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The British team has announced the recruitment of three drivers who will take the wheel of its two Porsche 963 hypercars next season.

Hertz Team JOTA revealed the identity of not one, not two, but three of the six drivers who will defend its colours next season. The British outfit has hired 31-year-old Norman Nato,&nbsp;Phil Hanson&nbsp;(24) and Callum Ilott&nbsp;(25) for the 2024 season.

After competing in the 24 Hours of Le Mans for teams such as SMP Racing, RLR MSport, Rebellion Racing, Real Team Racing and AF Corse,&nbsp;Norman Nato&nbsp;(six starts, including a second place in 2020) joins the Hypercar class. The Frenchman took the wheel of the #38 Porsche 963 of Hertz Team JOTA at the FIA WEC Rookie Test held the day after the 2023 8 Hours of Bahrain. Nato is also involved in the MissionH24 development programme, a joint venture between the ACO and H24 Project to promote the use of hydrogen in motor racing, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Phil Hanson, meanwhile, has ended a five-year partnership with United Autosports to join JOTA. The young British driver learned the ropes in the highly competitive LMP2 class with the Anglo-American team winning the 2020 24 Hours of Le Mans in the category. He will drive the #38 Porsche 963 alongside Oliver Rasmussen.

Callum Ilott&nbsp;is no newcomer to endurance. He raced in the 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans at the wheel of the Iron Lynx Ferrari 488 GTE Evo (third in the LMGTE Am class). He is also a former member of the Ferrari Academy and the Red Bull driver development scheme. Ilott gained experience in GP3 and Formula Two before switching to IndyCar for three seasons. He will share the #12 Porsche with Nato and Will Stevens.

We now know who five of the six Hertz Team JOTA drivers will be for the 2024 season. The name of the sixth will be revealed&nbsp;very soon.&nbsp;

Hertz Team JOTA reveals three new drivers for 2024

At the 24 Hours of Le Mans Centenary in June, Fabio Scherer representing Inter Europol Competition in the LMP2 category proved determination and daring can overcome pain and adversity.

Fabio Scherer, the Swiss driver of Inter Europol Competition&#39;s ORECA&nbsp;07-Gibson, knows a thing or two about rising to the occasion. To <a href="https://www.24h-lemans.com/en/news/despite-getting-off-on-the-wrong-foot-inter-europol-competition-secures-a-well-earned-win-57674" target="_blank">win the&nbsp;LMP2 category</a>&nbsp;at the 24 Hours of Le Mans Centenary, he achieved the extraordinary:&nbsp;&quot;The race started really bad for me. At the first pit stop after 50 minutes, the Corvette (#33, Ed.) ran over my foot, and I knew straightaway something was quite bad, but I wasn&#39;t allowed to tell anyone, otherwise I couldn&#39;t finish the race. So, the first job was to look that the foot doesn&#39;t swell up, and after that it was just to control the pain and go through it. That somehow worked quite well because of quite a hard treatment. During driving, I didn&#39;t really feel anything. After that, I knew we could win this race, so I forgot for sure everything about the pain. I was even capable of kind of walking. But Monday after the race, I wasn&#39;t able at all to put any pressure on the foot. The first thing I did was to go to the doctor in Switzerland to see what happened.&quot; Scherer was diagnosed with a triple heel fracture!

<h2>An Epic Victory despite&nbsp;Technical Setbacks</h2>

In addition to the injury, the #34 ORECA presented another hurdle&nbsp;near the end of the race. &quot;At the end of the race, the&nbsp;radio failed and I had no radio. I had to watch the big TV screens to see the gap because our car was quite damaged, so&nbsp;I knew I needed to push like hell and that paid off really well and I think that made it evern more epic.&quot;

Scherer, with&nbsp;teammates&nbsp;Jakub Śmiechowski and&nbsp;Albert Costa, pulled off an upset in a category more competitive than ever. &quot;I think it was&nbsp;the hardest LMP2 field ever. And to win [the race] against all these big names is insane with the smallest team on the grid and with a broken foot, it was three-times broken. For me, the best part was when I overtook Kubica in the morning. I think the party was jumping [because of that]. [The celebration]&nbsp;was a really big party so it was quite intense.&quot;

Antonello Coletta, the head of Ferrari&#39;s&nbsp;endurance racing programme, while attending a&nbsp;screening of the official&nbsp;Centenary film, was asked about Scherer&#39;s outstanding&nbsp;performance and possible recruitment by a team in the Hypercar category, like&nbsp;Ferrari. He responded: &quot;I hope so for him!&quot;

AVA_2324A_AV3_8084.JPG-2.jpg

Fabio Scherer: a triple heel fracture for the win!

