LM24: GTE-AM car-by-car preview

Matt Cleary continues RACER's overview of the field for this weekend's 24 Hours of Le Mans. Today, the GTE-Pro category. ABOVE: Dempsey Racing Porsche 911 GT3, LM GTE Am, P. Dempsey, P. Long, J. Foster, 88, Proton Porsche 911 RSR.

• LMP2 car-by-car preview

• LMP1 car-by-car preview

• GTE-PRO car-by-car preview

• Le Mans Resource Guide

The GTE-Am class features GT machines with driver lineups that are compelled to include drivers of varied skill and experience levels (as decided by the ACO via a system of rankings: Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum – in that escalating order of skill). Which means that most of these line ups have one super fast or at least very quick guy, a second driver with an enviable bank account, and a third driver somewhere between those two skill and experience-wise.

But its far from amateur hour, as the ACO has instituted a new system to credential and qualify new Le Mans drivers that includes compulsory training on a simulator. Le Mans is unlike any other race, and with new ‘slow zone’ measures in place for this year, there is a lot to take on for the rookies.

Ferrari 458 Italia GT2, Porsche 911, Aston Martin Vantage GTE; the same cast of brands that will fight for GTE-Pro honors will also be in action for GTE-Am as well. The cars are from a broader vintage than the GTE-Pro class (which is to say, some of them are older). Underscoring the commitment of some of these teams, some eight of the entries run full time World Endurance Championship campaigns.

And it is a big class, with 19 cars entered, all of which race on Michelin tires. Beyond of course getting to race at Le Mans, the attraction for the Ams is clear: With but three drivers, they have to do the work and their performance in the car, decisions made at each corner, on every lap, will have a very direct result on the team result.

Ferrari is a very popular car, and it’s not just because “I race a Ferrari at Le Mans” must be an outstanding sentence to be able to deliver in certain company. It’s also that they are quick.

Likely not established as an homage to TRG’s traditional Rolex 24 armada, but no less numerous is the AF Corse effort, which boasts a full six Ferraris under their management in this class (the No. 90 8Star and No. 72 SMP Ferrari’s are AF Corse-supervised). AF also has two GTE-Pro cars as well as overseeing the SMP Racing LM P2 effort for a total tally of 10 cars.

This will be a race that will see a dynamic challenge for the scorers as the fortunes for each car will rise and fall with the driver rotation. The core concentration for a successful effort will be reducing mistakes, making it through the night, and having your fast driver rested and focused for the finish with a clean car to make it to the finish. They will likely not get the TV love that the incredible prototypes will, but the GTE AM race will be no less exciting.

Car #: 53
Team Name: RAM RACING
Car: FERRARI 458 ITALIA
Drivers: Johnny MOWLEM (GBR), Mark PATTERSON (USA), Archie HAMILTON (GBR)
Cleary says: Archie Hamilton’s grandfather won the race in 1953, and young Hamilton climbed the open wheel European ladder to then move into GT competition, making his Le Mans debut last year in LM P2. Co-driver Mark Patterson also is moving from LM P2 and will look to burnish his racing record, which includes a runner-up finish in the 2006 Rolex 24 At Daytona. Johnny Mowlem brings speed and experience to the effort, with eight Le Mans starts to his credit. RAM is a young team but has experience and is ambitious to grow its reputation with a big result this weekend. The car is an older-spec 458, giving the team better flexibility (and budget) on spares.

Car #: 57
Team Name: KROHN RACING
Car: FERRARI 458 ITALIA
Drivers: Tracy KROHN (USA), Niclas JONSSON (SWE), Ben COLLINS (GBR)
Cleary says:
Tracy Krohn has made eight Le Mans starts, all with quick Nic Jonsson as his co-driver. The duo have taken two podiums at Le Mans. With none other than The Stig, in the form of Ben Collins, who some say might be a very nice guy in real life, rounding out the trio for the as-ever crazy-green Ferrari machine. If the car can avoid any self-inflicted wounds, it could add to Krohn’s podium count although having missed the Test Day thanks to the late call-up to the race, the team is fighting an uphill battle.

Car #: 58
Team Name: TEAM SOFREV ASP
Car: FERRARI 458 ITALIA
Drivers: Fabien BARTHEZ (FRA), Anthony PONS (FRA), Soheil AYARI (FRA)
Cleary says: This is a first-year squad, with only Ayari bringing a wide range (bad days and good) of Le Mans experience to the effort. Co-driver Anthony Pons podiumed on debut last year with IMSA Performance Matmut, and moves to a Ferrari this year along side Fabien Barthez, who will look to make a similarly strong impression in his first Le Mans outing.

Car #: 60
Team Name: AF CORSE
Car: FERRARI 458 ITALIA
Drivers: Peter Ashley MANN (USA), Lorenzo CASE (ITA), Raffaele GIAMMARIA (ITA)
Cleary says: Two drivers (American Peter Mann and Italian Raffaele Giammaria) are making their Le Mans debut, with Italian Lorenzo Case set for his second run at Le Mans, having scored second in GTE Am last year in a Ferrari with AF Corse. Mann has raced many a Ferrari, and this will be an incredible ambition fulfillment for him. Case has ELMS GTC experience as well as Ferrari Challenge and Italian GT experience.

