It was at the end of the 1960s that the sky blue and orange colours of Gulf Oil company entered into 24 Hours of Le Mans history, with three victories (1968 and 1969, then 1975). This decoration is at the heart of the collection of entrepreneur and gentleman-driver Roald Goethe.

The 2024 European Le Mans Series season has earned five teams entry into the 93rd 24 Hours of Le Mans on 11-15 June 2025.

The 2024 European Le Mans Series and 2024&nbsp;Michelin Le Mans Cup have decided five teams granted invitation to the&nbsp;2025&nbsp;24 Hours of Le&nbsp;Mans:

<ul>
	<li>AO by TF, 2024 ELMS champion&nbsp;(invitation to compete in LMP2)&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Inter Europol Competition, 2024 ELMS runner-up&nbsp;(invitation to compete in LMP2)</li>
	<li>AF Corse, 2024 ELMS LMP2 Pro/Am champion&nbsp;(to compete in&nbsp;LMP2)</li>
	<li>RLR M Sport, 2024 LMP3 champion&nbsp;(invitation to compete in&nbsp;LMP2)&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Iron Lynx, 2024 LMGT3&nbsp;champion&nbsp;(invitation to compete in&nbsp;LMGT3)</li>
</ul>

Invitations have also been awarded after the&nbsp;2024 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season:

<ul>
	<li>Porsche Penske Motorsport, 2024 IMSA champion&nbsp;(invitation to compete in&nbsp;Hypercar)</li>
	<li>Nick Boulle, 2024 IMSA LMP2 champion and winner of the&nbsp;Jim Trueman trophy (invitation to compete in&nbsp;LMP2)</li>
	<li>Orey Fidani, 2024 IMSA best&nbsp;Bronze driver and winner of the Bob Akin trophy</li>
</ul>

The 2024/2025 Asian Le Mans Series season&nbsp;kicking&nbsp;off on&nbsp;7 December will result in additional&nbsp;invitations to take the start in the 2025&nbsp;24 Hours of Le Mans. The LMP2 and GT&nbsp;champions will earn one each.

2025 24 Hours of Le Mans – Five new invitations to the 93rd running

The 4 Hours of Portimao saw drama and excitement all the way from the start to the chequered flag with all of the 2024 titles going down to the wire, with two championships decided by a change on the final lap of the race.

Three Safety Car periods and three Full Course Yellows also kept the competitors on their toes, with strategies being changed at a moment&rsquo;s notice.

<h2>LMP2</h2>

The LMP2 title was going to be decided by three teams &ndash; AO by TF, Inter Europol Competition and Panis Racing, with AO by TF holding the advantage of 6 points going into the final race.

The race saw several teams making a bid to take the final win of the season and it was the no37 COOL Racing Oreca that eventually came out on top, Malthe Jakobsen taking the chequered flag to secure the second win of the year for himself, the team and his teammates Lorenzo Flux&aacute;&nbsp;and Ritomo Miyata.

The no14 AO by TF Oreca of Louis Del&eacute;traz finished second to secure the LMP2 title for the third time for himself, the second time for Robert Kubica and the first time for Jonny Edgar in his ELMS debut year and the AO by TF team.

The no43 Inter Europol Competition Oreca finished in 4th&nbsp;at the end of the four-hour race, with Tom Dillmann crossing the line 4 seconds behind the winning car. However, there was massive disappointment at the team when a 10 second pitstop penalty was issued early in the race, which the team served straight away, only for the penalty to be cancelled after it had been served. The Polish team could only contemplate what could&rsquo;ve been as the win in Portugal would&rsquo;ve secured the championship.

<h2>LMP2 Pro/Am</h2>

The LMP2 Pro/Am race was won by the no77 Proton Competition Oreca after Giorgio Roda secured the pole position for the fifth time in 2024 the day before.A strong battle between the title contenders &ndash; AF Corse, Richard Mille by TDS, Algarve Pro Racing and Proton Competition &ndash; took place for the entire four hours of the race.

