Asian Le Mans Series teams at the 24 Hours of Le Mans
Who is who on this year's grid!
Tomorrow the 89th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans will start and on the grid will be many teams and drivers from the Asian Le Mans Series! As the Series continues to go from strength to strength, so to do the teams that race within it. Their presence at the pinnacle of endurance racing, the 24 Hours of Le Mans will be felt more than ever this year!
A highlight will be the first ever Asian team racing in the LMGTE Pro class! 2019/2020 GT Champions HubAuto Racing made their debut at the 24 Hours of Le Mans last year in LMGTE Am and this year step up to the LMGTE Pro class with a Porsche 911 RSR-19. In an impressive debut, the team has qualified in pole position in their class!
There will also be four teams making their debut in the race after racing in the 2021 Asian Le Mans Series!
Spotters guide: https://bit.ly/3kaR4qu
Below is a look at the Asian Le Mans Series teams including reigning class Champions who received an invitation to the race as reward for their victory
United Autosports:
Cars: #22 #23 #32 Oreca 07 - Gibson
Class: LMP2
The British outfit - one of the most successful endurance racing teams on the international stage - first competed in the Asian Le Mans Series during the 2018/2019 season with a total of four entries, one in both LMP2 and LMP2 Am, with two in LMP3. Success for Paul di Resta and Phil Hanson behind the wheel of a Ligier JS P2 in LMP2 saw the pair win the championship that year.
For the 2021 Asian Le Mans season the team entered three Ligier JS P320 Nissans in LMP3. The season was hugely successful for the team, finishing first, second and fourth overall in class!
At the 24 Hour of Le Mans our 2016/2017 Rookie of the Year and multiple Championship winner, Phil Hanson will join Fabio Scherer and Filipe Albuquerque in the #22 Oreca 07 – Gibson. The #23 entry will see Di Resta join Alex Lynn and our 2021 LMP3 Drivers champion Wayne Boyd. The final entry will see another of the LMP3 drivers champions, Manuel Maldonado, who will race with Nicolas Jamin and Jonathon Aberdein.
G-Drive Racing:
Cars: #25 and #26 Aurus 01 - Gibson
Class: LMP2
Founded in 2013, endurance racing regulars G-Drive Racing has achieved an incredible run of success. The Russian outfit joined the Asian Le Mans Series for the first time in 2019/2020 season and won the Championship in partnership with Algarve Pro Racing.
For the 2021 season this achievement was backed up the when the #26 Aurus 01 of Yifei Ye, Ferdinand Habsburg and Rene Binder claimed the teams second Championship in a row. The team also claimed third place with John Falb, Franco Colapinto and Rui de Andrade behind the wheel.
At the 24 Hour of Le Mans, the team will have two entries, where Falb and de Andrade will be joined by another driver familiar to Asian Le Mans Series fans, Roberto Merhi, in the #25. In the #26, Romain Rusinov will join Colapinto and Nyck De Vries.
JOTA
Cars: #28 and #38 Oreca 07 - Gibson
Class: LMP2
JOTA Sport, established almost two decades ago by Sam Hignett and John Stack, has become one of the most dynamic and successful teams in endurance racing. They have a reputation for nurturing young talent, achieving incredible results, as well as providing technical support to other teams. This success extends to the Asian Le Mans Series with the team claiming victory in both the LMP2 and LMP3 classes of the 2017/2018 Championship in partnership with Jackie Chan DC Racing.
In the 2021 Asian Le Mans Series season the team entered a Oreca 07 Gibson in LMP2 class. Indonesian driver Sean Geleal returned to the Series after making his prototype debut there in 2016. For the 2021 season he was joined by Stoffel Vandoorne in Dubai, and Tom Blomqvist in Abu Dhabi. The team won the final two races of the season, narrowly missing the Championship title. After their success in the Asian Le Mans Series, the trio entered the FIA WEC with Jota and will race an Oreca 07 Gibson at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Jota also provided support to Era Motorsport who won the LMP2 Am Class title. After a clean sweep of pole positions and victories in their class, Era Motorsport and Dwight Merriman will race with IDEC Sport in LMP2 in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
ARC Bratislava:
Car: #44 Oreca 07 - Gibson
Class: LMP2 Pro/Am
Started in 1997 by Miro Konopka and Dusan Vyslozil, the Slovakian team has achieved impressive results in endurance racing categories worldwide, including a long and successful history with the Asian Le Mans Series.
ARC Bratislava first joined Asian Le Mans Series for the 2015/2016 season, and won the LMP2 Am title in 2018/2019 which secured the team an entry in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2019.
