IMSA teams grabbing the Le Mans spotlight

IMSA was well represented in qualifying for this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans as BMW M Team WRT and Heart of Racing Team both snagged pole positions in their respective classes, but other WeatherTech Championship regulars also are poised to make strong impressions in the 24 Hours.

In the Hypercar class, the two BMW M Hybrid V8s from WRT start first and fourth on Saturday afternoon. Though best known for running the cars in the FIA World Endurance Championship, Team WRT took over the operations of BMW’s factory program in the IMSA GTP class this year, and in the No. 15 BMW, WRT’s full-season IMSA driver Dries Vanthoor won the pole on Thursday during Hyperpole.

Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing was the only at-large invitational entry in Le Mans’ top category this year, and after a difficult first journey in 2025, it seems that the No. 101 WTR Cadillac V-Series.R is trending in a better direction after qualifying fifth.

And on that note, it’s been 30 years since Davy Jones became the most recent American driver to win overall at Le Mans. Ricky and Jordan Taylor could break that streak if they and co-driver Filipe Albuquerque pull off a surprise win. Meanwhile, GTP championship leader Jack Aitken swaps out his red Cadillac Whelen/Action Express ride for the gold No. 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA car, together with his regular IMSA co-driver Earl Bamber.

Meanwhile, Aston Martin THOR (The Heart of Racing) Team starts seventh and 11th tomorrow with its two Valkyrie AMR-LMH Hypercars. Unlike in IMSA where Aston Martin runs a single-car entry, all Hypercar and LMGT3 manufacturers are required to field two full-season entries in WEC. This is also the first time that IMSA regulars Ross Gunn and Roman de Angelis have raced in the WEC this year, due to scheduling conflicts and changes.

Pole-winning THOR team of Zach Robichon and Mattia Druidi, with team principal Ian James. Charly López/DPPI

Heart of Racing also runs two cars in the LMGT3 class including the pole-winning No. 27 Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3; the team also added a second car this off-season – it includes Eduardo Barrichello, the current IMSA GTD points leader.

Orey Fidani’s second consecutive Bob Akin Award gave him and his 13 Autosport team the chance to return to Le Mans. Fidani, the highest-ranked Bronze driver in IMSA GTD the last two years running, returns with regular supporting drivers Matt Bell and Lars Kern, but the red No. 13 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R had a difficult qualifying on Wednesday and will start 24th out of 25 cars in LMGT3.

In addition, IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup challengers Manthey and AF Corse are always in the mix for LMGT3 honors. Manthey Porsche 911 GT3 Rs have won Le Mans in each of the two years that LMGT3 has been a part, and AF Corse has three Ferrari 296 GT3 Evos in the category. At the Twelve Hours of Sebring, both teams found success stateside: Manthey won for the first time in GTD Pro, while AF Corse’s Ferrari 296 won in GTD.

Also, IMSA GTD Pro points leader and Corvette Racing factory driver Nicky Catsburg is in the race, driving the No. 33 TF Sport Corvette.

Inter Europol Competition's colorful ORECAs are part of a strong IMSA LMP2 contingent. Andrea Lorenzina / DPPI

But it’s in LMP2 where IMSA teams have the biggest and strongest presence. Inter Europol Competition returns to the race as the defending LMP2 class-winning team for the second time in three years. Tom Dillmann, who races full-time for Inter Europol in IMSA, is part of the winning line-up from last year, and he’s back in the No. 43 ORECA 07-Gibson art car. Of the teams with a regular IMSA presence, the No. 43 car is placed highest on the LMP2 grid in fourth.

Inter Europol also brings a second car to the race (No. 343) similar to its two-car effort in the Rolex 24 At Daytona, but the "Polish Bakers" run two full-time cars in the European Le Mans Series. Many of the following teams, in fact, have dual IMSA and ELMS programs – triple programs if you include the Asian Le Mans Series in the winter.

AO Racing, in collaboration with TF Sport, won the LMP2 Pro/Am class at Le Mans in 2025. In the form of “Rockie the Pegasus,” AO returns to Le Mans with a different look this year: Reigning IMSA LMP2 and ELMS LMP2 Pro/Am champions PJ Hyett and Dane Cameron drive the No. 99 ORECA. Hyett also collected last year’s Jim Trueman Award alongside the LMP2 title in IMSA, which helped secure a ticket to Le Mans this year.

After winning the Rolex 24 At Daytona, CrowdStrike Racing by APR (Algarve Pro Racing) has come back to Le Mans with two of the Daytona-winning drivers, George Kurtz and Alex Quinn. It’s one of two Algarve Pro cars in the race, as this team also runs a team-branded LMP2 Pro/Am entry derived from its ELMS effort.

Anglo-American squad United Autosports runs two LMP2s in this race as they do in IMSA, and TDS Racing prepares two cars, including one built around its full-season IMSA Bronze driver Tobias Lütke. John Farano of Tower Motorsports has also entered the race, driving for Luxembourg’s DKR Engineering

More than half of the 186 drivers in this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans have made one start in the IMSA WeatherTech Championship, including 15 out of 22 full-time IMSA GTP drivers, and 35 full-time drivers across the four classes.

Put simply, if you’ve got a favorite team or driver from IMSA, there’s a good chance you’ll see them fighting up near the front of one of the classes in Le Mans starting tomorrow at 10:00am ET.

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