| |||
| Event information | |
|---|---|
| Round 4 of 8 in the2025 FIA World Endurance Championship | |
 | |
| Date | 14–15 June 2025 |
| Location | Le Mans, France |
| Venue | Circuit de la Sarthe |
| Duration | 24 hours |
| Weather | Dry. Air temperature: 15.6–24.4 °C (60.1–75.9 °F). Track temperature: 21.2–33.6 °C (70.2–92.5 °F) |
| Results | |
| Laps completed | 387[1] |
| Distance (km) | 5,272.54[1] |
| Distance (miles) | 3,276.20 |
| Hypercar | |
| Pole position | |
| Time | 3:23.166 |
| Team |  Cadillac Hertz Team Jota |
| Drivers |  Alex Lynn |
| Winners | |
| Team |  AF Corse |
| Drivers | Phil Hanson Robert Kubica Yifei Ye |
| LMP2 | |
| Winners | |
| Team | Inter Europol Competition |
| Drivers |  Tom DillmannJakub ŚmiechowskiNick Yelloly |
| LMP2 Pro-Am | |
| Winners | |
| Team | AO byTF |
| Drivers | Dane Cameron Louis DelétrazP. J. Hyett |
| LMGT3 | |
| Winners | |
| Team |  Manthey 1st Phorm |
| Drivers | Ryan Hardwick Richard LietzRiccardo Pera |
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The93rd 24 Hours of Le Mans (French:93e 24 Heures du Mans) was anautomobile endurance event on 14–15 June 2025 at theCircuit de la Sarthe inLe Mans, France. It was the 93rd running ofthe 24-hour race organised by theAutomobile Club de l'Ouest, and the fourth round in the2025 FIA World Endurance Championship. British marqueAston Martin ran twomodified Valkyries in theLe Mans Hypercar class, marking a return to the top class for the first time since2011.
After achieving the fastest lap in the Hyperpole qualifying session, theNo. 12Cadillac V-Series.R run byHertz Team Jota and driven byWill Stevens,Alex Lynn, andNorman Nato began from pole, the first American car to do so since1967. The race was won by the privately entered No. 83Ferrari 499P ofAF Corse, driven byRobert Kubica,Yifei Ye, andPhil Hanson, the third consecutive victory for Ferrari at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The LMP2 class was won by the No. 43Inter Europol CompetitionOreca 07 ofNick Yelloly,Jakub Śmiechowski andTom Dillmann, the team's second victory in three years. Another consecutive victory went to the LMGT3 winners:Manthey's No. 92Porsche 911 GT3, driven byRichard Lietz, with the addition of Ryan Hardwick andRiccardo Pera this year.
The 2025 edition of the24 Hours of Le Mans, held at theCircuit de la Sarthe nearLe Mans, France, was the 93rd running of the event since its inception in1923. The fourth round of theFIA World Endurance Championship (FIA WEC), the race weekend ran from 11 to 15 June, with the race itself taking place on the 14th and 15th.[2]
Prior to the event,Alessandro Pier Guidi,Antonio Giovinazzi, andJames Calado, the drivers of theNo. 51Ferrari 499P, were leading the HypercarDriver's Championship with 75 points, 18 ahead ofAntonio Fuoco,Miguel Molina, andNicklas Nielsen, the drivers of the Ferrari No. 50 sister car.Phil Hanson,Robert Kubica, andYifei Ye of the privateer No. 83 Ferrari, the eventual winners of the 2025 race, were third in the standings with 39 points.[3][4]Ferrari had won all three previous races in the championship — theQatar 1812 km, the6 Hours of Imola, and the6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps — and led second placeToyota by 136 points to 71 in the HypercarManufacturers' Championship.[4][5]
In the LMGT3Driver's Championship, the No. 33Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R, run byTF Sport and driven byBen Keating,Daniel Juncadella, andJonny Edgar, had scored 44 points, four points ahead ofVista AF Corse's No. 21Ferrari 296, driven byAlessio Rovera, François Heriau, andSimon Mann. Akkodis ASP's No. 78Lexus RC F was third with 38 points.[6][7]
62 cars in total were given entries to the race, with six more listed as reserve. This list included the 36 full season WEC competitors — 18 in both Hypercar and LMGT3. Additional invitations included three in Hypercar, 17 in LMP2 (nine Pro and eight Pro-Am lineups), and six in LMGT3.[8]
British marqueAston Martin made its return to the top class for the first time since2011, entering twoValkyrie AMR-LMHs as part of a full season campaign in the WEC.[8][9]Mercedes-Benz were also competing in the race for the first time since1999, running threeMercedes-AMG GT3 Evos in the LMGT3 category.[10]
In addition to all full-seasonWEC entries, automatic invites were given to all championship winners in theEuropean Le Mans Series (ELMS), LMP2 and LMGT3 in theAsian Le Mans Series (ALMS) and Bronze Cup inGT World Challenge Europe's (GTWCE) combined Endurance and Sprint championship.[11][12] Second-place finishers in LMP2 in the ELMS also earned an invite. ThreeIMSA teams were also granted invites, one in Hypercar at the discretion of IMSA, and one each for the Jim Trueman and Bob Akin awards, given to the highest placed Bronze-rated drivers in IMSA's LMP2 and GT3 classes.[13][14]
| Reason invited | Hypercar | LMP2 | LMGT3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st in theEuropean Le Mans Series (LMP2 and LMGT3) | AO byTF | Iron Lynx | |
| 2nd in the European Le Mans Series (LMP2) | Inter Europol Competition | ||
| 1st in the European Le Mans Series (LMP2 Pro-Am) | AF Corse | ||
| 1st in the European Le Mans Series (LMP3) | RLR MSport | ||
| IMSA SportsCar Championship at-large entries | Porsche Penske Motorsport | Nick Boulle |  Orey Fidani |
| 1st in theAsian Le Mans Series (LMP2 and GT) |  Algarve Pro Racing | Manthey Racing | |
| 1st in theGT World Challenge Europe (Bronze Cup) | Sky – Tempesta Racing | ||
| Source:[15][16] | |||
Entries in the LMP2 Pro-Am Cup, set aside for teams with a Bronze-rated driver in their line-up,[17] are denoted with icons.
