All three started out in LMP2 and all had a spell with G-Drive Racing, the most successful team in the class.

 

Will to win - Following two seasons in Formula One, the 26-year-old Stevens joined Manor’s LMP2 endurance racing team for the 2016 world championship. The extent of his talent came to light mid-season when he moved to G-Drive Racing, came second in class at Le Mans and won two races, in Fuji and Shanghai. This year, the Briton chose another tack, signing with JMW Motorsport for the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the GT class. It was a good move. Stevens won the LMGTE Am class in the #84 Ferrari 488, with fellow countryman Rob Smith and Belgian Dries Vanthoor. They dominated the opposition, leading the race for 241 of a total 333 laps.

Lynn, king of the qualifiers - A former test driver for Williams in Formula One, Alex Lynn (24) also made a smooth transition to endurance this year. Winner of the LMP2 class at the WEC 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, Lynn went on to clinch the top slot on the LMP2 grid for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. With help from the new competition rules concerning engines, Lynn knocked over ten seconds off the previous year’s best qualifying time, and was faster that Benoît Tréluyer’s 2011 LMP1 pole position time with the Audi R18 TDI. Aston Martin has snapped up the speedy driver for the 2018-19 Super Season in the LMGTE Pro class.

Bird, the high-flyer - Winner of the 2015 LMP2 FIA WEC drivers trophy (with Roman Rusinov and Julien Canal), Sam Bird (30) transferred to GT, taking up an offer of a seat in AF Corse’s Ferrari. Teamed with Italian Davide Rigon, he has won four races in the last two WEC seasons. With a total of eight wins since he switched to endurance (four in LMP2 and four in LMGTE Pro), it seems likely that the 24 Hours of Le Mans will feature in Sam Bird’s trophy cabinet before long.

 

Photo: LMP2 champion in 2015, Sam Bird is now one of the stars of the Ferrari clan in the LMGTE Pro class.