MOTORSPORT: Le Mans celebrates 100 years

This weekend’s 2023 Le Mans 24 Hours endurance classic is shaping up to be one of the hottest contested in years, with the crown jewel event marking 100 years since its first edition in 1923.

Drawing together the best of the best from the World Endurance Championship, plus the various North American, European and Asian series, at the head of the field will be a 16-strong entry of Hypercars, drawn from manufacturers including Porsche, Toyota, Ferrari, Peugeot and Cadillac, as well as specialty constructors Glickenhaus and Vanwall.

It is the largest outright contingent for the race since 2009, when 20 of the previous LMP1 cars started.

The new Hypercars regulations have proven to be popular with manufacturers, who have a target performance window rather than strict parameters to aim at, and are no longer required to build a certain number of street-legal production versions of their race cars.

Instead, designers can incorporate DNA from road-going production cars in the styling of the racers, plus the drivetrain, which largely feature hybrid architectures attached to a mix of twin-turbo V6s and V8s, and naturally-aspirated V8s.

Next year, BMW, Lamborghini and Alpine will also join the Hypercar class.

Toyota, Cadillac and Porsche have been early race winners in 2023, while Ferrari has also shown strong speed, including at this week’s open test, where the marque topped the charts.

There are some name drivers thrown into the mix too, with starters set to include Robert Kubica, Sebastien Bourdais, Kamui Kobayashi, Simon Pagenaud, Daniil Kvyat, Jan Magnussen, Sebastien Buemi, Antonio Giovinazzi, Jean-Eric Vergne, Paul di Resta and Felipe Nasr.

Antipodean fans have some credentialled drivers to get behind, including Earl Bamber and Scott Dixon in Cadillacs, Brendon Hartley in a Toyota, Ryan Briscoe in a Glickenhaus, and James Allen in a leading LMP2 entry, while Matt Campbell is on hand as a reserve driver for the Porsche prototypes after cutting laps at the test day.

Alongside a 24-deep LMP2 prototype field, the GTE Am machines are set for one final run, with the category to be replaced in 2024 by GT3-derived cars, the same ruleset which has found favour globally, including in the Bathurst 12 Hour.

The production-shaped GTs will see Porsche go up against Aston Martin, Ferrari and the Chevrolet Corvette, however, the shift of regulations next year will see this expand, with Ford already committing to running the new Mustang at Le Mans, with the car due to launch this week.

Also expected to make its world debut ahead of the big race this week is a concept for the new Porsche 911 GT2 and, perhaps, the new Porsche 911 ST special.

A special Garage 56 entry for the event is a NASCAR-inspired Chevrolet Camaro, which has been developed for the event by Hendrick Motorsports, with cues taken from its Supercars-spec cousin.

Behind the wheel will be seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson, 2009 F1 champ Jenson Button, and sports car ace Mike Rockenfeller.

Interestingly, the car has not been specified with onboard air jacks, with the Le Mans program using one of the outfit’s regular NASCAR pit crew squads, and the test session placing the package between the prototype and GT fields pace-wise.

All practice, qualifying and the full race will be broadcast live on Stan Sport. Practice coverage kicks off at 9:45pm tomorrow (Wednesday) and the main event is scheduled to start at midnight on Saturday. Alternate commentary will be available online via Radio Le Mans, with Aussie caller Richard Craill joining the expert team.

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