The 2020 European Le Mans Series entry list has been released, featuring 40 cars across the three classes.
It’s a big list, but one which features few surprises and a dominant chassis in each of the categories.
Let’s go ahead and break down each class:
IDEC’s title defence headlines LMP2
LMP2 will once again see 18 cars, almost all of the 2019 teams returning in 2020. This means that three Le Mans auto invites will be handed out as per the new regulations revealed at the end of last year which sees the number of auto invites for each class increase and decrease depending on the entry size.
IDEC Sport will defend its ELMS title with the ORECA 07-Gibson and 2019 drivers champion Paul Lafargue being named as the lead driver. However, the team’s second entry has been abandoned and replaced by a single-car entry in the new-look LMP3 class with former LMP2 driver with the team, Patrice Lafargue, named.
Last year’s runner up, G-Drive Racing, is also returning with the Russian flagged Aurus 01-Gibson driven by Roman Rusinov. This makes it four chassis represented in name form, though the Aurus is, of course, an ORECA homologated under a different brand name.
Fresh from its class win at the 24 Hours of Daytona last month, DragonSpeed returns to the ELMS with 2019 driver’s champion Memo Rojas moving to the American team from IDEC Sport, while the racing winning United Autosports team return with a two-car entry.
Two new teams will grace the LMP2 grid this season. French team Ultimate, as expected has stepped up from LMP3 with Jean-Baptiste Lahaye being named as the lead driver.
Richard Mille Racing Team is another newcomer, with an ORECA 07 Gibson. This is a Signatech-run effort, expected to feature an all-female driving crew. 2018 IMSA GTD Vice-Champion Katherine Legge is named, with Tatiana Calderon and Sophia Floersch expected to complete the trio.
Notably, this is the first time since 2012 that Signatech has run a non-Alpine chassis, that year it ran an ORECA 03. Signatech was also rumoured to have entered a second car, but that has not appeared.
Outside of the ORECA ranks, just one Dallara is listed, Thunderhead Carlin Racing returning for a second season with the only Dallara P217 on the 2020 grid. KEO Racing, which acquired an ex-High Class Racing P217 was set to join the series but doesn’t feature on the list.
There are just two Ligiers, both run by Inter Europol Competition, which doubles its effort for 2020 with a pair of JSP217s. Eurointernational was expected by some to run a Ligier JS P217 in LMP2, but that potential effort has fallen short, the team instead, running in LMP3 again with Harrison Newey its named driver.
Tyres are a big talking point still in the class, with the final season of open tyre competition in the ELMS now upon us (Goodyear has been named the sole supplier from 2021 onwards). Michelin has strength in numbers going into its final year with 13 customers. Goodyear has just five cars for the season (from Algarve Pro, Panis Racing, BHK Motorsport and Carlin).
Multiple teams have changed supplier this year. High Class switches to Michelin (as it did in the FIA WEC), G-Drive has too. DragonSpeed meanwhile has opted to stick with Michelin, despite testing with Goodyear in the offseason.
New Era for LMP3
2020 marks a new era in LMP3 with the Ligier JS P320 and Duqueine M30-D08 making their international racing debut. The new LMP3 chassis from Ginetta and Adess are nowhere to be seen, though Ginetta G61-LT-P3s are expected to be entered in the Le Mans Cup this year.
13 entries will be on the grid this season, down one from 14 in 2019, with 10 of them Ligiers and three of them Duqueines.
Eurointernational and Inter Europol Competition both return to renew their battles for championship glory. Nigel Moore returns for Inter Europol while the lead driver in the Eurointernational Ligier will be Harrison Newey.
On the subject of the 2019 title battle 2019 champion, one further potential drama to be played out this week is the final appeal against the race result in LMP3’s ELMS season finale. The championship result and a Le Mans 24 Hours auto entry is hanging on the final decision between champions-elect Eurointernational and Inter Europol, which appealed against its penalty for a driving hours violation post an early-race red flag.
Elsewhere, as previously noted, reigning LMP2 champion IDEC Sport has entered a single Ligier for Patrice Lafargue, while United Autosports and Nielsen Racing have, once again, entered two cars each, with Ligiers entered for United Autosports and Duqueines (upgraded Normas) for Nielsen Racing.
360 Racing, Realteam Racing, Graff and RLR MSport all return with a single-car entry. The Realteam Racing entry has seen significant change over the off season, the outfit switching chassis from Norma to Ligier for 2020 and operating team from Graff to TDS.
DKR Engineering rejoins the championship after winning the Le Mans Cup title once again in 2019. Its Duqueine D08 has Laurents Hörr named.
With 13 cars entered just one Le Mans invite will be handed out.
9 cars for the fight in GTE
The LMGTE grid will comprise 9 cars in 2020. In 2019 nine cars featured during the campaign but only six completed the full season.
In total there are seven Ferraris and two Porsches listed.
There are some notable omissions. The expected Porsche entries from Ebimotors and Project 1 have not appeared. The TF Sport effort to run an Aston Martin has also fallen short.
There is ELMS entry either for Luzich Racing, last year’s GTE title winner. This likely means that it intends to graduate to the FIA WEC next season after a double win, taking the class title in the Le Mans Cup last year too.
This means it’s two rather than three AF Corse run cars with Duncan Cameron’s #55 effort (set to feature Matt Griffin once again).
JMW (which announced a parallel GT3 customer programme with Bentley in Asia today) returns too, it loses driver Wei Lu to Kessel Racing but gains Gunnar Jeanette.
Kessel Racing’s all-female effort from 2019 meanwhile, transfers to new entrant Iron Lynx from Italy, which has a second entry with ex-Kessel driver Claudio Schiavoni named.
Kessel has managed to draw together a two-car effort with Wei Lu in one car and long-time Kessel customer Michael Broniszewski on the list.
Proton Competition is the only non-Ferrari team named for the full season. One is listed as Dempsey Proton, once again hedging its bets on a third potential auto entry for Le Mans.
With nine cars listed for the season, two Le Mans invites will be handed out this year, eaning six auto entries are up for grabs, up from five in 2019.
Gérard Neveu, CEO of the European Le Mans Series, said: “We are pleased to announce once again a huge 40 car ELMS grid for 2020. The LMP2 grid is very strong, with top teams and drivers.
“The LMP3 grid will feature the new second-generation cars from Ligier and Duqueine and also shows a strong line-up, while we look forward to another epic season of intense battles between Porsche and Ferrari in LMGTE.
“With six 4-hour races on some of Europe’s top circuits, our path forward for 2020 is looking promising and we look forward to seeing you on the 5th of April in Barcelona for the start of the season.”
The 2020 European Le Mans Series will start in Barcelona with the official two-day test, which starts on Monday 30 March and concludes with Round 1, the 4 Hours of Barcelona, on Sunday 5 April.
