After the closure of the 2020 race and the last year's health gauge, the mythical endurance car race will be back with its full audience.
Pierre Fillon, President of the Automobile Club de l'Ouest(ACO), organisator of the race, said that endurance lovers and people from Le Mans (...) can once again celebrate their 24 Hours of Le Mans. . It is an event all by itself, with the return of the weigh in in the city centre, the pilots' parade, and all the activities for the public.
The return of the spectators is not possible, however, for the major motorsport brands such as Ferrari, Porsche and Audi, BMW, Cadillac... They will all take part in the World Endurance Championship in 2023. It will be held on the Circuit of the Sarthe, one hundred years after the first race. Peugeot, a French manufacturer, wanted to ensure that the hypercar category was safe and reliable. The championship will not be launched until after the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Toyota ruled the race in their absence and won the four previous editions of Le Mans.
The Japanese team is again the favorite to win with their N.7 hypercar, driven by Mike Conway from the Briton, Kamui Kobayashi of Japan, and Jose Maria Lopez (Argentina), who were victorious last year despite several misfortunes.
The Toyota N.7's main competitor should be... the Toyota N.8, driven in New Zealand by Brendon Hartley, Sebastien Buemi from Switzerland and Rio Hirakawa from Japan.
The manufacturer is now not in the lead of the WEC championship. It is being led by the French Alpine team. This is due in part to the victory in the 1000 Miles by its hypercar driven in victory by Andre Nagrao, a Brazilian, and Nicolas Lapierre, a Frenchman. Sebring (USA).
Richard Mille, President of the Endurance Commission of International Federation of Automotive (FIA), stated that "after two races, it remains very open for the fight to win the Hypercar category title and the Le Mans event could determine the direction of the championship",
Glickenhaus American team, named after its founder James Glickenhaus (New York director and producer), will again race in two hypercars. They will attempt to beat the odds in this historic and unpredictable race.
Like last year, the Sarthe circuit will host 62 cars. There will be five hypercars and 27 LMP2 (more standardized and slower), seven LMGTE PRO (derived from production sports cars) as well as 23 LMGTE Am (which can be driven by amateurs to support private teams).
Sebastien Ogier, eight-time world rally champion, will be a particular focus of this edition's curiosities. In January, Sebastien Ogier explained to AFP that he approached the endurance race with a relaxed attitude. He wanted to see how he can progress and how close he can get to the best.
Charles Milesi, 21 year old, will be his compatriots and will drive the LMP2 of Richard Mille's team.
In the LGMTE Am category: Iron Dames, a female crew will compete with Rahel Frey from Switzerland, Michelle Gatting from Denmark, and Sarah Bovy from Belgium.
The Proton Competition N.93 (LGMTE Am) will be the most popular among the amateur pilots. This year's attraction is the German-Irish actor Michael Fassbender.