Ferrari’s historic win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans Centenary might well have been scuppered by an electronic issue. Fortunately for the Italian manufacturer, a close-knit team and a trio of determined drivers saved the day.

Sunday 11 June 2023, 10:32. Ferrari AF Corse driver Alessandro Pier Guidi brings the #51 Ferrari 499P in for fuel. But something was awry. The pit stop dragged on and on. The onboard camera showed Pier Guidi pressing various buttons but the Prancing Horse refused to budge.&nbsp;Then, as if by magic, the twin turbo-powered V6 sprang into life. The Italian camp breathed a collective sigh of relief! However, on the final stop for fuel, 25 minutes from the chequered flag, the gremlin reared its head once again. Would the problem quash the Italian manufacturer&rsquo;s dream of victory? Not at all! Pier Guidi repeated the procedure and set off again on his quest for a historic success.&nbsp;&ldquo;It was more stressful the first time the car failed to restart,&rdquo; said Antonello Coletta, Head of Ferrari Attivit&agrave; Sportive GT. &ldquo;As it didn&rsquo;t reoccur on the following two refuelling stops, we&rsquo;d almost forgotten about it when it happened again on the final pit stop.&rdquo;

So, what was the problem with the 499P? When questioned at the preview of the official film of the 24 Hours of Le Mans Centenary, Coletta replied:&nbsp;&ldquo;We encountered an electronic problem. When you restart the car, it activates a procedure that inspects the electronic system. If the slightest fault is detected, the car won&rsquo;t restart. We therefore had to find a solution to overcome the issue. Alessandro remained unbelievably cool and simply followed the engineer&rsquo;s instructions to get the car running again. It turned out that it was a small 12-volt battery that caused the problem. The most important thing was that our engineers quickly established a procedure to restart the car. It shows that our victory was achieved by the whole team. Human endeavour still has its place at Le Mans and that&rsquo;s what makes this race so special.&rdquo;

<h2>A win that will remain in the team&rsquo;s heart for ever</h2>

Pier Guidi also said a few words about this incident late in the race:&nbsp;&ldquo;I think it was easier for me inside the car than it was for my team-mates watching! I was just focused on trying to do the procedure. I already did it a few hours before and it worked, so I was just hoping that it would go the same way. When the engine started and I was able to leave the pit lane, it was a relief.&rdquo; 
The Italian racer also admitted that this win on the biggest endurance stage had had an unexpected impact on his life.&nbsp;&ldquo;I had already won the 24 Hours of Le Mans twice in LMGTE Pro, but this outright win changed my life. Now, people have started to recognise me when I&rsquo;m out and about. Hardly a day goes by without my thinking back to our win and to the 24 Hours of Le Mans. I have the picture of our win as my wallpaper so I see it every time I open my laptop!&rdquo; he explained.

Ferrari will return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans next June to defend its crown. <a href="https://www.24h-lemans.com/en/news/antonio-giovinazzi-ferrari-af-corse-the-challenge-will-be-even-tougher-58033" target="_blank">In an earlier interview</a>, Antonio Giovinazzi declared that the team will keep on working &ldquo;flat-out&rdquo;.&nbsp;Ferrari AF Corse is still a young team with room for improvement in several areas.&nbsp;&ldquo;Our strategy will be working every day on improving,&rdquo; he said.

How a 12-volt battery almost put a stick in Ferrari's Centenary spokes

Motor racing fans in France will continue to enjoy full coverage of the FIA World Endurance Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans following a two year extension deal with French broadcaster, l’Équipe.

The free-to-air media powerhouse has signed a deal with the world&rsquo;s premier endurance racing series to televise the FIA WEC until the end of 2025.

L&rsquo;&Eacute;quipe group which encompasses TV channels, a website, application, newspaper and magazine will publicise the WEC as it takes on eight races in 2024 with 14 manufacturers going head-to-head over two classes. The newspaper and magazine l&rsquo;&Eacute;quipe will also offer exclusive editorial throughout the year covering special WEC-related topics and interviews.

Furthermore, the L&#39;&Eacute;quipe website and app will offer fans real-time race results, rankings and action clips.&nbsp;L&rsquo;&Eacute;quipe live digital channels&nbsp;will broadcast the entire WEC season live, in the TV area of the L&rsquo;&Eacute;quipe site and app.