The team raced a Ginetta in LMP3 in the 2021 Asian Le Mans Series, before making the step up to the FIA Word Endurance Championship in May this year.
For the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the team will race a Oreca 07 Gibson in their signature yellow livery. Miro Konopka will be joined by his son Matej and Oliver Webb.
Racing Team India Eurasia
Car: #74 Ligier JSP217 - Gibson
Class: LMP2 Pro/Am
Racing Team India made their motorsport and Asian Le Mans Series debut earlier this season, becoming the first Indian flagged LMP team in ACO racing!
For the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the team will partner with Eurasia Motorsport who are one of the most frequent and successful entrants in the Asian Le Mans Series. Established in 2003, the team has great pedigree having raced at Le Mans four times previously and have won many races and championships in Asia.
The driver line up for the 24 Hours of Le Mans will feature James Winslow, John Corbett and Tom Cloet behind the wheel of their #74 Ligier JS P217 – Gibson.
AF Corse:
Car: Ferrari 488 GTE EVO
Class: LMGTE Pro and LMGTE Am
Founded by Amato Ferrari in 2002, the factory of AF Corse has almost 100 staff who engineer, create, and achieve multiple championships for both the team, and several other successful outfits, first with Maserati and now Ferrari, to become one of the most well-known, respected and successful entities in endurance racing.
The Italian outfit have achieved great success at events such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and in the FIA World Endurance Championship, and Europeans Le Mans Series.
AF Corse has a long history with the Asian Le Mans Series having provided technical support for the likes of Spirit of Race, Clearwater Racing, DH Racing, and CarGuy Racing, and entered two Ferrari 488 GT3 into GT for our 2021 season.
At this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans the team will have four Ferrari 488 GTE EVO – two in LMGTE Pro and two in LMGTE Am. Pro line ups will see Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado, and Côme Ledogar in #51 and Daniel Serra, Miguel Molina, and Davide Rigon in the #52.
Asian Le Mans Series drivers Thomas Flohr, Giancarlo Fisichella, and Francesco Castellacci will be reunited behind the wheel of #54 Am entry, with François Perrodo, Nicklas Nielsen and Alessio Rovera in the #83.
HubAuto Racing:
Car: #72 Porsche 911 RSR-19
Class: LMGTE-Pro
Started in 2015, the Asian team can be found in racing paddocks all over the world. Headed by Team Principal and Owner, Morris Chen, who also raced with the team during their debut with the Championship in the 2019/2020 season. The team went on to claim the GT title that season before making the 24 Hours of Le Mans debut in 2020.
HubAuto Racing returned for the 2021 Asian Le Mans Series and will return to the iconic race this year. For the 2021 race they will make a step up to LMGTE-Pro class, the first Asian team ever to enter the class! The team will race a Porsche 911 RSR-19 and will have 2017 GTE Le Mans winner Dries Vanthoor behind the wheel, along with Alvaro Parente and Maxime Martin.
Absolute Racing:
Car: Porsche 911 RSR-19
Class: LMGTE Am
After travel restrictions curtailed Absolute Racing’s return to the Asian Le Mans Series with a two-car entry this season, the Chinese team will make their debut at the 24 Hours of Le Mans this year. The team will race a Porsche 911 RSR-19 driven by Indonesian racer, Andrew Haryanto, Alessio Picariello and Marco Seefried.
The livery features the true spirit of the team, and its drive to future ambitions with a powerful message in support of those fighting against discrimination across the world - #OneWorldOneRace.
TF Sport:
Car: Aston Martin Vantage AMR
Class: LMGTE Am
Founded by racer, Tom Ferrier in 2014, TF Sport have been a successful outfit in the United Kingdom, and worldwide. Multiple champions in British GT, the West Sussex based team has taken part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans four times, and won GTE-Am at the 88th running of the legendary event.
First joining the Asian Le Mans Series for the 2018/2019 season, TF Sport raced their Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3 in the GT class.
The team returned for the 2021 Asian Le Mans Series with two Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3, one of their own, and another with Oman Racing.
For the 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans TF Sport will race two Aston Martin Vantage AMR in LMGTE Am. Asian Le Mans Series drivers John Hartshorne, Oliver Hancock, and Ross Gunn will be behind the wheel of the #95 entry, with Ben Keating, Dylan Pereira, and Felipe Fraga in the #33.
Kessel Racing/CarGuy Racing:
Car: #57 Ferrari 488 GTE EVO
Class: LMGTE-Am
Kessel Racing made their Asian Le Mans Series debut in the 2021 season with a two-car GT entry that included a partnership with 2018/2019 Champions and 2019/2020 Vice Champions, CarGuy Racing.