| Icon | Series |
|---|---|
| WEC | FIA World Endurance Championship |
| ELMS | European Le Mans Series |
| ALMS | Asian Le Mans Series |
| IMSA | IMSA SportsCar Championship |
| GTWC | GT World Challenge Europe |
| 24LM | 24 Hours of Le Mans only |
| Icon | MISC |
| P2 | LMP2 |
| PA | LMP2 Pro-Am |
In addition to the sixty-two entries given invitations for the race, six entries are put on a reserve list to potentially replace any invitations that were not accepted or withdrawn. Reserve entries are ordered with the first reserve replacing the first withdrawal from the race, regardless of the class of either entry.[36]
| Reserve | Class | No. | Entrant | Car | Tyre | Series | MISC | Driver 1 | Driver 2 | Driver 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Hypercar | 44 | Proton Competition | Porsche 963 | M | IMSA | Hybrid | Tristan Vautier |  TBA | TBA |
| 2nd | LMGT3 | 86 | GR Racing | Ferrari 296 GT3 | G | ELMS | Michael Wainwright | TBA | TBA | |
| 3rd | LMP2 | 3 |  DKR Engineering | Oreca 07-Gibson | G | ELMS | PA | Alexander Mattschull | TBA | TBA |
| 4th | LMP2 | 30 | Duqueine Team | Oreca 07-Gibson | G | ELMS | PA | Mark Patterson | TBA | TBA |
| 5th | LMGT3 | 66 | JMW Motorsport | Ferrari 296 GT3 | G | ELMS | Jason Hart | Scott Noble | TBA | |
| 6th | LMP2 | 26 | Vector Sport | Oreca 07-Gibson | G | ELMS | P2 |  Ryan Cullen |  Pietro Fittipaldi |  Vladislav Lomko[N 2] |
| Source:[8][35] | ||||||||||
Prior to the race, all entrants were required to participate in a test day, which took place on 8 June.[37]
The first session of the test day ran from 10:00 to 13:00CEST (UTC+02:00).[38] In the Hypercar class, the No. 83Ferrari 499P driven byRobert Kubica set the fastest lap time of 3:27.010, followed by the No. 8Toyota GR010 ofBrendon Hartley with a time of 3:28.000. The No. 38 JOTACadillac V-Series.R, No. 51 Ferarri 499P, and No. 331Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R set the third, fourth, and fifth fastest times respectively. All of the Hypercar entrants took part, including the No. 007 and No. 009Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMHs for which this was their first time completing laps at Le Mans. In the LMP2 class, the fastest Pro and Pro-Am times were set by the No. 37CLX Pure Rxcing and the No. 16RLROreca 07s, with times of 3:36.853 and 3:36.593 respectively.José María López in the No. 87 Akkodis ASPLexus RC F set the fasted time in LMGT3 with a 3:57.109; second through fifth were taken by the No. 21Vista AF CorseFerrari 296, No. 78 Akkodis ASP Lexus RC F, No. 57Kessel Racing Ferrari 296, and the No. 150Richard Mille AF Corse Ferrari 296. During the session, the No. 34Inter Europol Oreca 07 ofLuca Ghiotto crashed at the Porsche Curves, requiring the deployment of the safety car. Additionally, the No. 45CrowdStrikeAlgarve Pro Racing Oreca 07 suffered an engine failure during the test; a replacement was installed and the car returned to the circuit before the end of the session.[39][40][41]
The second session took place from 15:30 to 18:30 CEST.[38] The No. 8 Toyota GR010, again driven by Brendon Hartley, set the fastest time of 3:26.246, beating both the fastest time from the first test session, and the fastest time from the 2024 test day — a 3:26.9, set byKévin Estre. Hartley's time was followed by a 3:26.777, set byJames Calado in the No. 51 Ferrari 499P, and the No. 36Alpine A424 ofMick Schumacher; the No. 6Porsche 963 and No. 83 Ferrari 499P placed fourth and fifth. The fastest LMP2 time, a 3:35.770, was set by the Pro-class No. 22United Autosports Oreca 07 driven byPietro Fittipaldi, and the fastest Pro-Am time (and second-fastest LMP2 time overall) was a 3:36.225, set by the No. 29TDS Racing Oreca 07. In LMGT3, the No. 87 Lexus RC F of José María López again set the fastest time, a 3:55.276: faster than his time in the first test session, and more than four seconds faster than the best time set by an LMGT3 car during the 2024 test day, a 3:59.883. Second and third fastest in class were the No. 21 Vista and No. 57 Kessel Ferrari 296s. During the test, running was stopped three times. These were caused by the No. 20BMW M Hybrid V8 ofSheldon van der Linde suffering an oil leak and become beached in the gravel trap at the Porsche Curves, a crash byGiorgio Roda in the No. 11Proton Competition Oreca 07 causing barrier damage at Indianapolis, and the No. 63Iron LynxMercedes-AMG GT3 Evo ofBrenton Grove entering the gravel runoff at the Porsche Curves: this final incident occurred only five minutes from the end of the session, and running was not resumed.[42][43][44]
During the test,Michelle Gatting, the gold-rated driver of the No. 85Iron DamesPorsche 911 GT3 R (992), was injured after her car was dropped on her foot during a driver change, fracturing it and forcing her to withdraw from the race. She was replaced bySarah Bovy, who had competed four times at Le Mans previously but stepped back from driving in the 2025 WEC season after her driver rating was upgraded from Bronze to Silver.[45]
The first practice session, three hours long, took place in the afternoon of 11 June during which conditions were warm and sunny. The fastest lap time of the session was set bySébastien Bourdais in the No. 38 JOTA Cadillac V-Series.R, a 3:25.148, despite an early spin and later carbon fibre damage necessitating repair. Prior to Bourdais' time, set 35 minutes before the end of the session, the fastest lap was held byAntonio Fuoco in the No. 50 Ferrari 499P: his 3:25.302, set on the car's first flying lap of the session, eventually placed him second overall. Third, fourth, and fifth-fastest times in the Hypercar class were set by the No. 6 Porsche 963, the No. 8 Toyota GR010, and the No. 5 Porsche 963. In LMP2, the Pro-Am No. 16 RLR Oreca 07 led the standings with a 3:36.888 set byPatrick Pilet, followed by the Pro No. 43 Inter Europol Oreca 07, the No. 45 Algarve Pro Racing Oreca 07, the No. 48VDSPanis Racing Oreca 07, and the No. 29 TDS Racing Oreca 07. The No. 78 Akkodis ASP Lexus RC F set the fastest time in LMGT3, a 3:57.248 driven byJack Hawksworth, ahead of the No. 54 Vista Ferrari 296 and the No. 10Racing Spirit of LémanAston Martin Vantage. Running was twice interrupted by red flags: first for a crash at the Dunlop Chicane by Stephen Grove in the No. 63 Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG GT3, and the second ten minutes later for debris on track.[46][47][48] The damage sustained by the No. 63 required a replacement chassis, causing the team to miss qualifying and the next free practice session that evening.[49][50]
