, mainly due to insufficient budget. Mike Conway, on the other hand, will compete for victory at Le Mans in the main category. The 31-year-old Briton, with 4 wins in IndyCar, will team up with Alex Wurz and Stéphane Sarrazin at Toyota Racing.

Among the other participants, we also find the young Russian Mikhail Aleshin, the enduring 47-year-old American, Scott Sharp, and his compatriot Townsend Bell. It should be noted that the only active driver capable of achieving the famous triple crown: Monaco GP F1, Indy 500, and 24 Hours of Le Mans, is the Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya. He is missing the victory at Le Mans, but he has not yet shown interest in Endurance racing…