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Le Mans 24 Hours schedule: Qualifying, race & more

The 89th running of the Le Mans 24 Hours gets underway tomorrow at the Circuit de la Sarthe with two practice sessions and qualifying. Here's how you can follow it.

#8 Toyota Gazoo Racing Toyota GR010 - Hybrid Hypercar, Sébastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima, Brendon Hartley

#8 Toyota Gazoo Racing Toyota GR010 - Hybrid Hypercar, Sébastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima, Brendon Hartley

Marc Fleury

The 2021 Le Mans 24 Hours marks the dawn of a new era for the world's oldest and most famous endurance race, as the Hypercar class replaces LMP1 as the top of the endurance racing pyramid.

Toyota goes into the event aiming to take a fourth straight victory, having been the dominant force at Le Mans since the withdrawal of Porsche in 2017. The Japanese marque is unbeaten with its new GR010 HYBRID, which has won each of the three preceding rounds of the World Endurance Championship at Spa, Portimao and Monza, but the challenge of 24 hours at the dauntingly fast 8.47-mile circuit will throw up challenges that the car has not encountered before and could present opportunities for others to capitalise.

It's main opposition comes from boutique sportscar manufacturer Glickenhaus, the new Glickenhaus-Pipo 007 LMH topping the test day times courtesy of a late effort from Olivier Pla that was 0.225s faster than the best Toyota effort. With the support of 16-time Le Mans winning outfit Joest Racing, it has plenty of pedigree to fall back on, even if this is the American company's first crack at the world's most famous endurance race.

Alpine is the third manufacturer in the class, running a grandfathered LMP1 car that competed last year as the Rebellion-run ORECA R13, which lapped 0.996s off the pace in the test. Based on an LMP2-spec ORECA, its smaller fuel tank is likely to mean it can't run as long on fuel as its newer rivals, but reliability could be its calling card with limited opposition in the top class.

Elsewhere Corvette Racing returns to take on Ferrari and Porsche in GTE Pro with its C8.R making its first visit to Le Mans after missing the event last year, while 11 ex-Formula 1 drivers are among a packed 25-car field in the LMP2 field.

#709 Glickenhaus Racing Glickenhaus 007 LMH Hypercar, Ryan Briscoe, Richard Westbrook, Romain Dumas

#709 Glickenhaus Racing Glickenhaus 007 LMH Hypercar, Ryan Briscoe, Richard Westbrook, Romain Dumas

Photo by: Paul Foster

When is the Le Mans 24 Hours?

Date: Saturday 21st August 2021 – Sunday 22nd August 2021

Start time: 3:00pm BST, 4:00pm local time

The Le Mans 24 Hours returns to its traditional 4pm start-time after being moved forward by 90 minutes in 2020.

Long gone are the days when drivers would line up opposite their cars and sprint across the track before leaping in, belting up and blasting away. Following a fatal crash for amateur driver John Woolfe on the opening lap of the 1969 race, made famous by Jacky Ickx protesting the unsafe conditions by walking to his car, race organisers reverted to the now-common rolling start.

Ferrari chairman John Elkann will wave the French flag to denote the start of the race on Saturday after the cars have lined up on the grid and observed the French national anthem.

How can I watch the Le Mans 24 Hours?

The full 24 Hours of Le Mans, including the practice and qualifying sessions, is available to watch via Eurosport. A monthly package that allows fans to watch in HD on multiple devices, with access to on demand videos and a multicamera view, costs £6.99, or there is an option to purchase a yearly pass for £29.99.

Coverage begins on Wednesday with Eurosport 2 showing Qualifying Practice at 5:45 pm, with Free Practice 2 following at 8:00 pm.

On Thursday, Eurosport 2 will show Free Practice 3 at 1pm, the Hyperpole qualifying session at 7:50pm and Free Practice 4 at 8:45pm.

Following Friday's rest day, Eurosport 1 will carry the warmup at 10:15am on Saturday, with full coverage of the race beginning at 2:15pm and carrying through to 3:30pm on Sunday.

#46 Team Project 1 Porsche 911 RSR - 19 LMGTE Am, Dennis Olsen, Anders Buchardt, Robert Foley

#46 Team Project 1 Porsche 911 RSR - 19 LMGTE Am, Dennis Olsen, Anders Buchardt, Robert Foley

Photo by: Paul Foster

Access to live coverage can also be purchased via the FIA World Endurance Championship app.

