The legendary endurance race, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, is celebrating its 100th anniversary and setting a new record with 62 cars entered, including 24 LMP2 cars, 21 GT cars, and one experimental NASCAR. The starting grid has been announced for June 10 at 16 p.m.
One of the biggest motorsport events in history, the 24 Hours of Le Mans is about to celebrate its 100th anniversary.rd anniversary in June, during the fourth round of the FIA World Endurance Championship. The list of participants in the centenary edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans is incredible, and we can expect a series of spectacular clashes.
Once again, 62 cars will compete on track. The field consists of 16 Hypercars, 24 LMP2s, 21 LMGTE Am cars, and one Innovative Car. Ten teams are on the reserve list. This will be an exceptional year for the top category, with the largest number of cars aiming for overall victory since the 2011 race, which saw 17 LMP1 cars based on six different chassis take the start.
Seven manufacturers are represented: Ferrari, Porsche, Peugeot, Cadillac, Vanwall, Glickenhaus, and Toyota. Ferrari, Porsche, Cadillac, and Vanwall are all making their Le Mans debuts with their new-generation cars. While the list of 186 drivers is not yet complete, it's certain that there will be 12 former outright winners among them, plus five women.
Category Hypercar
These seven manufacturers will have their eye on the prize in the premier class: Ferrari, Porsche, Peugeot, Cadillac, Vanwall, Glickenhaus, and Toyota. Confirmed drivers in the top class include former F1 drivers Sébastien Bourdais, Kamui Kobayashi, Brendon Hartley, Sébastien Buemi, Will Stevens, Paul Di Resta, and Jack Aitken, as well as 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve.
Of course, five-time defending champion Toyota returns with two GR010 Hypercars and will be aiming for a sixth consecutive victory. The Japanese brand will have its work cut out for it against iconic and highly experienced rivals: Porsche is aiming for its 20th overall victory, while Ferrari returns to Le Mans after a 50-year absence, seeking its tenth victory.
Porsche leads the top class with three factory cars and a privateer JOTA entry, aiming for its 20th overall victory. Of the three new Porsche 963s, two are factory cars, while the third is a Penske entry. All three made their debuts at the 24 Hours of Daytona last month.
As for Ferrari, it returns to the top of the hierarchy at Le Mans after a 50-year absence. The Italian luxury manufacturer can draw on nearly 75 years of expertise in the discipline and will be keen to add a tenth Le Mans victory to its list of achievements. The Ferrari 499P will also make its debut. The two works Ferrari cars will mark the first time in 50 years that the Ferrari team has had a car in the top class at Le Mans.
After a promising debut on the other side of the Atlantic, Cadillac will field three of its V-Series R cars, one World Endurance Championship car, and two IMSA cars. The manufacturer will also showcase its new hypercar, with two factory entries for the Cadillac V-LMDh and a car entered by Whelen.
After missing out on its debut at the 2022 event but logging valuable mileage in the second half of the FIA World Endurance Championship, Peugeot will bring two of its 9X8 Hypercars to the 2023 race. Peugeot, which made its Hypercar debut at Monza last year, then Fuji and Bahrain, will be looking to add a fourth victory to its roll of honour, 15 years after the brand's last success.
Runner-up Glickenhaus will also return with two of his SCG007 cars. Glickenhaus reached the Le Mans podium for the first time in 2022 and will benefit from the experience gained over the past two years.
The final Hypercar entry is the Floyd Vanwall Racing team's Vanwall Vandervell 680, driven by Jacques Villeneuve. Vanwall is a newcomer to this level at Le Mans and will no doubt be hoping to cause a surprise with the all-new Vanwall Vandervell 680 – although the car's name depends on an ongoing legal case regarding the former ByKolles team's use of Vanwall.
Category LMP2
In addition to the massive LMH field, 24 cars will be competing for victory in the LMP2 class, a category that is usually more competitive than any other. The 24 cars will be split into LMP2 and LMP2 Pro/Am, eight of which will be driven by a mix of professional and amateur drivers. All P2 cars are Oreca O7s, with drivers including Pietro Fittipaldi, Oliver Jarvis, Filipe Albuquerque, Bent Viscaal, and Daniil Kvyatt.
Of the 24 teams on the LMP2 grid, eleven are on the WEC entry list for the full season, with five more receiving automatic entries thanks to their successes in the European and Asian Le Mans Series and IMSA's Weathertech Sportscar Championship.
Category LMGTE Am
For the first time, the GT class is comprised entirely of GTE-Am cars. The Pro class bowed out at the end of the 2023 WEC season, but GTE cars continue to compete for one final year of Pro/Am racing.
The LMGTE Am starting grid at the 24 Hours of Le Mans comprises 21 cars. This class will compete in the French endurance classic for the last time this year, before being replaced by LMGT3 in 2024. This category is dedicated to amateur drivers teaming up with professionals.
Four prestigious brands will compete on the track: five Aston Martin Vantages, seven Ferrari 488s, eight Porsche 911s, and a single Chevrolet Corvette C8.R. They will have the difficult task of rewriting history by becoming the last name on the winner's list. The Iron Dames, an all-female trio, will be competing again this year.
Among the highlights, Walkenhorst Motorsport has opted for a Ferrari 488 GTE in its number 100 car after earning an automatic invitation thanks to its success in the Asian Le Mans Series this month, so no return of the fan-favorite BMW M8 GTE.
JMW Motorsport continues its long run at Le Mans with the seventh and final appearance of its Ferrari 488 at the 24 Hours (the same car won on its Le Mans debut in 2017 and has been present every year since) and we should expect something very special from the French-driven No. 72 Aston Martin in the run-up to the big race.
Innovative car category
Garage 56, reserved for an innovative car not in the official classification, will house a Chevrolet Camaro LZ1 entered by the Hendrick Motorsports team, making its first appearance at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. It will be a modified version of the Next Gen car that competed in the 2022 Cup Series, NASCAR's premier championship.
This Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 NASCAR Cup Series has been heavily modified to feature a hybrid system, lights, and additional downforce. As a testament to the friendship and collaboration between France and the United States in the world of endurance racing, the car will be driven by a crack team: former Formula 1 world champion Jenson Button, 24 Le Mans 2010 Hours winner Mike Rockenfeller, and seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson.
For now, the entry list is provisional, with 10 teams on standby – seven GTE and three LMP2 – in case another team is unable to participate for any reason. The 186-driver list is also not complete, although most teams have announced two or three drivers so far. This year's race will start at 14:10 PM UTC on Saturday, June XNUMX.
To view the detailed list of entrants: https://www.24h-lemans.com/fr/engages-2023
Patrick Koune
