Category: News

Is Porsche thinking on getting back to prototype racing? At Le Mans?

According to Motorsport.com, that might be a possibility. If so, Porsche is considering the new LMDh class, that supposedly should start in 2021. Nobody knows much about this new class, but basically it will allow the same car to compete both in WEC and IMSA races. Everything is on hold right now because of the pandemic, but if Porsche is actually thinking about it, maybe there’s hope for the future of endurance racing.

T.50

So far no pics, only a rendering, and not much to see. But Gordon Murray (yes, that Gordon Murray) is working on a new supercar. Not much has been revealed, it’s called T.50 and will be powered by a ground-breaking V12 from Cosworth. According to their website it will be naturally aspirated and deliver 650 hp. It will also be the “highest-revving engine ever in a production car”. From their website you can see the engine actually being tested, so I think the T.50 will actually come to life. Très cool! 😎

Six (yes, just 6!) cars in LMP1 at La Sarthe this year

ACO released this afternoon (02/28) the entry list for the 24 Heures du Mans of 2020. We will only have six LMP1 cars – two Toyota, two Ginetta and two Rebellion. The grid will consist of 62 cars in total, and the other 56 are 24 LMP2, 11 GTE-Pro and 20 GTE-Am cars.

This year will be the last hurrah of the LMP1 class, and I’m sad to see only six cars. The class has been around since 1994 and I thought they deserved a grander going-away party 😥.

Motorsport.com has the full list here.

Hypercar class in jeopardy

Earlier this week we heard that Aston Martin is pulling out of the new Hypercar class, and therefore the Valkyrie project was put on hold (canceled?). So far only Toyota has what looks to be a “working project”, but nothing yet from McLaren, Peugeot or Glickenhause. Well, the later, on Tweeter, said they do have something in the oven. We’re almost in March now, and Le Mans is in June, so with all that (lack of) news I’m worried.

Jalopnik has a much better story on this. And unfortunately, it’s a troublesome read.

ACO and IMSA unify rules for 2021

According to Road & Track, this weekend both race bodies announced that from 2021 onward Le Mans and Daytona will be raced with the same rules. That is huge, since it means that the same car will now be able to compete at Daytona and La Sarthe, an immense incentive to race car manufacturers. Starting in 2021, Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO) and the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) agreed on a new class, called Le Mans Daytona h (LMDh). There will also be LMP2 and Hypercars, and both classes will be legal in both series.

Everything is all official, so this means that starting next year things will be very interesting for Le Mans. And by that I mean more manufacturers, ergo, more variety and cool cars 🤞.

We lost Neil Pert

This morning I was really sad to know that Neil Pert passed away this past Friday, January 10th. A true car guy and drummer from Rush, one of my favorite bands, he was battling cancer for three years.

Rush has too many great songs to list, but without a doubt “Red Barchetta” is my all time favorite. If you ever have the time to listen to it, pay attention to the lyrics.

The world is less bright today 😥.

Peugeot + Rebellion?

OH YES! It was just announced that Rebellion Racing will partner up with Peugeot for FIA’s 2022 WEC Hypercar season. There aren’t much details out about the partnership, so it’s not clear if Rebellion will still run their R-13 LMP1 car in 2020.

As I said before, this new hypercar class is going to be awesome. With Peugeot committed and Aston Martin and Toyota confirmed, so far we will have three factory teams running hypercars. I’m really looking forward to next year’s season.