The FIA WEC Le Mans 24: the starting grid, part 1 LMP2 – Welcome to the autosport world website
In this year’s edition of the Le Mans race, the LMP2 class is still present with sixteen identical Oreca 07 – Gibson cars. The LMP2 class is known for its competitive nature due to the identical equipment used by all teams, without any Balance of Performance (BoP) adjustments. Within the LMP2 class, there is also a subcategory known as LMP2 Pro/Am. Interestingly, there are no Belgian drivers in the LMP2 class, with only one team, DKR Engineering, having Belgian roots.
Out of the sixteen cars in the LMP2 class, eight are categorized as ‘Pro,’ featuring many renowned teams that also compete in the ELMS series. The main difference between the overall classification and Pro/Am is that the Pro/Am category must include at least one ‘Bronze’ driver. Additionally, each team must have at least one ‘Silver’ driver and a maximum of one ‘Platinum’ driver.
While some teams have two cars, none of them have entered two Oreca 07 ‘Pro’ cars. The class may not have as many big names as before due to the rise of the Hypercar class, but drivers like Bent Viscaal (Proton Competition), Patrick Pilet (Vector Sport), Oliver Jarvis (United Autosports), and Ritomo Mitaya (Cool Racing) have already proven themselves. Job van Uitert (IDEC Sport) is known from his time at Comtoyou Racing and GT World. Looking at the current standings in the European Le Mans Series, teams like Cool Racing and IDEC Sport, currently third and fourth in points, will compete in Le Mans with their regular crew.
In the LMP2 Pro/Am category, experienced drivers like Nicky Catsburg (Crowdstrike Racing), Louis Deletraz (AO by TF), Filipe Albuquerque (United Autosports USA), and Ben Barnicoat (AF Corse) will be on the grid.
Predicting the outcome of the LMP2 class at Le Mans is challenging, both overall and in the Pro/Am category. However, teams like United Autosports USA and AF Corse seem to be strong contenders. DKR Engineering, who finished third in the class last year with Maxime Martin, Ugo De Wilde, and Tom Van Rompuy, will now have the trio of Mattschull-Binder-Horr for this season’s race.