Round one of the 2024 WEC season will take place in Doha, Qatar (1-3 March).

Fr&eacute;d&eacute;ric Lequien,&nbsp;FIA WEC CEO: &ldquo;As we approach our biggest season yet with 14 manufacturers and the all-new LMGT3 category, it is fantastic to have extended our partnership with l&rsquo;&Eacute;quipe for a further two years. It is our goal to make the WEC as accessible as possible for our fans and being able to watch the events from home is key. L&rsquo;&Eacute;quipe&rsquo;s impressive household reach and high-quality media coverage can certainly help us achieve this goal in France.&rdquo;

Pierre Fillon,&nbsp;President of Automobile Club de Ouest:&nbsp;&quot;In this new golden age of endurance racing, it is crucial to offer our fans and manufacturers as much coverage as possible.&nbsp;L&#39;&Eacute;quipe &nbsp;is a high-quality broadcaster which allows us to offer everyone to experience the WEC and the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the best possible conditions. I would like to thank the Amaury Group for its trust and the quality of its offer.

L’Équipe renews partnership with FIA WEC and 24 Hours of Le Mans

Porsche Penske Motorsport has its sights set on victory at the 2024 24 Hours of Le Mans (12-16 June). Kévin Estre promises fans that they will see a much improved Porsche 963 in 2024 as a result of the team’s current hard work behind the scenes.

What frame of mind were you in, heading into the 24 Hours of Le Mans Centenary?

K&eacute;vin Estre: I was extremely proud to be one of the 186 drivers at the 24 Hours of Le Mans Centenary, especially as a Porsche works driver competing in the top class. A dream that I had held ever since I first started out in endurance had finally come true. It was a very special edition as there were a lot of events on and off the track &ndash; and a fair amount of pressure too.

What did you take away from the Porsche 963&rsquo;s d&eacute;but season?

KE:&nbsp;Significant progress because we had a lot of ground to make up from our start in Sebring. Much more than we&rsquo;d anticipated. However, we reacted well and made our first podium in the 6 Hours of Portim&atilde;o. We were there to pick up the pieces when our rivals made mistakes or encountered the problems which we had faced in Sebring. We were then disappointed with our lack of performance and reliability at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Almost all the Porsche drivers made errors, but that shows that we gave it our all and didn&rsquo;t give up.&nbsp;We didn&rsquo;t want to be just also-rans. Our will to win was stronger than that. We progressed well after Le Mans. We led Toyota and the rest of the field in Fuji for four hours. It was a very positive race for our programme as it showed that we were capable of fighting for a win. So, the season was very much a learning curve, even if that wasn&rsquo;t our original intention as we had hoped to win. We knew, though, that it was going to be a tough challenge. Now we have a season under our belt, we&rsquo;re going to build on that and do better in 2024.

In which areas does the car need to progress in 2024?

KE: There isn&rsquo;t one area in particular. It&rsquo;s more a case of fine details covering several items. Our Porsche 963 needs to be more consistent on tyre and brake wear like the Toyota GR010 Hybrid. We have to reduce wheel lock on braking so we can be more aggressive. For a race like the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the car must be more reliable. I admit it&rsquo;s easier said than done. It was our first 24-hour race in the FIA World Endurance Championship. We really attacked hard and took a lot of risks. It was tough on the car. Next year, we expect to benefit from improved reliability and greater performance so we can run at 98% instead of 101% for 24 hours,&nbsp;which rarely guarantees success as you end up making a mistake or the car breaks down because you&rsquo;ve pushed it too hard.

What can you tell the fans who hope to see Porsche win the 24 Hours of Le Mans next year?

KE: We hope so too!. It has been our aim since we set out on this programme. Everyone at the R&amp;D Centre in Weissach and at Penske in Mannheim is working flat-out on improving the car and putting out a super package at next year&rsquo;s 24 Hours of Le Mans. We have to keep our hopes up even if this year was tougher than expected, as we achieved good performance here and there.&nbsp;You can count on us in 2024.

AGA_2324A_24484.jpg

Driving for Porsche in the top class, we imagine that you are living the dream. How do you manage to keep your feet firmly on the ground?