| Class | No. | Entrant | Driver | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hypercar | 38 | Cadillac Hertz Team Jota | Sébastien Bourdais | 3:25.148 |
| LMP2 | 43 | Inter Europol Competition | Nick Yelloly | 3:37.125 |
| LMP2 Pro-Am | 16 | RLR MSport | Patrick Pilet | 3:36.888 |
| LMGT3 | 78 | Akkodis ASP Team | Jack Hawksworth | 3:57.248 |
| Source:[48][51] | ||||
The second free practice session followed that night and lasted two hours. In Hypercar, Robert Kubica set the fastest time early in the session driving the No. 83 Ferrari 499P, a 3:25.101. After the session concluded, Kubica's time was deleted for pit lane speeding, promoting the No. 8 Toyota GR010 to first place with a 3:26.156. The next fastest time by the No. 83, a 3:26.680 set byYifei Ye, placed the car third behind the No. 12 JOTA Cadillac V-Series.R, followed in fourth and fifth by the No. 4 Porsche 963 ofPascal Wehrlein and the No. 50 Ferrari 499P ofMiguel Molina. In LMP2 the fastest time was set byDane Cameron of the No. 199AO byTF Oreca 07 with a 3:37.515; second and third fastest were the No.22 United Autosports and No. 37 CLX Pure Rxcing Oreca 07s, driven by Pietro Fittipaldi andTom Blomqvist respectively. Lexus claimed the top two fastest times in LMGT3, leading with a 3:55.422 set by José María López aboard the No. 87, followed in third by the No. 91Manthey 1st Phorm Porsche 911 driven byRichard Lietz. Two cars did not participate in the session: the No. 33TF SportChevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R due to a gearbox leak, and the No. 63 Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG GT3.[52][53][54]
| Class | No. | Entrant | Driver | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hypercar | 8 |  Toyota Gazoo Racing | Sébastien Buemi | 3:26.156 |
| LMP2 | 22 | United Autosports | Pietro Fittipaldi | 3:38.644 |
| LMP2 Pro-Am | 199 | AO byTF | Dane Cameron | 3:37.515 |
| LMGT3 | 87 | Akkodis ASP Team |  José María López | 3:55.422 |
| Source:[54][55] | ||||
Free Practice 3 took place in warm, sunny conditions on the afternoon of 12 June, preceding the Hyperpole qualifying session the same evening. The Hypercar times were led by the No. 5 Porsche 963, with driverMathieu Jaminet setting a 3:24.717 lap time, followed by the two JOTA Cadillacs ofEarl Bamber (No. 38) andWill Stevens (No. 12), then the No. 51 and No. 83 Ferrari 499Ps, the former holding the fastest lap for most of the three-hour session. The No. 101Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac did not participate in most of the session in order to conduct an engine replacement. The No. 29 Pro-Am TDS Racing Oreca 07 led LMP2 standings after a 3:36.827 lap byMathias Beche, with the Pro-Am No. 23 United Autosports Oreca 07 second; third was the fastest Pro-class LMP2 car, the No. 43 Inter Europol Oreca 07. In LMGT3 the fastest time, a 3:55.897, was set byZacharie Robichon of the No. 27Heart of Racing Aston Martin Vantage, followed by the No. 92 Manthey 1st Phorm Porsche 911 and No. 78 Akkodis ASP Lexus RC F in second and third. The session featured one red flag stoppage for barrier repairs after two simultaneous LMP2 car crashes: the first, the No. 183 ofFrançois Perrodo striking the tire wall at the Porsche Curves after losing control while attempting to pass traffic; the second took place at the first Mulsanne chicane, whereby the No. 37 CLX Pure Rxcing car driven byAlex Malykhin struck the tire wall while evading the spun No. 85 Iron Dames Porsche 911 ofCélia Martin. Additionally, near the end of the session, the No. 28IDEC Sport LMP2 entry lost a wheel in the Porsche Curves, forcing driverJob van Uitert to slowly bring the car back to the pit lane.[56][57][58]
| Class | No. | Entrant | Driver | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hypercar | 5 | Porsche Penske Motorsport | Mathieu Jaminet | 3:24.717 |
| LMP2 | 43 | Inter Europol Competition | Tom Dillmann | 3:37.563 |
| LMP2 Pro-Am | 29 | TDS Racing | Mathias Beche | 3:36.827 |
| LMGT3 | 27 | Heart of Racing Team | Zacharie Robichon | 3:55.897 |
| Source:[58][59] | ||||
The fourth and final practice session took place at night following the Hyperpole qualifying session on 12 June. Ferrari achieved a 1–2 of fastest times in Hypercar, led by a 3:26.523 set by Robert Kubica in the No. 83 499P, followed by the No. 50 nearly a second behind. Third and fourth were occupied by the No. 311 Whelen and No. 38 JOTA Cadillacs, followed by the No. 6 Porsche 963 in fifth and the pole-sitting No. 12 JOTA Cadillac in sixth. The top LMP2 time, a 3:38.302, was set byEsteban Masson in the No. 48 VDS Panis Racing Oreca 07, after which was placed the No. 29 TDS Racing and No. 183 AF Corse Oreca 07s; the fastest LMGT3 time of 3:55.057 was set by José María López in the No. 87 Akkodis ASP Lexus RC F, followed by the No. 10 Racing Spirit of Léman Aston Martin Vantage and the No. 54 Vista Ferrari 296. During the hour-long running, the No. 15 BMW M Hybrid V8, No. 27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Vantage, and No. 63 Iron Lynx Mercedes AMG GT3 suffered mechanical failures that caused them to retire from the session.[60][61][62] The failure for the No. 63 occurred only one lap into Free Practice 4; having also missed the night time Free Practice 2, none of the three drivers had completed the mandatory five laps of night running prior to the race. The team was allowed to participate in the race on the condition that their fastest driver,Luca Stolz, must start the race, and that the Bronze-rated Stephen Grove, having completed no laps in darkness whatsoever, was not allowed to drive between 22:00 and 06:00 during the race itself.[49]
