A Thursday morning wander through the paddock at Portimao found a Michelin le Mans Cup paddock with several interesting changes from the provisional entry list.
The H24 Prototype is confirmed as running only in Free Practice, as it did at Spa, Stephane Richelmi driving as the development programme for the Hydrogen Electric car progresses.
The #3 DKR Engineering Duqueine now pairs 2019 Champion Francois Kirmann with Belgian racer Kris Cools, the pair combined for DKR at Paul Ricard earlier this year.
Phoenix Racing’s #5 Ligier pairs the hugely experienced Mathias Beche with British GT Championship runner-up and 2020 United Autosports Asian Le Mans Series LMP3 podium finisher Ian Loggie: “I’m just here taking a look,” Ian told DSC on arrival.
RLR MSport’s #15 Ligier returns after missing Spa but with Tommy Foster now joined by Hörst Felbermayr, this is believed to be his first outing in a sports prototype since taking the SR3 class championship in the 2008 Radical European Masters.
Miguel Cristóvão joins the #16 Team Virage effort after a stellar run of four wins in the Ultimate Cup with the team, the Portuguese driver one of a pair of drivers that form part of Jean-Bernard Bouvet’s Endurance Driving Academy (see Mathis Poulet below).
Whilst the #18 Muehlner Motorsport Duqueine still has the TBA twins aboard, there’s a confirmed change in the sister #21 car with seemingly now ex-Team Virage man Charles Crews joining Ugo de Wilde.
2016 FFSA Supertourisme Champion Antoine Jung makes a return to the ELMS paddock for the first time since 2017 as he joins the Racing Spirit of LeMans #25 car, Jung has prior LMP3 experience from the 2017 ELMS with M Racing YMR and from Ultimate Cup in 2019 with Cool Racing.
18 year old ex French F4 racer Mathis Poulet joins Rob Hodes in the #71 Team Virage car, he too, together with Miguel Cristóvão had a clean sweep of four wins at the start of the 2021 Ultimate Cup in their 3 hour Proto Cup races.