KE: I try to remember how far I&rsquo;ve come. The first time I drove at the Circuit des 24 Heures was in a Carrera Cup France race in 2010. That&rsquo;s when I really got to know the paddock and the racetrack. When I&rsquo;m on the grid in this fantastic Porsche 963 in a truly awesome field, I have to pinch myself sometimes, but it&rsquo;s a feeling of great pride. However, nothing should be taken for granted.&nbsp;You always have to prove and push yourself, as there&rsquo;s always another driver who is a bit quicker at a particular moment in the race or at a particular turn. We have some talented drivers at Porsche so it&rsquo;s quite easy to keep your feet on the ground.

Why do drivers now have to approach the 24 Hours of Le Mans as if it were a sprint?

KE:&nbsp;Partly because the cars are much more robust than they were 20 years ago. The competition is much fiercer too. The gaps between the cars are minute nowadays. There is also a quite incredible level of professionalism&nbsp;that is almost on a par with Formula One. The manufacturers and teams invest colossal amounts of money. There are many marques that aspire to win this race and that have the potential to do so.&nbsp;It&rsquo;s got to the point where we can ill afford to drop a few tenths. It&rsquo;s very easy to lose a lap too due to an error in strategy. You always have to try and keep in touch with the leader.&nbsp;So the race today is won and lost for a few tenths of a second by making fewer mistakes at the wheel or by taking risks in traffic.

Further reading: <a href="https://www.24h-lemans.com/en/news/porsche-looking-to-score-20th-win-at-2024-24-hours-of-le-mans-57973" target="_blank">Porsche looking to score 20th win at 2024 24 Hours of Le Mans</a>

Kévin Estre (Porsche): Everyone’s working flat-out on improving the car

The grid for the 2024 ELMS will feature a total of 43 cars, the largest ever field of LMP2s for the leading continental endurance championship. Over half of the grid, 22 in total, will be entries in the two LMP2 classes, the largest gathering of LMP2 cars outside of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The Le Mans Prototype entry has been further enhanced by 10 LMP3 cars and 11 cars are entered for the brand new LMGT3 class, with Aston Martin, Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Porsche represented.

<h2>100% Increase for LMP2 in 2024</h2>

With ELMS becoming the home of LMP2 from 2024 onwards, the number of entries for the category has been increased from 7 to 14 cars, with reigning champions Algarve Pro Racing back to defend their hard-won title. 2023 champion Alex Lynn will be joined by Olli Caldwell and Matthias Kaiser in the no25 Oreca-Gibson.

2020 ELMS Champions United Autosports will run two cars in the LMP2 category with former ELMS Drivers&rsquo; champion Filipe Albuquerque in the no23 Oreca, and 2022 Asian Le Mans Series champion Ben Hanley will be in the no22 machine.

2023 LMP3 Champion Alejandro Garcia will move up to LMP2 next season with COOL Racing, the Swiss team running a two-car entry in the top class. Garcia will be in the no47 Oreca and 2022 ELMS LMP3 Champion Malthe Jakobsen in the no37 entry.

A Le Mans winner returns to the ELMS grid, with Will Stevens joining Nielsen Racing next season alongside Nicolas Pino in the no27 Oreca.

Inter Europol Competition will also run two cars in LMP2 in 2024, with 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans LMP2 winner Jakub Smiechowski returning to the ELMS in the no34 entry alongside Jonathan Aberdein and former Formula 2 driver Cl&eacute;ment Novalak. 2022 Michelin Le Mans Cup LMP3 Champion Tom Dillmann joins the team in the no43 Oreca alongside Vladislav Lomko and Sebastian Alvarez.

2019 ELMS Champions IDEC Sport return with a single car entry with Paul Lafargue to head the driver line-up.

Panis Racing and Duqueine Team will also return with a single car entry each in LMP2 with Manuel Maldonado returning for Panis Racing and reigning LMP2 Drivers&rsquo; Champion James Allen racing for Duqueine Team in 2024.

Iron Lynx-Proton will enter a single car for Jonas Ried. 2021 Driver&rsquo;s Champion Robert Kubica will head the line up in the no14 AO by TF Oreca-Gibson, while British team Vector Sport will make their ELMS debut in 2023 with Gabriel Aubry and Ryan Cullen.

<h2>Eight Cars for LMP2 Pro/Am</h2>

AF Corse will return to defend their 2023 title with Driver Champions Fran&ccedil;ois Perrodo and Matthieu Vaxiviere also returning. Race winner Alessio Rovera will also join his teammates for the 2024 ELMS season.

