Le Mans 24 Hours Live Commentary and Updates

Hello and welcome to Autosport's live text coverage of the 2025 Le Mans 24 Hours. I'm James Newbold and I'll be joined over the next few hours by a rotating cast of experts including Gary Watkins, Stephen Lickorish, Ben Vinel, Haydn Cobb and Ewan Gale. There are plenty of storylines to dig into before the race gets going in one hour's time, at 3pm BST, so let's dive in.

Lynn's redemption

Just 0.148s was all that separated Alex Lynn from pole position at Le Mans 12 months ago. Seeing Kevin Estre snatch the honour away in the dying seconds of what was then a single Hyperpole session left him feeling like pole was "100 miles away".

In some ways it was academic; a five-place grid penalty, handed to the Chip Ganassi Racing Cadillac he shared with Alex Palou and Earl Bamber due to the Kiwi's faux pas at Spa, meant the car would not have started first anyway. But as Lynn pointed out on Thursday, "there is a big difference between P1 and P2 in the feeling". So getting his moment in the pole-deciding H2 session was just desserts for a driver who, don't forget, had LMP2 pole for his event debut back in 2017.

His Jota-run Cadillac beat the sister car of Bamber by 0.167s, giving him the honour of becoming the first British pole-winner since Johnny Herbert aboard a Veloqx Audi R8 in 2004. Will Stevens, a two-time class winner at Le Mans, will lead the field off.

#12 Cadillac Hertz Team Jota Cadillac V-Series.R: Will Stevens, Norman Nato, Alex Lynn

Photo by: Nikolaz Godet

Caddy's hopes of history

Will this be the race Caddy finally ends its WEC win drought? On paper, it certainly looks to have a strong chance of becoming the first US brand to win Le Mans since 1969.

Fastest out of the traps in opening practice and then in qualifying, it not only locked out the front row with the Jota cars, but Jack Aitken in the Action Express machine has the fastest lap from the event so far. That was notched in the H1 session that determined the final 10 entrants for the pole shootout.

The V-Series.R LMDh usually performs well at the Circuit de la Sarthe and finished third in 2023, but Sebastien Bourdais poured cold water on Caddy hopes on Thursday. A GTE Pro class winner and three-time overall runner-up, the local man is well-versed in what it takes to succeed at Le Mans, and is concerned that the V8-powered machine doesn't have enough straightline grunt to be in the fight.

"Honestly, I reckon a top five would be really nice," he said. "If we ended up on the podium, it would be a bit incredible. But winning would be really unexpected."

We don't have long to find out.

#38 Cadillac Hertz Team Jota Cadillac V-Series.R: Earl Bamber, Sebastien Bourdais, Jenson Button

Photo by: Marc Fleury

What about Ferrari?

One of the reasons that Bourdais was so glum is the pace of the Ferrari 499P LMH. The Prancing Horse has won all three WEC races this year, and is undefeated in its previous two visits to Le Mans. The Italian cars start seventh, 11th and 13th on the grid, but have to be considered the pre-race favourites. It's a view Bourdais shares.

"Ferrari is making fun of us, that’s for sure," he remarked. "When you see what Yifei [Ye] did on his first lap on a green track with 45kg or 50kg in the [#83] car – he set a very first time in 3m23.9s. At some point, come on!

"Okay, it makes for nice stories and all, but they’re taking the piss."

#83 AF Corse Ferrari 499P: Robert Kubica, Yifei Ye, Philip Hanson

Photo by: Marc Fleury

Can Porsche complete the set?

Last year's qualifying hero, Kevin Estre didn't get his chance to shine in Hyperpole on Thursday. His factory #6 Penske Porsche 963 LMDh was booted out of qualifying on Wednesday evening for running underweight, and will therefore start from the back of the Hypercar grid in 21st.

But the two other PPM machines were in the thick of the fight on Thursday evening, Mathieu Jaminet clocking the third-fastest time in #5 and Nick Tandy fifth in the guesting #4 from the IMSA SportsCar Championship.

Tandy, along with full-time IMSA team-mate Felipe Nasr and Laurens Vanthoor (sharing #6 at Le Mans with Estre and Matt Campbell), are chasing a rather unique feat. The trio teamed up to win the Daytona 24 Hours that opened the IMSA calendar year, then doubled up in the Sebring 12 Hours. Nobody has ever managed to win the two American classics and Le Mans in the same year. 

Could this be the year that changes? With better straightline speed than in previous years, a first outright Porsche win since 2017 could be on the cards. Watch out for Vanthoor making up ground in the early laps.

Overall winner #7 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963: Felipe Nasr, Nick Tandy, Laurens Vanthoor

Photo by: Courtesy of IMSA

Time for Toyota to dig in

Not so long ago, it seemed a foregone conclusion that a Toyota crew would be taking the checkered flag first on Sunday afternoon. But the last time that happened, in 2022, the opposition it faced looked markedly different. And it may face a tough ask to record win number six. Its GR010 HYBRIDs, the #7 liveried in a spectacular homage to the 1998 GT-One, are starting 10th and 16th, having yet to really set the timing screens alight.

Toyota has admitted that Sebastien Buemi was underprepared for Hyperpole, for the simple reason that it didn't expect to make it into the top 10 and therefore gave Brendon Hartley (who did H1) the lion's share of quali sim runs in the #8 car. That pessimism is striking, though a stroke of misfortune was to blame for Nyck de Vries failing to progress in car #7. The Dutchman caught yellow flags and had to lift on his best lap in qualifying.