| Class | No. | Entrant | Driver | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hypercar | 83 | AF Corse | Robert Kubica | 3:26.523 |
| LMP2 | 48 | VDSPanis Racing | Esteban Masson | 3:38.302 |
| LMP2 Pro-Am | 29 | TDS Racing | Clément Novalak | 3:38.930 |
| LMGT3 | 87 | Akkodis ASP Team | José María López | 3:55.057 |
| Source:[62][63] | ||||
Initial qualifying took place after Free Practice 1 during the evening of 11 June and comprised one session for the Hypercar class and one combined session for LMP2 and LMGT3, each 30 minutes long.[47][64] The fastest 15 in the Hypercar class, and the fastest 12 in the LMP2 and LMGT3 classes, advanced to shootout "Hyperpole" sessions on 12 June to determine the final qualifying order; teams that did not advance (in both the qualifying and hyperpole sessions) had their grid position set by the initial session.[64][37]
The first qualifying session took place in very hot conditions. In the Hypercar session, Alex Lynn set the fastest qualifying time of 3:22.847 in the No. 12 JOTA Cadillac, four-hundredths of a second ahead of the No. 15 BMW M Hybrid V8 ofDries Vanthoor. The winner of the2023 24 Hours of Le Mans, the No. 51 Ferrari 499P, placed third.[65][66] The2024 24 Hours pole-sitting No. 6 Porsche 963, which initially qualified fourth ahead of the No. 38 Cadillac, was disqualified after the car was found to be underweight; it would start from the back of the Hypercar grid. Its disqualification allowed the No. 009 Aston Martin Valkyrie, which originally qualified in 16th, to advance into Hyperpole.[67][68] Hypercars eliminated were the No. 007 Aston Martin Valkyrie, the twoPeugeot 9X8s, the No. 99 Proton Competition Porsche 963, and, surprisingly, the No. 7 Toyota GR010, which driverNyck de Vries qualified 16th, 2.215 seconds slower than the pole time and 1.074 seconds slower than the time set by the No. 8 sister car.[65][69][70] De Vries stated that the poor result was due to a tyre lock-up under deceleration while entering a yellow flag zone behind an Alpine at the Porsche Curves.[69]
In the joint LMP2-LMGT3 qualifying session, interrupted and shortened by twored flags, the fastest times were set by the No. 199 AO by TF Oreca 07 in LMP2,[N 3] completing a 3:35.472 lap driven byLouis Delétraz, and the No. 46 Team WRT BMW M4 ofAhmad Al Harthy which set a 3:56.875. Eliminated were both Proton Competition entries (No. 11 and No. 9), the No. 24 Nielsen Racing entry, the No. 34 Inter Europol entry, and theGenesis-backed No. 18 IDEC Sport entry driven by three-time Le Mans winnerAndré Lotterer, which placed only 14th. Notable eliminations in the LMGT3 class included the No. 85 Iron Dames Porsche 911, 2024 edition-winning No. 31 Team WRT BMW M4, No. 87 Akkodis ASP Lexus RC F, and the championship-leading No. 33 TF Sport Corvette ofBen Keating.[65][66][71]
Hyperpole was divided into two sessions for both Hypercar and LMP2/LMGT3, new for the 2025 edition of the 24 Hours: an initial 20-minute "H1" session comprising the cars that advanced from their class' initial qualifying, then a final 15-minute "H2" session to determinepole position among the fastest cars of the H1 session.[64] Hypercar entries which failed to reach the H2 pole shootout included No. 009 Aston Martin Valkyrie, qualifying 15th, and the No. 83 and 2023 edition-winning No. 51 Ferrari 499Ps, qualifying 11th and 13th respectively. In the LMP2/LMGT3 session, LMP2 entries eliminated in the H1 session included both Algarve Pro Racing cars, IDEC Sport's No. 28, and the No. 48 VDS Panis. LMGT3 saw a late lap set by Sean Gelael in the No. 95 United Autosports McLaren 720S, which had broken down on the Mulsanne Straight with only five minutes left in the session. After managing to restart the car, his final push lap was fast enough to place him into the H2 session.[72][73][74]
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Cadillac scored both pole and second position during the final qualifying session, the marque's second pole in the WEC, its first ever pole at Le Mans, and the first American manufacturer to achieve a pole at Le Mans since the1967 running. The pole time of 3:23.166 was set by Alex Lynn driving the No. 12 on the last flying lap of the session, and a 3:23.333 by Earl Bamber in the No. 38 secured second from the benchmark-setting No. 5 Porsche 963 driven by Matheiu Jaminet, whose final position was third. Fourth through ninth were taken by the No. 15 BMW, No. 4 Porsche, No. 20 BMW, No. 50 Ferrari, No. 36 Alpine, and No. 311 Cadillac. A lock-up by Sebastien Buemi in the No. 8 Toyota early in the session forced the car off-circuit at Mulsanne Corner, causing a puncture and forcing the car back to the pits without setting a time, placing him tenth on the grid.[73][72][74]
LMP2 pole was won by the No. 29 TDS Panis Racing entry, with driverMathias Beche setting a 3:35.062 lap time. The top five in LMP2 was completed by the No. 43 Inter Europol, the No. 199 AO by TF, and the No. 23 and 22 United Autosports entries, with the No. 37 CLX-Pure Rxcing, No. 183 AF Corse and No. 16 RLR M Sport Orecas placing sixth, seventh, and eighth. In LMGT3, Mattia Drudi's No. 27 Aston Martin Vantage managed to beat Alesso Rovera in the No. 21 Vista Ferrari 296, who had set a provisional lap record halfway through the H2 session; their times were 3:52.789 and 3:53.085 respectively. Behind them was the No. 46 BMW M4 driven byValentino Rossi, who placed third despite being a lower-rated driver than all but one of the other LMGT3 H2 competitors. Fourth and fifth fastest wereMaxime Martin's No. 61 Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG and Richard Lietz's No. 92 Manthey Porsche 911, followed by the No. 81 TF Sport Corvette driven byRui Andrade — the other Silver-rated LMGT3 driver in the session — then the No. 95 United Autosports McLaren and No. 78 Lexus in seventh and eighth.[73][72][74]
Pole positions in each class are denoted inbold.
