IMSA: Final entry list released for 2019 24 Hours of Le Mans
The Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO) has finally released the list of IMSA and other cars that will be allowed entry into the 2019 24 Hours of Le Mans.
It is no surprise that IMSA‘s group of 24 Hour of Le Mans regulars are on the Automobile Club de l’Ouest’s (ACO) entry list for the race, although the selection process did happen slightly later than it has in previous years, which gave a slight sense of hesitation from the French organizers as to which, if any, IMSA teams would be permitted. Thankfully, those feelings have been put to rest with the recent entry list having been released.
The lineup for the race is set to be similar to what it has been in years past with the core teams in the FIA World Endurance Championship being set to compete. The battle for which hybrid Toyota wins in 2019 will be followed by the traditionally fierce competition between the remaining non-hybrid LMP1 cars from Rebellion, ByKolles and DragonSpeed.
Porsche, Chevrolet, Ford and Ferrari are set to compete in the race with the Porsche, Chevrolet and Ford factory teams making the trek to Circuit de la Sarthe in Le Mans, France. The only two non-factory-supported IMSA cars making the journey are the Risi Competizione Ferrari 488 GTE Evo in the LM GTE Pro class and the WeatherTech Racing Ferrari 488 GTE in the LM GTE Am class.
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RACER’s Stephen Kilbey reported that BMW Team Rahal Letterman Lanigan (RLL) declined to apply for entry for both of their M8 GTE cars, which makes them the only full-time American GTLM team not to make the journey to Le Mans in 2019.
The Porsche and Ford entries from the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship are set to join their fellow factory cars from the WEC. While this will provide a field of mostly Fords and Porsches, the competition between the American IMSA teams and the European WEC teams is present every year and is expected to be as fierce as ever.
Ford, Ferrari, Chevrolet and Aston Martin are looking to knock Porsche off their pedestal after the German manufacturer dominated the tail end of the 2018 24 Hours of Le Mans as the two retro-liveried WEC cars battled for who would win the LM GTE Pro class.
Fans of IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship prototype racing will have to wait another year to see an IMSA team compete in the top LMP1 category, as the WEC and IMSA organizations are still in the process of coming to common regulations that would allow teams from both series to compete in both series without significant modification to the prototype cars.
The official full entry list for the 2019 24 Hours of Le Mans is provided here.
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The 87th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans is scheduled to take place from Saturday, June 15 through Sunday, June 16 at Circuit de la Sarthe in Le Mans, France. Live race coverage can be picked up from Radio Le Mans and IMSA.TV.