Hypercar entries will be eligible for the Asian Le Mans Series from the 2026/ 2027 Series following “requests received by some manufacturers”.
The Hypercar entries will be for non-factory, privately entered teams only with Pro-Am crews consisting of at least one bronze driver and the additional high-profile category will allow the ALMS to further develop its increasing profile and standing in the important Asian motor sport market.
The Asian Le Mans Series has been steadily growing in popularity amongst teams and drivers over the past few seasons, with grids of over 40 cars across the LMP2, LMP3 and GT categories.
The three-event, six-race format from December to February is popular with the competitors as it fits well with the European and North American race calendars, and also the FIA World Endurance Championship.
There has also been a surge of interest from teams based in South East Asia and China, with more teams looking to take their first steps on the ACO endurance racing ladder, with an eye on the ultimate prize, a place on the grid at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
“We plan to have maybe 2-3 cars in the first year, and the target is to attract Asian gentlemen drivers,” Pierre Fillon, President of the Automobile Club de l’Ouest told DSC. “We know they like to drive brands like Porsche, Ferrari and McLaren.
“Maybe at the beginning we will have 2-3 cars, but we will improve every year. It’s important to have private teams and not factory cars.”
When asked if he was confident that manufacturers would position themselves to supply customer cars for the Asian Le Mans Series, Fillon gave DSC a very firm “Yes.”
“The interest in the ALMS has grown exponentially over the past few years, as seen by the large grids last season, with more Chinese and Asian teams joining the series for the first time,” he continued.
“The Asian motor sport market is booming and there is strong interest from manufacturers and teams to race the cars that take centre stage at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in front of the fans nearer to home. The ACO is supporting that interest by including the Hypercar category in the ALMS.”
Frédéric Lequien, ALMEM and LMEM CEO, added: “After receiving several requests from manufacturers, we are pleased to announce that Hypercar is coming to the Asian Le Mans Series next year.
“While Hypercar will remain as the premier class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and FIA WEC, reserved for the top endurance drivers in the world, it is important for the development of endurance racing in Asia to be able to allow teams to run the same cars in the Asian Le Mans Series.”
Speaking specifically on the decision to restrict it to Pro/Am line-ups only, he told reporters: “We have to be very precise about which kind of Bronze driver will be eligible. You will have to have a minimum level of experience, of course.
“But this is something we wanted to do, to let’s say, give some more oxygen to the manufacturers, to develop the customer racing business, and also because we still have the ambition to penetrate the Asian market. And for this, we need to have this category.
“So, the plan is that it will be mandatory to have one Bronze driver inside the car, but with the performance, they will need to have reached a minimum level of experience. The cars are technically advanced and expensive to run. We must work on those details.”
To this point, only a single start has been made in a current Hypercar/ GTP by a Bronze-ranked driver, Ben Keating, who started the 2024 Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona in the JDC Motorsport Porsche 963.
“There will be no obligations on manufacturers to have a presence in the Asian Series, but it will be open to all manufacturers,” Lequien later clarified. “We never expected the success of Hypercar to have this kind of success in WEC… But we are sold out.
“When we solved the idea of the Hypercar regulations, everybody agreed that they would have the possibility to do some customer racing. But I think you will agree with me, it’s going to be very difficult to have some additional private cars in the WEC as things stand, because the grid is full.
“But not only that, we also want to make this championship more powerful in terms of media coverage in Asia.”
Stéphane Ratel, SRO Motorsports Group Founder & CEO concluded: “SRO is primarily known for its GT activities but has had numerous involvements in the wider world of endurance racing, and always with a focus on customer racing. Naturally, I am therefore delighted to see Hypercar further embracing this environment in 2026.
“The ACO and FIA have created an era-defining manufacturer-supported category that will further expand by being opened up to Pro-Am pairings.
“The fact that this is exclusively reserved for Asian Le Mans represents a fantastic opportunity for the series, giving it a new headline and a stronger appeal for teams, drivers, viewers, media and event promoters across the continent and beyond.”