| Pos | Class | No. | Team | Qualifying | Hyperpole 1 | Hyperpole 2 | Grid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hypercar | 12 | Cadillac Hertz Team Jota | 3:22.847 | 3:23.641 | 3:23.166 | 1 |
| 2 | Hypercar | 38 | Cadillac Hertz Team Jota | 3:23.467 | 3:23.141 | 3:23.333 | 2 |
| 3 | Hypercar | 5 | Porsche Penske Motorsport | 3:23.544 | 3:23.979 | 3:23.475 | 3 |
| 4 | Hypercar | 15 | BMW M Team WRT | 3:22.887 | 3:24.061 | 3:23.659 | 4 |
| 5 | Hypercar | 4 | Porsche Penske Motorsport | 3:24.584 | 3:23.547 | 3:23.983 | 5 |
| 6 | Hypercar | 20 | BMW M Team WRT | 3:23.805 | 3:23.250 | 3:24.009 | 6 |
| 7 | Hypercar | 50 | Ferrari AF Corse | 3:23.514 | 3:23.273 | 3:24.213 | 7 |
| 8 | Hypercar | 311 | Cadillac Whelen | 3:23.890 | 3:22.742 | 3:24.380 | 8 |
| 9 | Hypercar | 36 | Alpine Endurance Team | 3:23.945 | 3:23.462 | 3:24.398 | 9 |
| 10 | Hypercar | 8 | Toyota Gazoo Racing | 3:23.988 | 3:23.546 | No time | 10 |
| 11 | Hypercar | 51 | Ferrari AF Corse | 3:23.163 | 3:24.143 | 11 | |
| 12 | Hypercar | 35 | Alpine Endurance Team | 3:24.667 | 3:24.153 | 12 | |
| 13 | Hypercar | 83 | AF Corse | 3:23.994 | 3:24.327 | 13 | |
| 14 | Hypercar | 101 | Cadillac WTR | 3:24.030 | 3:24.811 | 14 | |
| 15 | Hypercar | 009 | Aston Martin THOR Team | 3:24.869 | 3:25.258 | 15 | |
| 16 | Hypercar | 7 | Toyota Gazoo Racing | 3:25.062 | 16 | ||
| 17 | Hypercar | 94 | Peugeot TotalEnergies | 3:25.240 | 17 | ||
| 18 | Hypercar | 93 | Peugeot TotalEnergies | 3:25.494 | 18 | ||
| 19 | Hypercar | 99 | Proton Competition | 3:25.527 | 19 | ||
| 20 | Hypercar | 007 | Aston Martin THOR Team | 3:26.349 | 20 | ||
| 21 | Hypercar | 6 | Porsche Penske Motorsport | 3:23.360 | 211 | ||
| 22 | LMP2 Pro-Am | 29 | TDS Racing | 3:36.163 | 3:35.933 | 3:35.062 | 22 |
| 23 | LMP2 | 43 | Inter Europol Competition | 3:36.958 | 3:34.657 | 3:35.333 | 23 |
| 24 | LMP2 Pro-Am | 199 | AO byTF | 3:35.472 | 3:35.298 | 3:35.421 | 24 |
| 25 | LMP2 Pro-Am | 23 | United Autosports | 3:35.657 | 3:36.463 | 3:35.459 | 25 |
| 26 | LMP2 | 22 | United Autosports | 3:36.536 | 3:35.473 | 3:35.615 | 26 |
| 27 | LMP2 | 37 | CLX –Pure Rxcing | 3:37.652 | 3:36.365 | 3:36.184 | 27 |
| 28 | LMP2 Pro-Am | 183 | AF Corse | 3:37.394 | 3:36.323 | 3:36.993 | 28 |
| 29 | LMP2 Pro-Am | 16 | RLR MSport | 3:37.119 | 3:36.468 | 3:38.922 | 29 |
| 30 | LMP2 | 28 | IDEC Sport | 3:37.004 | 3:36.675 | 30 | |
| 31 | LMP2 Pro-Am | 45 | Algarve Pro Racing | 3:35.954 | 3:36.834 | 31 | |
| 32 | LMP2 | 48 | VDSPanis Racing | 3:36.588 | 3:36.844 | 32 | |
| 33 | LMP2 | 25 | Algarve Pro Racing | 3:36.612 | 3:37.120 | 33 | |
| 34 | LMP2 Pro-Am | 11 | Proton Competition | 3:37.767 | 34 | ||
| 35 | LMP2 | 18 | IDEC Sport | 3:37.940 | 35 | ||
| 36 | LMP2 | 9 | Iron Lynx –Proton | 3:38.548 | 36 | ||
| 37 | LMP2 Pro-Am | 34 | Inter Europol Competition | 3:39.328 | 37 | ||
| 38 | LMP2 Pro-Am | 24 | Nielsen Racing | 3:40.271 | 38 | ||
| 39 | LMGT3 | 27 | Heart of Racing Team | 3:57.083 | 3:54.718 | 3:52.789 | 39 |
| 40 | LMGT3 | 21 | Vista AF Corse | 3:58.116 | 3:54.745 | 3:53.085 | 40 |
| 41 | LMGT3 | 46 | Team WRT | 3:56.875 | 3:54.345 | 3:54.966 | 41 |
| 42 | LMGT3 | 61 | Iron Lynx | 3:58.732 | 3:54.731 | 3:54.998 | 42 |
| 43 | LMGT3 | 92 | Manthey 1st Phorm | 3:57.255 | 3:54.659 | 3:55.140 | 43 |
| 44 | LMGT3 | 81 | TF Sport | 3:57.690 | 3:54.646 | 3:55.740 | 44 |
| 45 | LMGT3 | 95 | United Autosports | 3:58.977 | 3:55.186 | 3:55.965 | 45 |
| 46 | LMGT3 | 78 | Akkodis ASP Team | 3:57.321 | 3:54.934 | 4:03.660 | 46 |
| 47 | LMGT3 | 193 | Ziggo Sport – Tempesta | 3:57.960 | 3:55.853 | 47 | |
| 48 | LMGT3 | 88 | Proton Competition | 3:57.827 | 3:56.160 | 48 | |
| 49 | LMGT3 | 59 | United Autosports | 3:58.106 | 3:56.171 | 49 | |
| 50 | LMGT3 | 54 | Vista AF Corse | 3:58.632 | 50 | ||
| 51 | LMGT3 | 77 | Proton Competition | 3:59.004 | 51 | ||
| 52 | LMGT3 | 87 | Akkodis ASP Team | 3:59.037 | 52 | ||
| 53 | LMGT3 | 57 | Kessel Racing | 3:59.092 | 53 | ||
| 54 | LMGT3 | 31 | The Bend Team WRT | 3:59.288 | 54 | ||
| 55 | LMGT3 | 10 | Racing Spirit of Léman | 3:59.472 | 55 | ||
| 56 | LMGT3 | 85 | Iron Dames | 4:00.026 | 56 | ||
| 57 | LMGT3 | 90 | Manthey | 4:00.450 | 57 | ||
| 58 | LMGT3 | 13 | AWA Racing | 4:01.099 | 58 | ||
| 59 | LMGT3 | 150 | Richard Mille AF Corse | No time | 59 | ||
| 60 | LMGT3 | 33 | TF Sport | No time | 60 | ||
| 61 | LMGT3 | 60 | Iron Lynx | No time | 61 | ||
| 62 | LMGT3 | 63 | Iron Lynx | No time | 62 | ||
| Source:[75] | |||||||
Notes
