BMW on Nürburgring pole, Toyota's new GT3 spied testing, and Pin to miss Le Mans
Hesse fastest on Friday at the Nordschleife, Lexus/Toyota's new GT3 on track at Spa, and Doriane Pin won't race at Le Mans – OE Founder Tim Fullbrook reviews the week
Been too busy this week? Here’s the stories you need to know about…
Toyota/Lexus’ GT3 car testing at Spa
For a car that is still well over a year from hitting the track in competition, you might have expected the new Lexus or Toyota GT3 car to be hidden away somewhere in Japan.
Check out a full gallery here.
But, during a mixed Hypercar/LMP2/GT3 test at Spa this week, the Japanese marque’s next GT racer took to a European circuit for what might be the very first time.
With support from Toyota Gazoo Racing, the car enters its next development phase which should see increased track time. Details are somewhat hidden, but from the soundtrack, the car might feature a revised V8 from the RC F.
We won’t see the yet-to-be-named GT3 in action till 2026, but even that isn’t official. Regardless, the hype has certainly been turned up a notch after another sighting…
Doriane Pin to miss Le Mans after rib injures
Doriane Pin took to social media on Thursday afternoon to announce she would not be racing at the 24H Le Mans to focus on recovering from a number of rib fractures.
The 20-year-old was set to return to WEC action with the #85 Iron Dames Lamborghini crew in LMGT3, but will again relinquish driving duties as a result of her injuries.
The Iron Dames confirmed that Rahel Frey would be replacing Pin as the required Silver driver in the #85 entry for the second race in a row, having stood-in for the French driver at the 6H Spa.
WRT unveil tribute LMGT3 liveries for Le Mans
Team WRT have revealed two special liveries for their BMW M4 LMGT3 entries at Le Mans, with the cars running tribute designs.
The 6H Imola-winning #31 carries a red and white scheme that pays homage to the 1977 UFO BMW 3.0 CSL, which was driven to a class win at the classic French enduro by WRT’s current Sporting Director Pierre Dieudonné.
The sister #46 mirrors the shapes of the #31, but features clear stylings of its star driver, Valentino Rossi, including the crescent moon and sun that has emblazoned the Italian’s helmet throughout his racing career.
The first public appearance of the newly-dressed M4 GT3 duo will be at Le Pesage for the official 24 Hours of Le Mans scrutineering on Friday 7th June.
Zinedine Zidane named as Honorary Starter
The 24 Hours of Le Mans has named French football icon Zinedine Zidane as the Honorary Starter for this year’s race.
The 1998 World Cup-winner joins a list of sporting stars who have waved the ‘Tricolore’ to signal the start of the race, including Rafael Nadal (2018) and LeBron James (2023).
Hesse scores Nurburgring 24H pole for BMW
Friday afternoon saw Max Hesse claim pole for the Nürburgring 24H in the #72 BMW M Team RMG with an 8:10.992 in the shootout session – as the team continue to top the timesheets in race week.
The #72 crew had to fight their way into the fight for pole, with Dan Harper clinching one of five transfer spots in Top Quali 1.
Manthey will start on the front row, Laurens Vanthoor just four tenths shy of Hesse’s best, with the Porsche driver, Feller, Van der Linde and Haase separated by just over a tenth of a second.
The reigning winners Frikadelli Racing would set the fastest time of the weekend in Top Quali 1, Varrone clocking a 8:10.899 to secure a spot in the pole shootout; before teammate Keilwitz would secure P6 on the grid.
Check out the top fifteen as well as some select class poles here.
Porsche Penske and Corvette Pratt Miller score front-row lockouts at Detroit
Porsche Penske Motorsport celebrate the first non-Cadillac pole of 2024, as Nick Tandy bumped, banged, and scraped his #6 Porsche 963 to the first IMSA GTP pole in Detroit.
The British driver set a 1:05.390 late in the session to knock Bourdais’ #01 Cadillac from top spot by over three tenths. Teammate Nasr would then complete the front-row lockout to go 0.124s off Tandy’s best.
The session was brought to an early end by a spinning Derani who looped his #31 Whelen Cadillac at T5, bringing out a somewhat premature red flag as the Brazilian got going again.
In GTD PRO, Corvette enjoy a 1-2 for the new Z06 GT3.R in the shadow of the GM global headquarters, as Garcia’s #3 pipped Sims #4 by 0.336s.
Corvette continue their strong form in qualifying as Garcia backs-up Catsburg’s Laguna Seca pole.
Reigning champions the #14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus will start from third on the grid after Jack Hawksworth narrowly escaped a brush with the barrier on the exit of T1.
BMW launch M4 GT3 EVO, set to race in 2025
On Wednesday evening BMW launched their updated M4 GT3 that will race with an EVO package in 2025.
The new EVO package will be available to the German marque’s current customer base next year, marking the first time BMW have rolled-out EVO kits to their clients.
The car features minor visual changes, smaller wing mirrors and larger air outlets on the front wheel arches.
BMW revealed that the majority of changes have been to increase the drivability of the car, and improve overall performance.
This includes new front and rear anti-roll bars, larger brake discs, a finer and easier-to-adjust differential, as well as a more adjustable rear wing to help with aerodynamic configuration.
Want to get your hands on one? Well it will set you back a healthy €578,000.
Racing this weekend
🇩🇪 Nürburgring 24H: The beautiful, brilliant, and down right baffling Nürburgring 24H takes place this weekend, kicking-off a month of June that has three 24 Hour races.
A massive grid, including 25 GT3 cars in the SP-9 class, will tackle the daunting 25km Nürburgring Norschleife, and weather reports suggest some typically fickle Eifel weather is set to spice up the show.
Streams: English Broadcast | German Broadcast
🇺🇸 IMSA - Detroit: The WeatherTech Championship descends on Detroit for the first time in a couple of years, but this time at a new street circuit in the city’s Downtown.
Twisting and turning its way under the shadow of GM’s global headquarters, the GTP and GTD PRO fields have only 100 minutes to bag themselves victory on the second street circuit of the 2024 season.
Stream: Qualifying (Replay) | Race (100 Minutes)
I've always been a big Porsche fan, but that new BMW looks really sweet.