Algarve Pro Racing will run a car in the Pro/Am category for Greek driver Kriton Lendoudis, who will be joined by 24 Hours of Le Mans LMP2 winner Richard Bradley.

United Autosports will also run a car in the Pro/Am category alongside their two LMP2 entries, with Oliver Jarvis joining Andrew Meyrick and Daniel Schneider.

Another team running a Pro/Am car alongside their LMP2 entry is Nielsen Racing, with former ELMS LMP2 Pro/Am and LMP3 champion John Falb being joined by 2021 Michelin Le Mans Cup LMP3 Champion Colin Noble.

DKR Engineering, Proton Competition and Team Virage will each run one car, while the Richard Mille name returns to the ELMS with a single entry for the Richard Mille by TDS.

<h2>Ten Cars for LMP3</h2>

COOL Racing will defend their back-to-back LMP3 titles, with the no17 Ligier-Nissan being crewed in 2024 by Portuguese drivers Manuel Espirito Santo and Miguel Cristóvão and Swiss driver C&eacute;dric Oltramare.

2023 Vice Champions Eurointernational also return, the Italian team returning with an unchanged driver line up of Matthew Richard Bell and Adam Ali, who ended the 2023 season with a win in Portim&atilde;o.

4 Hours of Le Castellet LMP3 winners Jacques Wolff, Antoine Doquin and Jean-Ludovic Foubert return for another attempt at the title with Swiss team Racing Spirit of L&eacute;man.

WTM by Rinaldi Racing also return with an unchanged line up of 4 Hours of Algarve winners Torsten Kratz, Leo Weiss and Oscar Tunjo.

Spanish driver Bel&eacute;n Garcia will compete for 2021 LMP3 Championship winning team DKR Engineering in 2024, while reigning Michelin Le Mans Cup LMP3 Champion Julien Gerbi will move up to the ELMS with Team Virage.

RLR MSport will field two cars in the 2024 ELMS with James Dayson and Horst Felbermayr Jr in the no5 and no15 Ligiers respectively, while French outfit Ultimate also return after claiming two podiums in 2023.

Inter Europol Competition complete the LMP3 entry with a single car entry for Kai Askey, Pedro Perino and Alexander Bukhantsov.

<h2>LMGT3 First Season Attracts Eleven Cars</h2>

The first grid of LMGT3 cars in the ELMS will feature six Ferrari 296 LMGT3s, two Porsche 911 LMGT3 Rs, two Aston Martin Vantage AMR LMGT3 and a single Lamborghini Huracan LMGT3 Evo2.

Reigning LMGTE Champions Proton Competition will field a single Porsche 911 LMGT3 R for Italian Claudio Schiavoni. The second Porsche will be run by the Iron Dames team with a warm welcome back to the ELMS for 2022 4 Hours of Portim&atilde;o race winner Michelle Gatting.

Reigning Michelin Le Mans Cup GT3 Team Champions Racing Spirit of L&eacute;man step up to the ELMS with a single Aston Martin Vantage AMR for Michelin Le Mans Cup drivers&rsquo; champion Valentin Hasse Clot. The Second Aston Martin Vantage will be run by Grid Motorsport by TF, with Martin Berry, the 2023 European Le Mans Series Gentleman of the Year.

There are six different teams running the Ferrari 296 in 2024, with former LMGTE Champions Formula Racing running a single entry for father and son duo Johnny and Conrad Laursen and 2017 champions JMW Motorsport running a single Ferrari for American Jeffrey Segal.

ELMS race winners Matt Griffin, Duncan Cameron and David Perel will race together once again in a Spirit of Race Ferrari 296, race winner Takeshi Kimura is returning with Kessel Racing. Emmanuel Collard and Charles-Henri Samani return with AF Corse and Michael Wainwright will compete in a GR Racing run Ferrari 296.

2021 LMGTE Champions Iron Lynx will run the only Lamborghini Huracan on the ELMS grid for Michelin Le Mans Cup race and Road to Le Mans winner Hiroshi Hamaguchi.

<h2>Three Cars on the Reserve List</h2>

The number of requests for a place on the 2024 ELMS grid exceeded demand, with three cars being placed on the reserve list. There are two LMP3 class cars on the reserve list, the no39 Graff Racing Ligier JS P320-Nissan and the no2 Nielsen Racing Ligier JS P320-Nissan. The LMP2 Pro/Am no81 Dragonspeed USA Oreca 07-Gibson is the third car.