Air temperature at the start of the race was 21.9 °C (71.4 °F) and ranged from 15.6 to 24.4 °C (60.1 to 75.9 °F), while starting track temperature was 27.5 °C (81.5 °F) and ranged from 21.2 to 33.6 °C (70.2 to 92.5 °F). The track was dry throughout.[77] Attendance was reported as 332,000, a record for the event.[78] Former professional tennis playerRoger Federer was the official race starter.[79] Despite qualifying first and second, the No. 12 and No. 38 JOTA Cadillac V-Series.Rs of Will Stevens and Earl Bamber were overtaken on the first lap by third-place qualifierJulien Andlauer in the No. 5 Penske Porsche 963, making the passes at Tertre Rouge and on the Mulsanne Straight before the first chicane. The No. 6 of Kévin Estre, which started from 21st position after its disqualification from qualifying, had climbed up to 14th by the end of the first lap, and had reached fifth place by the end of the first hour of racing, behind Andlauer's Porsche, Stevens' and Bamber's Cadillacs, and the No. 50 Ferrari 499P ofNicklas Nielsen. The BMW M Hybrid V8s —René Rast's No. 20 andKevin Magnussen's No. 15 — were placed seventh and 10th, behindJack Aitken in the sixth-place No. 311Action Express Cadillac; the No. 51 Ferrari ofJames Calado and No. 8 Toyota GR010 ofSébastien Buemi were eighth and ninth. The No. 93 Peugeot 9X8 driven byPaul di Resta suffered the first significant Hypercar incident of the race, crashing at the Porsche Curves, rejoining the race after a 92-second pit stop to replace the rear bodywork.[79][80]
In LMP2, the class was initially led by the Pro-Am No. 29 TDS and No. 199 AO by TF entrants; in the first pit stop these cars swapped from their fastest Gold-rated drivers (Mathias Beche and Louis Delétraz respectively) to their Bronze-rated amateur drivers,Rodrigo Sales andP. J. Hyett, handing the class lead at the end of the first hour to the Pro No. 43 Inter Europol entry, driven at the time byTom Dillmann; the No. 29 and No. 199 ended the first hour in 11th and ninth. Second in LMP2 was Job van Uitert's No. 28 IDEC Sport, followed by the No. 16 RLR MSport, the best-placed Pro-Am entry. The only notable incident in this class was the No. 22 United Oreca of David Heinemeier Hansson colliding with the LMGT3-entered No. 193 Ziggo Sport Tempesta Ferrari 296 at the Dunlop chicane and causing a spin, for which he received an official warning. Initial lead of the LMGT3 class was held by pole-sitter Mattia Drudi's No. 27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Vantage, but, like the LMP2 pole-sitter, surrendered the class lead after swapping to Bronze-ratedIan James, their amateur driver; class lead passed to the No. 78 Akkodis ASP Lexus of Jack Hawksworth.[79][80]
After the first two sets of Hypercar pit stops, the No. 50 Ferrari, still driven by Nielsen, had advanced up to second place behind Andlauer's No. 5 Porsche after overtakes on the No. 6 Porsche of Kévin Estre and the two JOTA Cadillacs, which continued to drop down the order in the opening stages.[81][82] Lead in LMP2 passed to Patrick Pilet's No. 16 RLR MSport Oreca after a driver change from the No. 43 Inter Europol car, and in LMGT3 — all teams having swapped to their Bronze-rated drivers by the end of the second hour — Ahmed Al Harthy's No. 46 had gained a ten-second lead on the trailing No. 78 Lexus. The second hour also saw the first penalties of the race, given to Keating's No. 33 in LMGT3 and Malykhin's CLX Pure Rxcing in LMP2 for contact, to the No. 28 IDEC for an unsafe pit stop release, and to the No. 22 United for course-cutting.[81]
After drivers swaps for the No. 50 Ferrari (to Antonio Fuoco) and the No. 5 Porsche (to Mathieu Jaminet), the No. 50, able to use its new tyres better than the No. 5, closed the gap and overtook the Porsche at Indianapolis for the lead; the No. 5 was also overtaken by the No. 6 Porsche later the same hour.[82][83] The No. 50 would keep its lead in Hypercar until receiving a drive-through penalty in the eighth hour of the race for ayellow flag infringement.[84] Also climbing was the No. 51 Ferrari with Giovanazzi making overtakes on Dries Vanthoor's No. 15 BMW and Felipe Drugovich's No.311 Whelen Cadillac for fourth place. Both Alpines, already struggling, were given stop-go penalties for pit lane speeding. LMP2 lead passed back to the No. 43 Inter Europol after the No. 16 swapped to their Bronze driver, with the No. 48 VDS Panis ofFranck Perera taking second;[82][83] the No. 43 and No. 48 continued to battle for first and second through the night and into the morning.[85]
Laurens Vanthoor's No. 6 Porsche was overtaken by Kubica's No. 83 and Giovanazzi's No. 51 in the fourth hour, creating a Ferrari 1–2–3, while No. 20 BMW climbed to fifth behind the Porsche.[86][87] Also in the fourth hour, the first major incident — and first official retirement — took place, with the No. 88 Proton Competition Ford Mustang, driven at the time by Giammarco Levorato, crashing at Tertre Rouge after losing grip. The slow zone created to clear Levorato's crash caused a further incident involving the No. 25 Algarve Pro Racing and No. 16 RLR MSport Orecas, the former hitting the rear of the latter as they slowed for the affected section of track.[88] Two more retirements, both in the LMGT3 class, occurred in the first six hours: the No. 60 Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG for a brokenalternator belt and damaged oil line, and the No. 95 United McLaren for adrivetrain failure.[87]