However, it was the final few laps that had everyone on their seats. The no20 Algarve Pro Racing Oreca of Alex Quinn was leading the class by not coming in for a last-minute splash and dash for fuel unlike his rivals. The British driver was trying every trick to save fuel as the chequered flag approached as he knew that the victory in Portugal would secure the championship title.

But it wasn&rsquo;t to be as Bent Viscaal in the Proton Competition Oreca caught and passed Quinn to take the win by just 0.995 seconds. The victory for Proton Competition meant the 4th&nbsp;placed no83 AF Corse Oreca, with Matthieu Vaxiviere at the wheel, secured the 2024 titles by just two points for Francois Perrodo, Matthieu Vaxiviere and Alessio Rovera.

<h2>LMP3</h2>

The LMP3 title race was between three cars &ndash; no11 Eurointernational, no8 Team Virage and no15 RLR MSport, with just 2-points splitting the three teams.

The race for the title was also decided on the final few laps. The no17 COOL Racing Ligier of Portuguese drivers Miguel&nbsp;Crist&oacute;v&atilde;o&nbsp;and Manuel Espirito Santo made the most of their pole position to lead the race in the final laps and secure their first victory of the 2024 season.

It was the drama behind that had everyone on the edge of their seats. Adam Ali in the no11 Eurointernational Ligier was in second place and on course to take the title. The no8 Team Virage Ligier of Gillian Henrion was keeping in touch with Ali but a clash with the no88 Inter Europol Competition Ligier of Pedro Perino dropped the no8 Ligier down to 6th&nbsp;and out of contention.

However, Ali faced another danger as the no15 RLR MSport Ligier of&nbsp;Ga&euml;l&nbsp;Julien was coming up through the field. With less than 15-minutes on the clock Julien caught the Canadian and at T14 he swept by the no11 Ligier to take second place.At the chequered flag the no17 COOL Racing Ligier was 10 seconds ahead of the RLR MSPort Ligier, with Eurointernational securing the final podium place.

Michael Jensen, Nick Adcock and&nbsp;Ga&euml;l&nbsp;Julien celebrated their 2024 LMP3 European titles on the podium.

<h3>LMGT3</h3>

The LMGT3 title was being decided by no less than eight teams after qualifying. The no85 Iron Dames Porsche led from pole, with Sarah Bovy handing over to Rahel Frey and then Michelle Gatting.

The calculations for the title were further complication when the championship leading cars &ndash; the no57 Kessel Racing Ferrari and the no59 Racing Spirit of Leman Aston Martin hit problems early in the race and were languishing towards the back of the field in 8th&nbsp;and 9th&nbsp;places.

As the race entered the final stages the no85 Iron Dames Porsche had the no63 Iron Lynx Lamborghini of Andrea Calderelli pushing them hard.In the meantime Daniel Serra had pushed the no57 Kessel Racing Ferrari up the order to 5th, which meant they would take the championship on countback if Michelle Gatting crossed the line in first place. However Serra needed to finish in 4thplace if the Iron Lynx Lamborghini won the race.

As the race entered the final lap the Lamborghini was right behind the leading Porsche, with Calderelli looking to force a mistake from Gatting. Gatting soaked up the pressure but at T14 on the run through the final corner&nbsp;Caldarelli&nbsp;pounced and got alongside the Porsche to take the lead and take the chequered flag.

This meant the no63 Iron Lynx Lamborghini Huracan crew of Hiroshi Hamaguchi, Axcil Jefferies and Andrea&nbsp;Caldarelli&nbsp;were the first ever LMGT3 ELMS Champions by just two points, securing the second title for Iron Lynx and the first ELMS win for Lamborghini.

&nbsp;

The 2024 European Le Mans Series has now come to an end, with the 2025 season beginning in Barcelona in April 2025.

