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BBC News
a day ago
- Automotive
- BBC News
What is 24 Hours of Le Mans?
Le Mans is an iconic and challenging 24-hour endurance race which tests the limits of drivers and year's event - the 93rd edition - begins on Saturday at 15:00 BST. It's held at the semi-permanent Circuit de la Sarthe, located in Le Mans, France. The track is 8.5 miles (13.6km) long with 38 turns and a mix of high-speed sections and slower 2025 grid consists of 62 teams, 186 drivers and 13 manufacturers. Ferrari, in the top-tier Hypercar category, are aiming for a third consecutive victory. The two other car classes are LMP2 and LMGT3. All three categories run on the track at the same time. Le Mans forms part of the motorsport triple crown - the prestigious, but notoriously difficult, achievement of winning the 24-hour race, the Indianapolis 500 and the Monaco Grand Prix in Formula 1. Graham Hill - the 1962 and 1968 F1 world champion - is the only driver to win all three. Who are the big names? Ex-Formula 1 drivers competing this year include 2009 world champion Jenson Button, making his fourth apearance, Italian Antonio Giovinazzi, who won Le Mans in 2023 with Ferrari, and former Haas drivers Kevin Magnussen and Mick Schumacher. Britain's Jamie Chadwick, the three-time W Series champion, is one of five female racers taking part and runs in the in LMP2 class. MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi, driving in the LMGT3 category, is participating in his second Le Mans having made his debut in the endurance classic last year. This article is the latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team. How does it work? Each team consists of three drivers who will alternate driving over the 24 hours. Rotation allows drivers to take breaks and ensure they have maximum performance over the full racing team that covers the most distance or completes the most laps will win the race.A driver cannot be in the car for longer than 14 hours in are three classes of cars, which have different specifications that can impact which has 21 cars, is reserved for professional drivers. Le Man Prototype Two (LMP2) has 17 cars and Le Mans Grand Touring Three (LMGT3) has 24, driven by both professional and amateur of each team are categorised into four sections - platinum, gold, silver and are four practice sessions, qualifying and has its own sessions for qualifying and hyperpole, while LMP2 and LMGT3 contribute in the same qualifying, drivers set out to record the fastest lap. The six fastest cars in each class then take part in the hyperpole - where they will aim to perform the fastest lap, which will be their ranking for the has eight manufacturers - Aston Martin, Porsche, Toyota, Cadillac, BMW, Alpine, Ferrari and Peugeot and uses Michelin LMP2 entries will use Oreca 07 cars, with Goodyear cars also use Goodyear tyres and have nine manufacturers including Corvette, Ford, Lexus, McLaren and Mercedes. What is Ask Me Anything? Ask Me Anything is a service dedicated to answering your want to reward your time by telling you things you do not know and reminding you of things you team will find out everything you need to know and be able to call upon a network of contacts including our experts and will be answering your questions from the heart of the BBC Sport newsroom, and going behind the scenes at some of the world's biggest sporting coverage will span the BBC Sport website, app, social media and YouTube accounts, plus BBC TV and radio. More questions answered... What are penalty points in F1 and how do they work?How does F1 measure photo finishes?
RNZ News
a day ago
- Automotive
- RNZ News
Earl Bamber to start from two on 24 Hours of Le Mans grid
The Cadillac Hertz of Earl Bamber, Sebastien Bourdais and Jenson Button, in action during qualifying for the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France. June 11, 2025. Photo: AFP New Zealander Earl Bamber will start from two on the grid for the 24 Hours of Le Mans race, with Cadillac locking out the front row in qualifying. Britain's Alex Lynn secured pole position, setting a best time of three minutes 23.166 seconds in the number 12 Team Jota Cadillac at the Sarthe circuit Bamber putting the sister 38 car alongside and 0.167 slower. Bamber has won the race twice, in 2015 and 2017 with Porsche. Fellow Kiwi Brendon Hartley, who has won the event three times, will start from 10 on the grid after team-mate Sebastien Buemi locked up the Toyota Gazoo car and drove into the gravel and was not able to finish the qualifier Lynn shares his car with compatriot Will Stevens and Frenchman Norman Nato while Bamber's teammates are 2009 Formula One world champion Jenson Button and French four-times Champ Car champion Sebastien Bourdais. "I can't tell you how much I wanted this," said Lynn, who missed out on pole last year by a mere 0.138, over the team radio. "One tenth last year hurt a lot. "I'm truly honoured to be able to put in a performance like that in front of everyone and deliver for Cadillac in the way they deserve," he added after getting out of the car. "This is a magical circuit and this is a special feeling. I can't describe it. We will enjoy this tonight, have a good sleep and re-set." GM-owned Cadillac are the first American marque to take outright pole at Le Mans since Ford in 1967. The number five Porsche Penske was third fastest, after threatening to take pole, with France's Julien Andlauer, Denmark's Michael Christensen and France's Mathieu Jaminet. The number 15 BMW qualified in fourth place with Belgian Dries Vanthoor, Swiss-Italian Raffaele Marciello and Danish former F1 driver Kevin Magnussen. Defending champions Ferrari, outright winners for the past two years, had Italian Antonio Fuoco, Denmark's Nicklas Nielsen and Spaniard Miguel Molina in seventh place in last year's winning car number 50. The 93rd edition of the race starts on Sunday at 2am NZT. - Reuters/RNZ Sport
Reuters
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Reuters
Cadillac sweep front row in Le Mans 24 Hours qualifying
June 12 (Reuters) - Cadillac locked out the front row in qualifying for the 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race for the first time on Thursday with Britain's Alex Lynn securing pole position. Lynn set a best time of three minutes 23.166 seconds in the number 12 Team Jota Cadillac at the Sarthe circuit with New Zealand's Earl Bamber putting the sister 38 car alongside and 0.167 slower. Lynn shares his car with compatriot Will Stevens and Frenchman Norman Nato while Bamber's teammates are 2009 Formula One world champion Jenson Button and French four-times Champ Car champion Sebastien Bourdais. "I can't tell you how much I wanted this," said Lynn, who missed out on pole last year by a mere 0.138, over the team radio. "One tenth last year hurt a lot. "I'm truly honoured to be able to put in a performance like that in front of everyone and deliver for Cadillac in the way they deserve," he added after getting out of the car. "This is a magical circuit and this is a special feeling. I can't describe it. We will enjoy this tonight, have a good sleep and re-set." GM-owned Cadillac are the first American marque to take outright pole at Le Mans since Ford in 1967. The number five Porsche Penske was third fastest, after threatening to take pole, with France's Julien Andlauer, Denmark's Michael Christensen and France's Mathieu Jaminet. The number 15 BMW qualified in fourth place with Belgian Dries Vanthoor, Swiss-Italian Raffaele Marciello and Danish former F1 driver Kevin Magnussen. Defending champions Ferrari, outright winners for the past two years, had Italian Antonio Fuoco, Denmark's Nicklas Nielsen and Spaniard Miguel Molina in seventh place in last year's winning car number 50. The 93rd edition of the race starts on Saturday at 1600 local (1400GMT).
