24h Le Mans
The Hypercar class is for cars capable of going after the overall win driven by either experienced drivers or those on the rise but with already well-established talent. They all want the same thing: to claim the top step on the overall podium on Sunday 11 June.
The regulations dictate that no Bronze driver can compete in the Hypercar class, only Platinum, Gold and Silver are allowed. Constructors and teams recruit the best drivers possible, for example there are 44 Platinum drivers of a total 48 available spots in the 24 Hours Centenary. The four others are Gold. The Platinum qualification is the highest there is and boasts previous winners, drivers with a Super Licence (to race in Formula 1) and those hired by a manufacturer.
Several previous winners will take the wheel in the Hypercar class at the upcoming Centenary. Porsche has recruited Nick Tandy and Cadillac picked Earl Bamber, the overall winners in 2015 with a 919 Hybrid, as well as André Lotterer who triumphed three times (2011, 2012 and 2014) with Audi.
Loïc Duval, also a winner with Audi (2013) and driver of the Peugeot 908 fielded by ORECA in 2010 and 2011, will take the start as an official Peugeot driver for the first time. Then there's Romain Dumas, winner in 2010 with Audi and distance record holder with Timo Bernhard and Mike Rockenfeller (the latter joining forces this year in Hendrick Motorsports' #24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 with Jimmie Johnson and Jenson Button. For his second victory, in 2016, Dumas and teammates Neel Jani and Marc Lieb claimed the top step on the overall podium after the engine of the race leader Toyota failed in the final lap. Jani is taking the wheel of an LMP2 for the Centenary.
The list of previous winners in this year's Hypercar field would be incomplete without the six Toyota drivers: Sébastien Buemi (four victories), Brendon Hartley (three), Mike Conway (one), Kamui Kobayashi (one), José María López (one) and Ryō Hirakawa (one). The two Toyota GR010 Hybrids entered in the Centenary will only be driven by previous winners!
Several stars from other endurance races will take the start this year. Scott Dixon (in Cadillac Racing's #3 Cadillac V-Series.R) won the Indianapolis 500 in 2008 and the Rolex 24 at Daytona in 2006 and 2015. Le Mans local Sébastien Bourdais is a four-time ChampCar champion and won the Rolex 24 at Daytona in 2014 and the 12 Hours of Sebring in 2015 and 2021. Luis Felipe "Pipo" Derani won the 12 Hours of Sebring in 2016 and the Rolex 24 at Daytona in 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2023.
Endurance racing veteran Kévin Estre will also be competing in the Centenary. The 2018 LMGTE Pro winner at Le Mans with the "Pink Pig" Porsche is considered an icon at the 24 Hours of Nürburgring thanks to his win in 2021 and a maneuver in 2019 that has become legendary: overtaking on two wheels in the grass going more than 275 kph, now known as the "Pass on the Grass." He also won the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps in 2019 with Porsche.
The Hypercar class is the goal for many young drivers seeking to add an overall win to their track record, like Yifei Ye (age 22), Antonio Fuoco (age 27), Jack Aitken (age 27) and Mathieu Jaminet (age 28).
Other new talents include Doriane Pin (age 19) entrusted with Prema Racing's #63 ORECA 07-Gibson and official Ferrari driver Lilou Wadoux (age 22) driving Richard Mille AF Corse's #83 Ferrari 488 GTE Evo in LMGTE Am. And let's not forget Louis Delétraz (age 26) who has already gotten his feet wet in the class in the U.S. representing Acura in GTP (the equivalent of Hypercar in the IMSA). Though competing in LMP2 at the Centenary, the Swiss driver dreams of clinching an overall win in Hypercar someday.