The collaboration saw the Swiss and Japanese outfits, with Mikkel Jensen, Takeshi Kimura and Côme Ledogar finishing sixth in the GT Class, including winning the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi.
After the 2021 season, the team stepped up to the FIA WEC, making their debut in the 8 Hours of Portimao in June ahead of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Jensen and Kimura will be joined by Scott Andrews behind the wheel of the Ferrari 488 GTE EVO at the 2021 race. It will be the third 24 Hours of Le Mans in a row that the bright yellow livery of CarGuy Racing will feature on the grid!
Herberth Motorsport:
Car: #69 Porsche 911 RSR
Class: LMGTE-Am
Started in 1996, Heberth Motorsport was born through a love of motorsport by Alfred Herberth, and is team is known throughout the industry not only for their success on track, but also being a big family off track.
In the 2021 Asian Le Mans season Alfred Renauer, Ralf Bohn and Robert Renauer claimed victory in the GT Class. The team started their debut season in the best way possible, with pole position and race victory. Strong results during the rest of the season saw the team claim the Championship, and be awarded an invitation to the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
For the iconic race, the team will race a Porsche 911 RSR 19 in LMGTE Am on debut, with two of their Asian Le Mans Series drivers Robert Renauer and Ralf Bohn, to be joined by Rolf Ineichen.
Rinaldi Racing:
Car: #388 Ferrari 488 GTE EVO
Class: LMGTE-Am
Founded by Michele Rinaldi, Rinaldi Racing has found success on and off the track, with multiple Championship and race victories to their name.
On debut in the Asian Le Mans Series, not only did Rino Mastronardi, David Perel and Davide Rigon finish third in GT (securing an invitation to the 24 Hours of Le Mans), Christian Hook, Manuel Lauck and Patrick Kujala had a near perfect run in the GT Am class to take the class title!
At the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Hook will be joined by Pierre Ehret and Jeroen Bleekemolen behind the wheel of the #388 Ferrari 488 GTE EVO in LMGTE-Am for the team’s debut.
Inception Racing:
Car: #71 Ferrari 488 GTE Evo
Class: LMGTE-Am
Based in Wakefield, Shaun Goff has led as team principal since 2012, and overseen success every year since in a range of categories and races. Inception Motorsport joined the Asian Le Mans Series for the first time in 2021 with the only McLaren 720S GT3 on the grid.
Brendan Iribe, Ollie Millroy and Ben Barnicoat finished fourth in the GT Class on debut, finishing second in the first and final races of the season. As a result of this performance, the team was awarded an invitation to the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Inception Racing will race with the same three drivers in the team’s debut at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the LMGTE-Am Class, behind the wheel a Ferrari 488 GTE Evo. The team will receive support from fellow Asian Le Mans participants, Kessel Racing.
D'station Racing:
Car: #777 Aston Martin Vantage AMR
Class: LMGTE-Am
Making their debut in the Asian Le Mans Series for the 2019/2020 season, the Japanese team made an impact immediately, winning the opening race! The team returned for the 2021 season, before making a step up to the FIA World Endurance Championship in May this year. Their full season FIA WEC entry will also see them make their debut in the 24 Hours of Le Mans this year.
Behind the wheel of the Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 will be Asian Le Mans Series regulars Tomonobu Fujii and Satoshi Hoshino, and they will be joined by Andrew Watson.
The 2020 24 Hours of Le Mans GTE Am class winner and Asian Le Mans Series regulars, TF Sport will provide support to the team for iconic endurance event.
Special mentions:
2016/2017 Asian Le Mans Series GT Cup title winner, Japanese racer, Takuma Aoki will join the “Innovative car” entry with Frédéric Sausset. The SRT-41 academy team will be the first to feature a full line-up of drivers with disabilities!
Series regulars and past LMP3 Champions InterEuropol Competition will also be taking part, along with our reigning driver’s Champions Ferdinand Habsburg and Chinese driver Yifei Ye who will both be racing for Team WRT.
It is not just about the main event - there will also be an impressive line-up in the Road to Le Mans races with a 46-car entry list! Amongst them will be entries from our past LMP3 Champions Nielsen Racing (who also finished runners up this year!), Phoenix Racing, DKR Engineering, AF Corse, United Autosports, RLR MSport, Rinaldi Racing, Herberth Motorsport and Oman Racing!
All in all, there will be plenty of teams and drivers from the Asian Le Mans Series for you to cheer on this week!
