The European Le Mans Series returns to Italy this week for its first-ever race at Mugello and the penultimate round of the 2024 season.
The Ferrari-owned circuit promises to deliver frantic racing, but beyond the excitement generated by the new surroundings, the title battles in all four categories are now red hot, with only one category – LMP2 Pro/Am – looking one-sided.
In LMP2, after claiming a first win of the season, AO By TF’s ORECA of Robert Kubica, Louis Deletraz and Jonny Edgar now leads the class by the slim margin of just two points over the previous leaders in the #43 Inter Europol Competition ORECA – Sebastian Alvarez, Tom Dillmann and Vlad Lomko – who have accrued 63.
The #28 IDEC Sport 07 is currently third on 50 points after full-season drivers Reshad de Gerus and Job van Uitert scored their first podium finish of the season at Spa, while the 4 Hours of Imola winners at Panis Racing are fourth on 48 points.
Pro/Am, meanwhile, is the title most likely to be decided this weekend, with reigning class champion AF Corse heading to Mugello with a 20-point advantage after winning the 4 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps and their nearest rivals failing to score.
Alessio Rovera, Francois Perrodo and Matthieu Vaxiviere are on 80 points after four rounds, with Alex Quinn, Kriton Lentoudis and Richard Bradley on 60 points in the #20 Algarve Pro Racing machine.
Round 2 winners Gregoire Saucy, Mathias Beche and Rodrigo Salles in the #29 Richard Mille by TDS ORECA are third in the LMP2 Pro/Am standings with 59 points after starting from pole and crashing out of the race in Belgium after a tangle with Formula Racing’s Ferrari at Eau Rouge.
A win at home in Mugello for AF Corse would see the Francois Perrodo-Matthieu Vaxiviere pairing score their second ELMS LMP2 Pro/Am title in a row.
In P3, a second win on the bounce for Italian team Eurointernational Ligier saw its lead at the top of the standings grow, with Matt Bell and Adam Ali now on 77 points, 14 points ahead of RLR’s Round 2 winners – Gael Julien, Michael Jensen and Nick Adcock – who have 63.
The #8 Team Virage Ligier retained its third place in the championship standings after Spa but has fallen further back with a P6 finish. Reigning champion COOL Racing is fourth on 48 points.
LMGT3 is the tightest race of them all, with Racing Spirit of Leman holding just a single-point advantage over GR Racing after a consistent run of three top-five finishes (with two podiums) in the first four races for Derek DeBoer, Valentin Hasse-Clot and Casper Stevenson.
Iron Lynx’s retirement from Spa dropped Andrea Caldarelli, Hiroshi Hamaguchi and Axcil Jefferies from first to third and has blown the title race wide open. Just 24 points covering the top nine cars, with 52 still up for grabs.
Beyond Racing Spirit of Leman, GR Racing and Iron Lynx, the crews from Iron Dames, Spirit of Race, Kessel Racing, AF Corse and Grid by TF can all still win this. So expect fireworks when the lights go out on race day.
The 4 Hours of Mugello will get underway at 11:30 local time in Italy on Sunday.