Freeview channel Quest will show buildup and the race start from 2:15pm until 5:00pm, and resume for the final two hours from 1:00pm.

Autosport's team of journalists will provide a live text blog of the race, as well as news updates and features on Autosport.com.

Full coverage: Eurosport 2 (Sky channel 411, BT Sport channel 486) -

Wednesday 18 August 5:45pm (Qualifying), 8:00pm Free Practice 2
Thursday 19 August 1:00pm (Free Practice 3), 7:50pm (Hyperpole), 8:45pm (Free Practice 4)

Full coverage: Eurosport 1 (Sky channel 410, BT Sport channel 485)

Saturday 21 August 10:15am (Warmup); 2:15pm (Race).

Free coverage: Quest – Saturday 21st August 2:15pm, Sunday 22nd August 1:00pm (Freeview channel 12)

Will the Le Mans 24 Hours be on radio?

Radio Le Mans will carry full coverage of all practice sessions and the race. The station has been running for over 30 years, and is renowned for its presence in the pitlane at every major ACO-governed sportscar race. For more information about Radio Le Mans, click here.

What’s the weather forecast for the Le Mans 24 Hours?

The weather for the Le Mans 24 Hours is scheduled to be dry and sunny, with highs of 28 degrees C during the late afternoon on Saturday.

Sunday is set to be slightly cooler, with highs of 25 degrees C.

Practice and qualifying on Wednesday and Thursday is scheduled to be overcast, with highs of 21 degrees C on Wednesday and 23 degrees C on Thursday.