Car #: 61
Team Name: AF CORSE
Car: FERRARI 458 ITALIA
Drivers: Luis PEREZ COMPANC (ARG), Marco CIOCI (ITA), Mirko VENTURI (ITA)
Cleary says: The AF Corse army of cars will include the No. 61, which sees the Le Mans debut of Mirko Venturi, who raced open-wheelers around the turn of the century before returning to the sport and moving to GT machines in 2011. Co-pilot Marco Cioci has four Le Mans starts, including a podium last year in GTE Am with AF Corse. Luis Perez Companac has both LMP2 and GT2 experience at Le Mans, having taken a podium in LM P2 in 2012.

Car #: 62
Team Name: AF CORSE
Car: FERRARI 458 ITALIA
Drivers: Yannick MALLEGOL (FRA), Jean-Marc BACHELIER (FRA), Howard BLANK (USA)
Cleary says: American Howard Blank joins Frenchman Yannick Mallegol and Jean-Marc Bachelier, with the trio having raced together at Le Mans last year, finishing 12th in class in their collective debut. No doubt the focus is to build on that, and with one Le Mans finish under their belts, might be better situated to repeat the feat.

Car #: 66
Team Name: JMW MOTORSPORT
Car: FERRARI 458 ITALIA
Drivers: Abdulaziz TURKI ALFAISAL (SAR), Seth NEIMAN (USA), Spencer PUMPELLY (USA)
Cleary says: Talk about setting the hook: Seth Neiman scored a podium in his first Le Mans race appearance, and has been chasing class victory ever since. This year marks his 9th Le Mans outing, having skipped the 2013 event. His fast and familiar co-driver Pumpelly, with whom this writer has spent more than a few days working with as instructors at Skip Barber Racing School, arrives in France having seen two likely wins evaporate in the closing laps of TUSC competition. Not that he needed any added motivation to do well, but a podium would be extra-cherished given that run of recent luck. Joining them is Alfaisal, a Saudi royal family member who brings the right racing credentials with a good bit of varied experience to a car that could be a surprise contender if circumstances play in their favor. All three drivers have a lot of Porsche experience, but this weekend will look for luck in a Ferrari.

Car #: 67
Team Name: IMSA PERFORMANCE MATMUT
Car: PORSCHE 911 GT3 RSR
Drivers: Erik MARIS (FRA), Jean-Marc MERLIN (FRA), Eric HELARY (FRA)
Cleary says: This classic French team with all French drivers is all gallic pride, down to the lines on the IMSA Performance Matmut pits directing the car in being taped up in blue, red and white. The team line up for this car is not particularly balanced, with Maris making his first-ever Le Mans start and Jean-Marc Merlin his second, while third driver Eric Helary has some 10 starts with two wins and four podiums to his credit at Le Sarthe. He will have a lot of work to do come race time…

Car #: 70
Team Name: TEAM TAISAN
Car: FERRARI 458 ITALIA
Drivers: Shinji NAKANO (JPN), Pierre EHRET (DEU), Martin RICH (GBR)
Cleary says: Pierre Ehret leads this squad as he embarks on his eighth start in the race, with Martin Rich returning to Le Mans for the first time since 2011 when he debuted with a Lotus GTE Pro machine. Easy to identify with TAISAN across the side, the red Ferrari had an issue on Wednesday night which the team will hope is not a precursor of more problems at race time.

Car #: 72
Team Name: SMP RACING
Car: FERRARI 458 ITALIA
Drivers: Andrea BERTOLINI (ITA), Victor SHAITAR (RUS), Aleksey BASOV (RUS)
Cleary says: This AF Corse-run entry features two Russian drivers (Shaitar and Basov) making their Le Mans debut, with the Italian Bertolini leading the experience category with two starts at Le Mans. AF Corse knows what they are doing, so like many of the GTE-Am squads, the question will be if the drivers do. Bertolini won the 2012 Sebring, so if his leadership can be communicated from Italian into Russian, the 72 might might it through the night to run to the finish.

Car #: 75
Team Name: PROSPEED COMPETITION
Car: PORSCHE 911 GT3 RSR
Drivers: Francois PERRODO (FRA), Emmanuel COLLARD (FRA), Markus PALTTALA (FIN)
Cleary says: For 20 years in a row, Collard has run this race, with two class wins and five podiums to his credit. Palttala has impressed in his Stateside runs with the Turner squad in a Z4, and this is a team that he knows, and they know him. So it’s a great fit. Perrodo raced a 911 last year with this team, and will hope for another top ten, if not more.

Car #: 76
Team Name: IMSA PERFORMANCE MATMUT
Car: PORSCHE 911 GT3 RSR
Drivers: Raymond NARAC (FRA), Nicolas ARMINDO (FRA), David HALLYDAY (FRA)
Cleary says: A second all-French lineup for the very French team, Narac, Armindo, and Hallyday have a decent range of experience, with 9, 2, and 4 starts respectively. It had an issue in night practice on Wednesday, which will not help the effort although the team has loads of experience at Le Mans and can not be counted out in the home race.