<a href="https://storage.googleapis.com/doc-prod/oHeQpUVXpDWFfCXbIntGQSv0.pdf" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>&nbsp;for the provisional entry list for the 2024 European Le Mans Series.

Pierre Fillon, President of the Automobile Club de l&rsquo;Ouest (ACO):&nbsp;&quot;Prepare for an extraordinary European Le Mans Series season, as a fantastic field of 43 cars takes to the grid. Anticipate an exhilarating season of high-caliber racing as the series maintains its allure, consistently drawing in top-tier entries. Save the date for April 14th in Barcelona, where the echoes of engines will mark the beginning of what promises to be a historic season, etching new milestones in endurance racing.&quot;

Fr&eacute;d&eacute;ric Lequien, European Le Mans Series CEO:&nbsp;&quot;As we gear up for the 2024 European Le Mans Series, it&#39;s with immense pride that we announce a huge entry of 43 cars. The LMP2 category stands out prominently with a formidable lineup of 22 cars, including 8 Pro/Am entries, famous drivers, and a roster of top-tier racing talent from across the globe. The addition of the LMGT3 class with iconic brands further elevates the prestige of the series. It&#39;s truly inspiring to witness the return of familiar teams and drivers, adding a sense of continuity to the upcoming 2024 season. Equally, I extend a warm welcome to those making their ELMS debut in Barcelona. We are looking forward to the first race in Spain in April when we will see who the main contenders will be for this year&rsquo;s titles of ELMS Champions.&quot;

The six round 2024 European Le Mans Series will start at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on the 14th&nbsp;of April, with visits to Le Castellet, Imola, Spa-Francorchamps and Mugello before concluding in Portim&atilde;o on the 19 October.

Largest ever LMP2 entry for 2024 European Le Mans Series

The first two rounds of the 2023-24 Asian Le Mans Series saw 99 Racing and CrowdStrike Racing by APR clinch victory.

<h2>A first for&nbsp;99 Racing</h2>

Saturday&rsquo;s curtain-raiser to the 2023-24 season served up an enthralling race in all three classes&nbsp;(LMP2, LMP3 and GT) before heavy rain forced Race Control to bring proceedings to an early end.

Ahmad Al Harty, Nikita Mazepin and Louis Del&eacute;traz in the #99 Oreca 07-Gibson brought 99 Racing its maiden triumph. The outfit competing under the Jordanian flag edged out AF Corse&rsquo;s #83 Oreca and the #3 Oreca of DKR Engineering. 
In LMP3, Cool Racing&rsquo;s #17 Ligier JS P320, driven by James Winslow, Alex Bukhantsov and Danial Frost, climbed up the rankings from third to first place during the second half of the race. Reigning champions, CD Sport (#2 Ligier) finished in the runner-up spot. A newcomer to the Asian Le Mans Series, Bretton Racing (#6 Ligier), rounded out the podium after starting from pole position. 
The opening round was hardly plain sailing for the GT field with several competitors involved in minor accidents. The #42 Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO fielded by Sainteloc Racing managed to come through unscathed to clinch victory. The French team&rsquo;s trio of Christopher Haase, Gilles Magnus and Alban Varutti led the race from flag to flag.

You can see highlights of the 4 Hours of Sepang Race 1 in the video below.

2023/2024 Asian Le Mans Series - Race 1 - 4 Hours of Sepang - Short Highlights

Asian Le Mans Series 2023-2024 : les meilleurs moments de la course 1 à Sepang

<h2>CrowdStrike Racing by APR comes good</h2>

After a tough day on Saturday, CrowdStrike Racing by APR made an incredible comeback&nbsp;to take the honours in Race 2. The battle for the win really began to take shape in the second hour of the race. The Portuguese outfit was lying in third at that point before leapfrogging DKR Engineering just five minutes later. Once in the lead, George Kurtz, Colin Braun and Malthe Jakobsen controlled the race through the final two hours to the chequered flag. Del&eacute;traz in the #99 Oreca pulled off a stunning overtaking move in the final moments to snatch second place for 99 Racing. The #22 Oreca of Proton Competition rounded out the Race 2 podium.

