Le Mans has its 186 drivers
Several weeks after announcing the list of teams present, the ACO and the WEC unveiled, on Monday, the composition of all crews, in the three categories of the 24 Hours of Le Mans 2024.
Could we have an even crazier race than the centenary of the 24 Hours of Le Mans? That is all that fans and observers can hope for.
In 2024, the classic race in Le Mans will have an absolutely insane lineup, with fourteen automotive brands involved. Unprecedented in history, indicating an absolutely epic battle ahead.
The World Endurance Championship and the ACO have updated the identity of all the drivers who will be present on June 15th and 16th in Le Mans.
The Hypercar field of the WEC will of course be present: Toyota will want to get their revenge on Ferrari. It doesn’t matter whether it’s with the No. 7 (Kobayashi/Conway/De Vries) or the No. 8 (Buemi/Hartley/Hirakawa).
But the spotlight will be on an invited car, from IMSA: Lamborghini will bring from across the Atlantic the second SC63, which will bear the number 19 on this occasion. And the public in Le Mans will be delighted to see Romain Grosjean, former Renault, Lotus, and Haas F1 driver, shine. The Franco-Swiss driver will be supported by Andrea Caldarelli and Matteo Cairoli.
Cadillac will imitate Porsche and Ferrari, since the American manufacturer will have more than two cars. Car number 3 will rely on the services of Sébastien Bourdais, with Renger Van der Zande and Scott Dixon, while car number 311 in red will try to safely pass the first round (driven by Pipo Derani, Jack Aitken and Felipe Drugovich).
On the other hand, Sebastian Vettel is not listed among the drivers: the German driver was expected to be featured in one of the official Porsches. However, the third Penske, number 4 from the IMSA, will be driven by Matthieu Jaminet, Felipe Nasr, and Nick Tandy.
The return of LMP2, Valentino Rossi in the spotlight in GT3
The “League 2” of prototypes has been the victim of the growing enthusiasm of manufacturers for Hypercar and LMGT3 platforms. But promises are promises: the Oreca 07 will be there, sixteen of them.
The battle in this class should logically involve United Autosport and Inter Europol, with the Polish team having triumphed last year. But at United, the very experienced Ben Keating will be involved, with car number 23. The American won last year with Corvette in the GTE category, and would be wise to repeat the feat, this time in a prototype.
In LMGT3, the Le Mans audience will recall unforgettable memories from MotoGP: Valentino Rossi will compete in the Le Mans classic for the first time in his immense career, after taking part in Road to Le Mans races.
The WRT BMW (No. 46) will obviously be in the spotlight in this class: an achievement by the Doctor, nine-time world champion in motorcycling, would undoubtedly go down in history. He will rely on the assistance of his teammates Ahmad Al Harty and Maxime Martin.