2021 Le Mans 24 Hours Entry List

# Drivers Class Team Car Engine
7 United Kingdom Mike Conway
Japan Kamui Kobayashi
Argentina Jose Maria Lopez
HYPERCAR Japan Toyota Racing Toyota GR010 - Hybrid Toyota Hybrid
8 Switzerland Sébastien Buemi
Japan Kazuki Nakajima
New Zealand Brendon Hartley
HYPERCAR Japan Toyota Racing Toyota GR010 - Hybrid Toyota Hybrid
36 Brazil Andre Negrao
France Nicolas Lapierre
France Matthieu Vaxiviere
HYPERCAR ALPINE ELF MATMUT Alpine A480 Gibson
708 Brazil Pipo Derani
France Franck Mailleux
France Olivier Pla
HYPERCAR GLICKENHAUS RACING Glickenhaus 007 LMH Glickenhaus
709 Australia Ryan Briscoe
United Kingdom Richard Westbrook
France Romain Dumas
HYPERCAR GLICKENHAUS RACING Glickenhaus 007 LMH Glickenhaus
1 Colombia Tatiana Calderon
Germany Sophia Flörsch
Netherlands Beitske Visser
LMP2 RICHARD MILLE RACING TEAM Oreca 07 Gibson
17 United States Dwight Merriman
France Thomas Laurent
United Kingdom Ryan Dalziel
LMP2 IDEC SPORT Oreca 07 Gibson
20 Denmark Dennis Andersen
United States Ricky Taylor
Denmark Marco Sorensen
LMP2 Denmark High Class Racing Oreca 07 Gibson
21 Sweden Henrik Hedman
United Kingdom Ben Hanley
Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya
LMP2 DRAGONSPEED USA Oreca 07 Gibson
22 United Kingdom Philip Hanson
Switzerland Fabio Scherer
Portugal Filipe Albuquerque
LMP2 UNITED AUTOSPORTS USA Oreca 07 Gibson
23 United Kingdom Paul di Resta
United Kingdom Alex Lynn
United Kingdom Wayne Boyd
LMP2 United States United Autosports Oreca 07 Gibson
24 United States Patrick Kelly
France Gabriel Aubry
Switzerland Simon Trummer
LMP2 PR1 Motorsports Mathiasen Oreca 07 Gibson
25 United States John Falb
Spain Roberto Merhi
Portugal Rui Andrade
LMP2 Russian Federation G-Drive Racing Aurus 01 Gibson
26 Russian Federation Roman Rusinov
Argentina Franco Colapinto
Netherlands Nyck de Vries
LMP2 Russian Federation G-Drive Racing Aurus 01 Gibson
28 Indonesia Sean Gelael
Belgium Stoffel Vandoorne
United Kingdom Tom Blomqvist
LMP2 United Kingdom Jota Sport Oreca 07 Gibson
29 Netherlands Frits van Eerd
Netherlands Giedo van der Garde
Netherlands Job Van Uitert
LMP2 Netherlands Racing Team Nederland Oreca 07 Gibson
30 Austria Rene Binder
Mexico Memo Rojas
France Tristan Gommendy
LMP2 DUQUEINE TEAM Oreca 07 Gibson
31 Netherlands Robin Frijns
Austria Ferdinand Habsburg
France Charles Milesi
LMP2 TEAM WRT Oreca 07 Gibson
32 France Nico Jamin
South Africa Jonathan Aberdein
Venezuela Manuel Maldonado
LMP2 United States United Autosports Oreca 07 Gibson
34 Poland Jakub Smiechowski
Netherlands Renger van der Zande
United Kingdom Alex Brundle
LMP2 INTER EUROPOL COMPETITION Oreca 07 Gibson
38 Mexico Roberto Gonzalez
Portugal Antonio Felix da Costa
United Kingdom Anthony Davidson
LMP2 United Kingdom Jota Sport Oreca 07 Gibson
39 France Vincent Capillaire
France Arnold Robin
France Maxime Robin
LMP2 SO24-Dirob by Graff Oreca 07 Gibson
41 Poland Robert Kubica
Switzerland Louis Deletraz
China Ye Yifei
LMP2 TEAM WRT Oreca 07 Gibson
44 Slovakia Miro Konopka
United Kingdom Oliver Webb
Slovakia Matej Konopka
LMP2 Slovakia ARC Bratislava Oreca 07 Gibson
48 France Paul Lafargue
France Paul-Loup Chatin
France Patrick Pilet
LMP2 IDEC SPORT Oreca 07 Gibson
49 Denmark Anders Fjordbach
Denmark Jan Magnussen
Denmark Kevin Magnussen
LMP2 Denmark High Class Racing Oreca 07 Gibson
65 France Julien Canal
United Kingdom Will Stevens
Australia James Allen
LMP2 PANIS RACING Oreca 07 Gibson
70 Switzerland Esteban Garcia
France Loic Duval
France Norman Nato
LMP2 REALTEAM RACING Oreca 07 Gibson
74 United Kingdom James Winslow
Australia John Corbett
Belgium Tom Cloet
LMP2 Racing Team India Eurasia Ligier JSP 217 Gibson
82 Ireland Ryan Cullen
United Kingdom Oliver Jarvis
Brazil Felipe Nasr
LMP2 United States Risi Competizione Oreca 07 Gibson
51 Italy Alessandro Pier Guidi
United Kingdom James Calado
France Côme Ledogar
LMGTE PRO Italy AF Corse Ferrari 488 GTE EVO Ferrari
52 Brazil Daniel Serra
Spain Miguel Molina
United Kingdom Sam Bird
LMGTE PRO Italy AF Corse Ferrari 488 GTE EVO Ferrari
63 Spain Antonio Garcia
United States Jordan Taylor