In LMP3, the #2 Ligier of CD Sport, driven by Michael Jensen, Nick Adcock and Fabien Lavergne, sealed the class win ahead of the Bretton Racing&rsquo;s #26 Ligier. Saturday&rsquo;s winner, the #17 Ligier entered by Cool Racing, finished third. 
Despite starting from a lowly sixth place, Alex Malykhin, Klaus Bachler and Joel Sturm managed to steer clear of the many race incidents to bring the #91 Porsche 911 GT3 R of Pure Rxcing home in the GT class.&nbsp; Sainteloc Racing&rsquo;s #42 Audi R8 followed up its Race 1 win with a second place ahead of the #27 McLaren 720 GT3 of Optimum Racing.

Catch up with the highlights from Race 2 below.

2023/2024 Asian Le Mans Series - Race 2 - 4 Hours of Sepang - Short Highlights

Asian Le Mans Series 2023-2024 : les highlights de la deuxième manche des 4 Heures de Sepang

<h4>Retrouvez le top 3 du classement provisoire du championnat dans chaque cat&eacute;gorie</h4>

LMP2 
1. 99 Racing &ndash; 43 points 
2. CrowdStrike Racing by APR &ndash; 33 points 
3. AF Corse &ndash; 30 points

LMP3 
1. CD Sport &ndash; 43 points 
2. Cool Racing &ndash; 40 points 
3. Bretton Racing &ndash; 33 points

GT 
1. Sainteloc Racing &ndash; 44 points 
2. Pure Rxcing &ndash; 33 points 
3. Al Manar Racing by Getspeed &ndash; 24 points

The Asian Le Mans Series next heads to the United Arab Emirates with Dubai Autodrome the venue for Race 3 on 4 February 2024.

Asian Le Mans Series – 99 Racing and CrowdStrike Racing by APR win in Sepang

Robin Frijns is gearing up for the challenge of the Hypercar class with BMW and the M Hybrid V8. The Dutch driver shares his thoughts about the exciting adventure ahead.

&ldquo;Obviously it&rsquo;s something I been looking forward to for some time now,&rdquo; Robin Rrijns says straight away. The driver, born in Maastricht 32 years ago, is getting ready to step up to the premier league of Endurance racing with <a href="https://www.24h-lemans.com/en/news/bmw-hoping-to-excel-straight-out-of-the-hypercar-gate-57990" target="_blank">BMW and the M Hybrid V8, the German manufacturer&rsquo;s hypercar.</a> For Frijns, this is something of a homecoming, as he was part of the BMW family when he first embarked&nbsp;on his racing career. In 2010, he won the Formula BMW Europe title. In 2024, however, he&rsquo;ll be facing a very different challenge.&nbsp;&ldquo;As a driver you always want to be in the top class of motorsport. It&#39;s a great feeling knowing that BMW is pushing hard behind the project. It&rsquo;s a privilege sitting in the car knowing what effort they put in to be there and to be competitive.&rdquo;

&nbsp;

Robin Frijns has had the chance to drive the BMW M8 Hybrid V8 during private testing at Spa-Francorchamps.&nbsp; Asked whether he&rsquo;s now getting to grips with the new car, Frijns admits that the switch from LMP2 to Hypercar is a challenge:&nbsp;&ldquo;The car is quite a bit different from the LMP2 car which I&rsquo;ve been driving now for 3 years.&nbsp; The P2 car is small and also lighter than the Hypercars, because of the hybrid system we have. This was something I needed to get used to, especially in the dry. In the wet, I feel really good from the first lap onwards. In the wet, I give it a 10 out of 10!&quot;

Let&rsquo;s not forget that Frijns has already savoured the joy of a 24 Hours of Le Mans win. In 2021, he triumphed in LMP2 with Team WRT, on his first outing in La Sarthe. He reminisces about that unforgettable experience.&nbsp;&ldquo;This memory is something which will stick with me for a long time. You will never forget your first time, especially winning Le Mans.&nbsp;We were leading from the night onwards. But it was <a href="https://www.24h-lemans.com/en/news/wec-talk-12-robin-frijns-i-was-heartbroken-for-the-guys-55671" target="_blank">a big rollercoaster at the end, as we had issues with the air jack in the last 3 hours of the race</a>.&nbsp; It was stressful.&nbsp; But we won with, I think, what was the closest margin in an LMP2 finish: only 0.7 seconds.&rdquo;

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As the 2024 FIA WEC season and the 92nd 24 Hours of Le Mans (12-16 June 2024) draw closer, Robin Frijns is feeling confident and keen to tackle these new challenges with the same passion and commitment he brings to the track. Watch this space &ndash; his story with BMW at Le Mans and in the WEC is likely to be a gripping one!

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