<a href="https://www.europeanlemansseries.com/race/4811" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;for the result from the 4 Hours of Portim&atilde;o

<a href="https://www.europeanlemansseries.com/ranking/2024?type=74" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;for the championship positions after Round 6

Highlights | 4 Hours of Portimão 2024 | ELMS

4 Heures de Portimão 2024 : les meilleurs moments

ELMS : dramatic end to 2024 season in Portimao

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is so much more than a car race – it’s a fully immersive, multi-sensory experience. In this new weekly series – “Le Mans, ignite your senses” – we’ll transport you to the heart of the world’s greatest endurance race for an encounter that’ll engage all five senses.

Every week from Thursday 17&nbsp;October until February next year, you can look forward to an article focused on&nbsp;the race and its multiple sensory stimuli as we offer a fresh insight into the 24 Hours of Le Mans:

<ul>
	<li>Sight: a focus on the visual extravaganza that this extraordinary race delivers</li>
	<li>Sound: a journey through the auditory landscape of the circuit, from roaring engines to cheering crowds</li>
	<li>Smell: how certain scents convey the essence of the race</li>
	<li>Touch: tactile experiences at the wheel, in the garage and in the grandstands</li>
	<li>Taste: all the foods and flavours associated with the race.</li>
</ul>

In these articles, we&rsquo;ll share exclusive anecdotes from drivers, mechanics, engineers and other partners, offering a first-hand perspective of the multi-sensory experience that is Le Mans.&nbsp; &nbsp;

This series will lead up to one of the most eagerly awaited moments of the 24 Hours of Le Mans calendar: February&rsquo;s official announcement of the Entry List for the 2025 race.

Join us each week for a new episode of this sensory odyssey and let the 24 Hours of Le Mans ignite your senses!

“Le Mans, ignite your senses”, a series exploring the 5 senses at the 24 Hours of Le Mans

At 40 years of age, Nicolas Lapierre is hanging up his endurance racing helmet. The now former Alpine driver has taken the start in the 24 Hours of Le Mans a remarkable 17 times and reached the top step on the LMP2 podium in 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2019.

Nicolas Lapierre is turning over a new leaf, recently announcing&nbsp;his retirement as a full-time racing driver.&nbsp;He participated in his rookie&nbsp;24 Hours&nbsp;in 2007 at the wheel of Team ORECA&#39;s Saleen S7R in the&nbsp;LMGT1 category, and&nbsp;then represented ORECA&nbsp;in&nbsp;LMP1&nbsp;before becoming an official&nbsp;Toyota driver&nbsp;between 2012 and&nbsp;2014, and again in 2017.

Lapierre&#39;s impressive track record at Le&nbsp;Mans includes four wins in&nbsp;LMP2 in 2015 (with&nbsp;KCMG), 2016, 2018 and&nbsp;2019 (with&nbsp;Alpine). He claimed the third step on the podium for Alpine three years ago, and also triumphed at&nbsp;the 12 Hours of&nbsp;Sebring in 2011 and&nbsp;2018.

Click to watch Nicolas Lapierre&#39;s video announcement on his <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DAn7Jj9tEeh/">Instagram</a> page.

The Automobile Club de l&#39;Ouest honours&nbsp;the brilliant career of Nicolas Lapierre, an exceptional driver who made his mark on the&nbsp;24 Hours of Le&nbsp;Mans many times over. We wish him the best for&nbsp;his future endeavours. Good luck, Nicolas, and thank&nbsp;you for all these years of passion and&nbsp;performance.

Nicolas Lapierre retires from competition

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	<a href="/wpphpFichiers/1/1/ressources/Image/actualites/2014/le-mans-classic/photolmc21.jpg" rel="prettyPhoto"><img alt="24 Heures du Mans

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“Le Mans, ignite your senses”, a series exploring the 5 senses at the 24 Hours of Le Mans

Nicolas Lapierre retires from competition

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