Six hours in, Ferrari had kept their 1–2–3 lead, behind whom were the No. 6 Porsche, No. 20 BMW, No. 8 Toyota, No. 12 JOTA Cadillac. The No. 94 Peugeot 9X8, running longer stints than others in the Hypercar class, was placed eighth.[86][89] Already performing poorly compared to its sister car, the No. 7 Toyota was given a 50-second stop-go penalty after driverKamui Kobayashi exceeded the pit lane speed limit by nearly 20 km/h (12 mph), though remained — with 15 of the 21 other Hypercar entrants — on the lead lap.[87][89] A pit lane error also caused the No. 43 Inter Europol to lose the lead in LMP2 after it missed its designated pit box, putting it off sequence with its main competition, the No. 48 VDS Panis; the No. 199 AO by TF took second in LMP2 and the lead of the Pro-Am subclass after an overtake by Louis Delétraz on the No. 9 Iron Lynx Proton ofReshad de Gerus. Behind de Gerus was the No. 43 Inter Europol, then the No. 28 and No. 18 IDEC Sport entries, and then the second-in-subclass Pro-Am No. 29 TDS. At the top of LMGT3, first place was traded between the No. 46 Team WRT BMW M4, No. 21 Vista Ferrari 296, and No. 92 Manthey Porsche 911 over the first six hours in the course of several driver changes.[87][89]
As night fell, the No. 83 Ferrari ofPhil Hanson took the lead of the race after the car's previous driverYifei Ye closed the gap to the then-first No. 50 Ferrari.[90] Prior to the next pit stops, and after the No. 50 was given a drive-through penalty, the No. 83 and then-second No. 51 of James Calado were ordered by Ferrari to swap their positions: Hanson instead ceded the position accidentally after a lock-up at Mulsanne Corner allowed Calado past.[84] Lower down the Hypercar order,Paul-Loup Chatin's No. 35 Alpine andLoïc Duval's No. 94 Peugeot collided at Mulsanne Corner while battling for 14th, causing the Peugeot to spin,[90] for which the Alpine was given a drive-through penalty.[91] Another incident lost the No. 33 TF Sport Corvette two laps, a stuck wheel during a pit stop requiring servicing inside the team's garage.[90] Battles for first continued in LMP2, between the briefly delayed No. 43 Inter Europol and the No. 48 VDS Panis, and in LMGT3 between the leading No. 46 Team WRT BMW M4 and the No. 92 Manthey Porsche 911 behind.[90][84]
As the night drew on, several Hypercar teams began lengthening their stints to 13 laps, including the Penske Porsche 963s. After Calado's drive-through penalty for a yellow-flag infringement in the No. 50, and two penalties for the No. 51 Ferrari — one for causing a collision with the No. 33 TF Sport Corvette and one for speeding in the pit lane, which dropped the car down to eighth — the race lead passed to Kévin Estre in the last-qualifying No. 6 Porsche. Of the Ferrari 499Ps, only the No. 83 escaped penalties, remaining second in front of the No. 8 Toyota of Brendan Hartley.[92] In LMGT3, the No. 46 Team WRT BMW of Ahmed Al Harthy, Valentino Rossi, and Kelvin van der Linde, which had led most of the race in its class, suffered a power steering failure in hour 11 and was forced to retire, promoting the No. 92 Manthey Porsche to lead in class, followed by the No. 21 Vista Ferrari 296, the two Akkodis ASP Lexuses, the No. 27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Vantage, and the No. 81 TF Sport Corvette.[93][94] The other Team WRT BMW M4, the No. 31, was also forced to retire after a collision with a rabbit during the night.[95]
The race's only safety car period was triggered in hour 12 afterCem Bölükbaşı, driving the No. 24 Nielsen Oreca, lost control and crashed into the barriers at Tertre Rouge; it was the first retirement in the LMP2 class. The first Hypercar retirement, the No. 101 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac due to an engine failure, occurred just after the end of the safety car period.[96][94] A slow pit stop for the No. 6 Porsche 963 promotedRyō Hirakawa's No. 8 Toyota to the overall lead, though within the hour the race lead was retaken by the No. 83 Ferrari of Ye Yifei. Between the now-sixth No. 6 Porsche and the lead battle were the third- and fifth-place No. 51 and No. 50 Ferraris, the fourth-place No. 15 BMW, and fifth-place No. 12 JOTA Cadillac.[97]
As dawn broke, the then third-in-class No. 18 IDEC Sport Oreca lost a wheel on the Mulsanne Straight and was retired; the remaining IDEC Sport entry, the No. 28, ran in third place in LMP2 behind the No. 48 VDS Panis and the No. 43 Inter Europol, followed in fourth and fifth by the No. 9 Iron Lynx Proton and the Pro-Am leading No. 199 AO by TF.[95][98] Contact between the No. 85 Iron Dames Porsche ofRahel Frey and the No. 87 Akkodis ASP Lexus ofClemens Schmid caused Frey to spin into the gravel at the second Mulsanne Chicane, requiring a full course yellow for her retrieval and earning Schmid a drive-through penalty; Frey briefly lost drive in the car soon after. Immediately after the lifting of the full course yellow, Calado's No. 51 factory-run Ferrari 499P retook the lead from Hanson's privateer No. 83 Ferrari after a move to Calado's left just prior to Indianapolis. In LMGT3, the three main contenders had become the No. 92 Manthey Porsche, the No. 21 Vista Ferrari 296, and the No. 81 TF Sport Corvette.[95][99] 13 different cars, including the No. 51 and No. 83 in Hypercar, the No. 9 in LMP2, and the No. 92 in LMGT3 were later given penalties for speeding during Frey's full course yellow. The penalties had little effect for the leaders, however, with Kubica in the No. 83 requesting permission from Ferrari to attack the factory No. 51 in first place and for the two cars to be swapped. Kubica lost several seconds in traffic during the next pit cycle, and the No. 51 remained ahead with six hours left to run.[100][101] The No. 50 Ferrari of Antonio Fuoco followed in third, 34 seconds behind Kubica, then the No. 6 Porsche and No. 8 Toyota, 55 and 95 seconds behind the lead respectively; ten entries in the Hypercar class remained on the lead lap. Meanwhile, in LMGT3, Mattia Drudi's No. 27 Aston Martin passed Jack Hawksworth's No. 78 Lexus for fourth position.[101]
