24h Le Mans
As scrutineering ahead of Test Day continued this morning for the teams invited to the 85th 24 Hours of Le Mans, here’s the latest news from in and around the paddock.
The Dutch driver turns 61 today. The winner of the 1988 Le Mans 24 Hours in a Jaguar XJR-9LM will be back this year for his 23rd appearance in the race. He will be sharing the wheel of Racing Team Nederland’s #29 Dallara P217-Gibson with Frits van Eerd and former Formula One driver, Rubens Barrichello.
Five teams from the last Asian Le Mans Series season will be competing in this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans, bring an Oriental flavour to the Circuit de la Sarthe. Clearwater Racing and DH Racing are fielding three Ferrari 488 GTEs (two for Clearwater, one for the current Asian LMS GT champion) in the LM GTE-Am class, whereas Asian LM P3 titleholder Tockwith Motorsports, Eurasia Motorsport and Algarve Pro Racing are each running a Ligier JSP217-Gibson in LM P2.
Salih Yoluc is the first Turkish driver to appear at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The 22-year-old from Istanbul will share the wheel of the #90 Aston Martin Vantage for TF Sport with Euan Hankey and Rob Bell. The European Le Mans Series team won the GT3 Le Mans Cup last year, rubber-stamping its automatic invitation to the 85th 24 Hours of Le Mans.
While waiting to undergo scrutineering yesterday afternoon, the #35 and #36 Alpine A470-Gibsons entered in the LM P2 class posed for a family portrait on the Le Mans track alongside the new A110, the undisputed star of the recent Geneva Motor Show.
Main photo: Clearwater Racing is getting ready for its second appearance at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The Singapore-based outfit is running two Ferrari 488 GTEs in the LM GTE-Am class.
