Only Hypercars and LMGT3 machinery will be eligible to enter the WEC next season, with the long-standing LMP2 class a casualty of growing demand for grid slots in the rejuvenated top category.
The impending arrival of Lamborghini, BMW and Alpine in the top class for 2024, as well as boutique marque Isotta Fraschini, is expected to result in a top-class entry of up to 20 cars next season, with the full entry currently standing at 38 cars.
However, series organiser the Automobile Club de l’Ouest announced during its official press conference on Friday morning that a “minimum” of 15 slots on the grid will be reserved for the category for the Le Mans 24 Hours, as first signalled last December.
LMP2 had been a mainstay of the WEC since its rebirth in 2012, with the category having its roots in the LMP675 class that was established by the ACO back in 2000.
It was originally intended to be a low-cost way for manufacturers to fight the heavier, more powerful LMP900s (which later became LMP1) for overall victories at Le Mans, but it quickly became the sole preserve of privateer teams.
The nature of the LMP2 category changed in 2017 when the class was restricted to four licensed chassis-builders: ORECA, Ligier, Dallara and Multimatic/Riley.
These are the same four companies that will build the next-generation LMP2 cars that are due to come on stream in 2026, and on which the LMDh cars racing alongside the Le Mans Hypercars in the top category are based.
ORECA has a de facto monopoly on the LMP2 class in the WEC, with no other chassis builder having been represented on the grid since the early rounds of the 2021 season.
The LMP2 class will remain the headline attraction for both the European and Asian Le Mans Series, while the IMSA SportsCar Championship will also continue to allow the cars to share the grid with LMDh and GT3 machinery.
Source: Autosport