Car #: 77
Team Name: DEMPSEY RACING - PROTON
Car: PORSCHE 911 RSR
Drivers: Patrick DEMPSEY (USA), Joe FOSTER (USA), Patrick LONG (USA)
Cleary says: Is fourth the cruelest finishing position at Le Mans? Not sure, but after leading a race deep into the event only to get knocked off course by a prototype, and then taking on some additional suffering, these guys might just argue that fourth at Le Mans is indeed the worst after taking that result last year. But looking ahead: Dempsey is a racer that works hard at his craft and has the respect of the other racers to go along with the admiration of their wives. Joe Foster is a true American racing story; people forget that he starved, swept, and slept on floors to chase single-seater glory in Europe before coming home to finish his engineering studies and then build a successful racing team. Patrick Long? Is there someone else in the world you would like to have drive your 911 in the biggest race of the year? No, me either.

Car #: 79
Team Name: PROSPEED COMPETITION
Car: PORSCHE 911 GT3 RSR
Drivers: Cooper MacNEIL (USA), Bret CURTIS (USA), Jeroen BLEEKEMOLEN (NLD)
Cleary says: Bret Curtis ran this race, with this team, last year. Cooper MacNeil is trying to forget about Sebring and build on his first time racing at Le Mans last year. Jeroen Bleekemolen is an absolute ace, the kind of driver that can have a tangible and serious affect on the outcome. It is not the latest spec 911, but that might well factor in their favor as the team really knows this car.

Car #: 81
Team Name: AF CORSE
Car: FERRARI 458 ITALIA
Drivers: Stephen WYATT (AUS), Michele RUGOLO (ITA), Sam BIRD (GBR)
Cleary says: Last year, Sam Bird was in the shark tank of GP2, racing to second in the championship with five wins. He still hopes to make the open-wheel dream a reality, but for the moment is taking the Kobayashi route and racing Ferraris. He is teamed with Michele Rugolo, who podiumed in 2012 with Krohn, and Stephan Wyatt, who is making his Le Mans debut this year, having raced with Rugolo to the 2013 Asian Le Mans GTC Championship.

Car #: 88
Team Name: PROTON COMPETITION
Car: PORSCHE 911 RSR
Drivers: Christian RIED (DEU), Klaus BACHLER (AUT), Khaled AL QUBAISI (ARE)
Cleary says: Al Qubaisi won the 24 Hours of Dubai in 2012 (A6 GT class) and in 2013 (A6-Pro class) and took 10th in GTE-AM at Le Mans last year with JMW Motorsport. This will be the first Le Mans for Klaus Bachler, with Christian Ried making his fifth start and looking to improve on his career best Le Mans finish, a second place in GT2 in 2011.

Car #: 90
Team Name: 8STAR MOTORSPORTS
Car: FERRARI 458 ITALIA
Drivers: Frankie MONTECALVO (USA), Gianluca RODA (ITA), Paolo RUBERTI (ITA)
Cleary says: The team won the WEC 2013 GTE-AM championship last year has a much different look with driver and owner Enzo Potolicchio not taking his place behind the wheel. Instead, the car will be piloted by American Frankie Montecalvo as a last-minute stand in for the Venezuelan team leader. Joining him will be Gianluca Roda and Paolo Ruberti, who took second place twice (2008, '09) in this race in GT2 competition.

Car #: 95
Team Name: ASTON MARTIN RACING
Car: ASTON MARTIN VANTAGE V8
Drivers: Kristian POULSEN (DNK), David HEINEMEIER-HANSSON (DNK), Nicki THIIM (DNK)
Cleary says: Dansk Tog. That’s Danish for “Dane Train,” as the Radio Le Mans guys were calling this all-red and white (google: “Danish Flag”) squad. Racing with the ambition to bring some form of storybook result to honor the late countryman Allen Simonsen, this trio of Danish drivers have the experience (although not all the experience is from Le Mans with just five starts across the lineup), as well as the pace (Thiim is fast) to potentially see the Danish flag on the podium for the right reasons this year.

Car #: 98
Team Name: ASTON MARTIN RACING
Car: ASTON MARTIN VANTAGE V8
Drivers: Paul DALLA LANA (CAN), Pedro LAMY (PRT), Christoffer NYGAARD (DNK)
Cleary says: Pedro Lamy raced in Formula 1 and has a ton of Le Mans experience. Dalla Lana would win a “nicest guy” competition hands down, save for the fact that he would be entirely too nice to enter such a contest. But he’s highly serious about his racing, with loads of racing miles and he soaks up the sport, equally excited to be a part of Le Mans as he is to qualify for a Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race for Will Turner. Unfortunately for him and his co-drivers, the Aston Martins were the high-speed darlings of the first half of last season, but this threesome will have to cope with a car that likely will not have the pace of the other AM entires. But experience counts in this race…