The World Endurance Championship (WEC) has announced its 37-strong entry list for the 2024 season. Not only is the longstanding LMP2 class axed, and GTE is now replaced with LMGT3, but an interesting shift has occurred: The top-flight Le Mans Hypercar (LMH) class is bigger than LMGT3. In fact, with 19 cars spanning nine manufacturers, the 2024 LMH entry list represents the biggest prototype field since the late 1990s.
For 2024, the LMH class will be contested by more major constructors than ever: Toyota, BMW, Porsche, Alpine, Lamborghini, Ferrari, Peugeot, and Cadillac have all signed up for the full season of WEC with LMH bids. Lamborghini is the newest entry, while Aston Martin is joining in 2025 to make the field even larger. Still, the 2024 entry list is one of the most stacked fields in endurance racing for a long time, and even LMGT3 has a healthy 18 entries across nine constructors with the return of a factory-backed McLaren 720S GT3 effort. The sole non-automaker entry in LMH is now Isotta Fraschini, as Vanwall and Glickenhaus are not entering for 2024. This is the list for LMH and LMGT3:
LMH
| Number | Team | Car |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Cadillac Racing | Cadillac V-Series.R |
| 5 | Porsche Penske Motorsport | Porsche 963 |
| 6 | Porsche Penske Motorsport | Porsche 963 |
| 7 | Toyota Gazoo Racing | Toyota GR010 HYBRID |
| 8 | Toyota Gazoo Racing | Toyota GR010 HYBRID |
| 11 | Isotta Fraschini | Isotta Fraschini Tipo6-C |
| 12 | Hertz Team Jota | Porsche 963 |
| 15 | BMW M Team WRT | BMW M Hybrid V8 |
| 20 | BMW M Team WRT | BMW M Hybrid V8 |
| 35 | Alpine Endurance Team | Alpine A424 |
| 36 | Alpine Endurance Team | Alpine A424 |
| 38 | Hertz team Jota | Porsche 963 |
| 50 | Ferrari AF Corse | Ferrari 499P |
| 51 | Ferrari AF Corse | Ferrari 499P |
| 63 | Lamborghini Iron Lynx | Lamborghini SC63 |
| 83 | AF Corse | Ferrari 499P |
| 93 | Peugeot TotalEnergies | Peugeot 9X8 |
| 94 | Peugeot TotalEnergies | Peugeot 9X8 |
| 99 | Proton Competition | Porsche 963 |
LMGT3
| Number | Team | Car |
|---|---|---|
| 27 | Heart of Racing Team | Aston Martin Vantage GT3 |
| 31 | Team WRT | BMW M4 GT3 |
| 46 | Team WRT | BMW M4 GT3 |
| 54 | Vista AF Corse | Ferrari 296 GT3 |
| 55 | Vista AF Corse | Ferrari 296 GT3 |
| 59 | United Autosports | McLaren 720S GT3 Evo |
| 60 | Iron Lynx | Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 |
| 77 | Proton Competition | Ford Mustang GT3 |
| 78 | Akkodis ASP Team | Lexus RC F GT3 |
| 81 | TF Sport | Corvette Z06 GT3.R |
| 82 | TF Sport | Corvette Z06 GT3.R |
| 85 | Iron Dames | Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 |
| 87 | Akkodis ASP Team | Lexus RC F GT3 |
| 88 | Proton Competition | Ford Mustang GT3 |
| 91 | Manthey EMA | Porsche 911 GT3 R |
| 92 | Manthey PureRXcing | Porsche 911 GT3 R |
| 95 | United Autosports | McLaren 720S GT3 Evo |
| 777 | D’Station Racing | Aston Martin Vantage GT3 |
Longtime fans of endurance racing will know that strong prototype fields are a rarity, with short bursts of close competition breaking up plenty of single-make domination. At best, most hotly contested seasons are between two manufacturers. There was the Porsche-Toyota-Audi battle that spanned the 2010s; the Audi-versus-Peugeot era of the late 2000s; and the Audi’s dynastic streak with the R8 immediately before that. (The LMP, of course, not the road car.) Rarely have several manufacturers been in the running at once. You’d have to go back to Le Mans circa the waning years of the 20th century, when Mercedes, Audi, Nissan, Toyota, Porsche, and BMW all fought at the front with some of the most legendary race cars of all time.
The first season of racing the LMH cars in 2023 was good, even if some teams weren’t happy with their balance of performance (BOP) penalties. That’s a given in motorsport, though, and many LMH cars showed genuine competitiveness, making the most recent 24 Hours of Le Mans a true classic. Now, there are even more players vying for overall glory. All that’s left is for the best to win.
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