Netherlands Nick Catsburg
LMGTE PRO United States Corvette Racing Chevrolet Corvette C8.R Chevrolet
64 United States Tommy Milner
United Kingdom Nick Tandy
United Kingdom Alexander Sims
LMGTE PRO United States Corvette Racing Chevrolet Corvette C8.R Chevrolet
72 Belgium Dries Vanthoor
Portugal Alvaro Parente
Belgium Maxime Martin
LMGTE PRO HUB AUTO RACING Porsche 911 RSR Porsche
79 United States Cooper MacNeil
New Zealand Earl Bamber
Belgium Laurens Vanthoor
LMGTE PRO WeatherTech Racing Porsche 911 RSR Porsche
91 Italy Gianmaria Bruni
Austria Richard Lietz
France Frédéric Makowiecki
LMGTE PRO Germany Team Manthey Porsche 911 RSR Porsche
92 France Kevin Estre
Switzerland Neel Jani
Denmark Michael Christensen
LMGTE PRO Germany Team Manthey Porsche 911 RSR Porsche
18 Indonesia Andrew Haryanto
Belgium Alessio Picariello
Germany Marco Seefried
LMGTE AM Absolute Racing Porsche 911 RSR Porsche
33 United States Ben Keating
Luxembourg Dylan Pereira
Brazil Felipe Fraga
LMGTE AM United Kingdom TF Sport Aston Martin Vantage AMR Aston Martin
46 Norway Dennis Olsen
Norway Anders Buchardt
United States Robby Foley
LMGTE AM Germany Team Project 1 Porsche 911 RSR Porsche
47 Italy Roberto Lacorte
Italy Giorgio Sernagiotto
Italy Antonio Fuoco
LMGTE AM Italy Cetilar Racing Ferrari 488 GTE EVO Ferrari
54 Switzerland Thomas Flohr
Italy Giancarlo Fisichella
Italy Francesco Castellacci
LMGTE AM Italy AF Corse Ferrari 488 GTE EVO Ferrari
55 United Kingdom Duncan Cameron
South Africa David Perel
Ireland Matthew Griffin
LMGTE AM United States Spirit of Race Ferrari 488 GTE EVO Ferrari
56 Norway Egidio Perfetti
Italy Matteo Cairoli
Italy Riccardo Pera
LMGTE AM Germany Team Project 1 Porsche 911 RSR Porsche
57 Japan Takeshi Kimura
Australia Scott Andrews
Denmark Mikkel Jensen
LMGTE AM Kessel Racing Ferrari 488 GTE EVO Ferrari
60 Italy Claudio Schiavoni
Italy Paolo Ruberti
Italy Raffaele Giammaria
LMGTE AM IRON LYNX Ferrari 488 GTE EVO Ferrari
66 France Thomas Neubauer
United States Rodrigo Sales
United Kingdom Jody Fannin
LMGTE AM United Kingdom JMW Motorsport Ferrari 488 GTE EVO Ferrari
69 Germany Robert Renauer
Germany Ralf Bohn
Switzerland Rolf Ineichen
LMGTE AM Herberth Motorsport Porsche 911 RSR Porsche
71 United States Brendan Iribe
United Kingdom Ollie Millroy
United Kingdom Ben Barnicoat
LMGTE AM INCEPTION RACING Ferrari 488 GTE EVO Ferrari
77 Germany Christian Ried
Australia Jaxon Evans
Australia Matt Campbell
LMGTE AM Germany Proton Competition Porsche 911 RSR Porsche
80 Italy Matteo Cressoni
Italy Rino Mastronardi
United Kingdom Callum Ilott
LMGTE AM IRON LYNX Ferrari 488 GTE EVO Ferrari
83 France François Perrodo
Denmark Nicklas Nielsen
Italy Alessio Rovera
LMGTE AM Italy AF Corse Ferrari 488 GTE EVO Ferrari
85 Switzerland Rahel Frey
Belgium Sarah Bovy
Denmark Michelle Gatting
LMGTE AM IRON LYNX Ferrari 488 GTE EVO Ferrari
86 United Kingdom Michael Wainwright
United Kingdom Benjamin Barker
United Kingdom Tom Gamble
LMGTE AM GR RACING Porsche 911 RSR Porsche
88 France Julien Andlauer
United States Dominique Bastien
Germany Lance David Arnold
LMGTE AM Germany Proton Competition Porsche 911 RSR Porsche
95 United Kingdom John Hartshorne
United Kingdom Ollie Hancock
United Kingdom Ross Gunn
LMGTE AM United Kingdom TF Sport Aston Martin Vantage AMR Aston Martin
98 Canada Paul Dalla Lana
Denmark Nicki Thiim
Brazil Marcos Gomes
LMGTE AM United Kingdom Aston Martin Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR Aston Martin
99 United Kingdom Harry Tincknell
Thailand Vutthikorn Inthrapuvasak
France Florian Latorre
LMGTE AM Germany Proton Competition Porsche 911 RSR Porsche
388 Germany Pierre Ehret
Germany Christian Hook
Netherlands Jeroen Bleekemolen
LMGTE AM RINALDI RACING Ferrari 488 GTE EVO Ferrari
777 Japan Satoshi Hoshino
Japan Tomonobu Fujii
United Kingdom Andrew Watson
LMGTE AM D'Station Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR Aston Martin
84 Japan Takuma Aoki
Belgium Nigel Bailly
France Matthieu Lahaye
INNOVATIVE CAR Association SRT41 Oreca 07 Gibson

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