The second retirement in Hypercar was the already-struggling No. 311 Whelen Cadillac, losing power in hour 17 of the race. Additional incidents took place for the No. 36 Alpine of Jules Gounon, who spun at Mulsanne Corner, the No. 10 Racing Spirit of Léman Aston Martin Vantage in LMGT3, and the No. 28 IDEC Sport in LMP2, colliding with the wall at Indianapolis and dropping it to fifth in class.[100][102]
In hour 20, the No. 78 Akkodis ASP Lexus, now driven byFinn Gehrsitz, suffered a race-ending suspension failure and required a full course yellow to clear up debris. During the full course yellow, the No. 51 Ferrari of Alessandro Pier Guidi entered the pits for an emergency service, then, as he approached the pits the next lap for a mandatory full-length stop,[N 4] spun the car after going off the tarmac. Pier Guidi lost 50 seconds, placing him in third, behind the No. 83 and No. 50 Ferraris and 10 seconds ahead of Laurens Vanthoor's No. 6 Porsche. Another mechanical setback affected the No. 8 Toyota, whose front-left wheel nut failed just after a pit stop, forcing it to slowly limp around the entire circuit before repairs could be carried out. It lost seven laps on the leader before it returned to the circuit.[103][104] Issues also hindered both BMW Hypercars during the second to last hour: the No. 20 lost 37 minutes to engine repairs; the No. 15 struggling with its hybrid cooling system, making multiple stops in the garage and losing 26 laps to the leader.[105][106] Another full course yellow was caused by another wheel nut failure, this time striking the third-place No. 28 IDEC Sport LMP2 entry and promoting the No. 199 to a podium position behind. Helped by the full course yellow combined with a well-timed pitstop, the No. 6 Porsche closed to within two seconds of the No. 50, which Ferrari told to swap positions with the No. 51 in response.[104][107] Swapping to driver Matt Campbell, the No. 6 passed the No. 51 at the entrance of the second Mulsanne Chicane with two hours left in the race. The car remained ahead of the No. 51 and passed the No. 50 after the next two pit stops, choosing to save time and preserve track position by not taking fresh tyres in the second stop; it was 20 seconds behind the No. 83 with two hours left in the race.[108]
Brought to the finish line by Robert Kubica who drove the final 4-hour stint, the No. 83 Ferrari completed the race in first position, 14 seconds ahead of the chasing No. 6 Porsche. It was Ferrari's 3rd consecutive Le Mans victory and its 12th overall; Kubica and Ye were the first overall winners of Polish and Chinese nationality respectively.[109][110] After a final driver swap to Kévin Estre, the No. 6 Porsche with fresh left-side tyres was able to preserve second place against the threats of the two factory Ferraris, the No. 51 crossing the finish line in third and the No. 50 in fourth,[109][105] though the No. 50 was later disqualified for a technical infraction.[111]
In LMP2, the No. 43 Inter Europol was given a penalty for pit lane speeding, dropping them behind the No. 48 VDS Panis with one hour remaining. 40 minutes later, a mechanical issue caused the No. 48 to lose power, allowing the No. 43 to re-take first place; the No. 28 placed second in LMP2 ahead of the Pro-Am No. 199 AO by TF in third and Pro-class No. 9 Iron Lynx Proton in fourth. Both the fifth and sixth place overall finishers were Pro-Am entries, comprising the pole-sitting No. 29 TDS and No. 11 Proton Orecas, second and third in their subclass.[112] Manthey's No. 92 Porsche finished first in the LMGT3 class, the team's second consecutive win, the first for drivers Ryan Hardwick and Riccardo Pera, and the sixth for Richard Lietz. Completing the podium were the No. 21 Vista Ferrari and No. 81 TF Sport Corvette; the pole-sitting No. 27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin finished fourth, and the No. 87 Akkodis ASP Lexus in fifth.[112]
On 16 June, the No. 50 Ferrari, which finished fourth, was disqualified from the race due to a technical infringement regarding bolts located in the car's rear wing. The missing bolts allowed for a higher level of wing deflection than allowed by regulations; post-race testing showed the rear wing had 52 mm (2.0 in) of deflection when the maximum deflection allowed by FIA regulations was 15 mm (0.59 in).[113] Ferrari-AF Corse contested the disqualification, arguing that the changes had no impact on the car's performance or safety.[114]
The minimum number of laps for classification (70 percent of the overall race winner's distance) was 270 laps. Class winners are denoted inbold and ‡.
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