The defending WEC manufacturers' champions are usually in the mix at La Sarthe and have notched at least one podium in every year since the GR010 HYBRID was introduced in 2021. The TGR crew is among the most tactically astute in the pitlane, renowned for extracting the best possible result from its package. And it has prior history for digging a result out of a lowly grid spot.

Last year, starting 23rd after Kamui Kobayashi's qualifying off triggered a red flag was little impediment for the #7 crew that ended up second. It may need a similarly excellent run to get in the mix this time, but don't rule anything out.

#7 Toyota Gazoo Racing Toyota GR010 - Hybrid: Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi, Nyck De Vries

Photo by: Marc Fleury

A long race ahead for Peugeot

Of all the manufacturers represented on the grid, only Porsche, Toyota and Ferrari have tasted outright success more recently than Peugeot. But its 9X8 has shown little signs of emulating the 908 HDi that finished first and second in 2009 to interrupt Audi's spell of dominance. Running 9kg heavier and with 13kW less power compared to the previous WEC round at Spa, the French cars have been well adrift of the pace and occupy the ninth row of the grid. It was the only brand without a representative in Hyperpole, and the frustrations were all too clear in the Peugeot camp on Friday.

“It’s tough,” groaned Jean-Eric Vergne. “It’s many years of preparation, a huge amount of work from the team, from the drivers. Being here to make up the numbers is a bit hard to swallow for me. I’m not that kind of driver.”

It will take something drastic for Peugeot to make an impression on the final results, but the drivers have vowed not to give up. As Paul di Resta put it: “The motivation is always there. I owe that to Peugeot and I owe that to myself. As a driver, you fight all the way. I don't think anybody is just going to go out there and easily give up, because your reputation is on the line."

#93 Peugeot Totalenergies Peugeot 9x8: Paul Di Resta, Mikkel Jensen, Jean-Eric Vergne

Photo by: Alexander Trienitz

The cars and drivers are on the grid, it should be noted. The ceremonial start at Le Mans is a big part of the build up to this famous event, with the 62 machines parked in neat formation. Tennis legend Roger Federer (who once took a photograph of your humble commenter at a family wedding) will be waving the Tricolore to start the race in a little under 45 minutes time.

Off-track developments

Although there is no track action on Friday at Le Mans, it always generates plenty of headlines and this year was no exception.

The 2026 WEC calendar was revealed, with an unchanged roster of eight events. The biggest difference from this year’s schedule is that Qatar’s season-opener will be one month later. The date for Le Mans was also confirmed, clashing with Barcelona’s Formula 1 race.

Stability has been instrumental in the WEC’s recent growth, its organisers believe, which is one reason why the current LMDh and Le Mans Hypercar regulations (concerning both the WEC’s Hypercar class and IMSA SportsCar Championship’s GTP division) have been extended until 2032. It follows one year after an extension to 2029 was announced.

In another demonstration of stability, Gibson will continue to supply engines to the LMP2 class when its next generation of chassis comes on stream in 2028. The twin-turbo V6 engines, replacing the long-serving V8s that have been in use since 2017, will power chassis produced by ORECA and Ligier. The former has been the dominant force in the secondary prototype class in recent years, so will Ligier get it right next time to put up more of a fight?

#199 AO by TF Oreca 07 - Gibson: PJ Hyett, Dane Cameron, Louis Deletraz

Photo by: Alexander Trienitz

What will the weather do? 

It always rains at Le Mans. So utters Jason Statham, the narrator of the Truth In 24 documentary depicting Audi’s famous 2008 victory. That isn’t strictly true though. And this year, we may get away without any precipitation throwing a spanner into the works. The forecasts show minimal chances of rain, which is bad news for Peugeot hoping to get back into the mix.

#5 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963: Julien Andlauer, Michael Christensen, Mathieu Jaminet

Photo by: Marc Fleury

Where Aston's biggest hopes lie 

Little was expected from the new Aston Martin Valkyrie on its Le Mans debut. The Heart of Racing-run machine has been making steady progress this year, but finding the V12-powered machines in 15th and 20th on the grid isn’t a huge surprise as the programme finds its feet.

The British brand’s best hopes of victory can be found in the LMGT3 class, where HOR’s Vantage lines up on pole courtesy of Mattia Drudi. The Italian was part of the winning line-up for Comtoyou Racing at the Spa 24 Hours last year, and alongside Zacharie Robichon and Ian James will be gunning for more glory.

Another Vantage entered by the Franco-Swiss Racing Spirit of Leman team lines up 17th, with second-generation Edoardo Barrichello among the line-up. As we’ll go into, you’re spoiled for choice when it comes to picking potential winners from the 24-car LMGT3 category.

#27 Heart Of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage AMR LMGT3: Ian James, Mattia Drudi, Zacharie Robichon

Photo by: Nikolaz Godet

A mixed return for Mercedes 

Mercedes has a decidedly mixed history at Le Mans. There have been remarkable highs - think 1989, and Sauber’s victory with the Merc-powered C9 - and devastating lows. The Three-Pointed Star withdrew from circuit racing for over 30 years after Pierre Levegh ploughed into the crowd aboard an 800 SLR in 1955, resulting in the deaths of over 80 spectators. And its last appearance at La Sarthe in 1999 is famous for all the wrong reasons, with Peter Dumbreck fortunate to escape after his CLR GT1 somersaulted into the trees due to an aerodynamic defect. 

Mercedes is back in the LMGT3 class with a three-pronged attack from Iron Lynx, wearing the silver livery that adorned the winning C9 36 years ago. But it hasn’t been entirely smooth sailing for the only marque yet to manage a podium in LMGT3 so far. Although Maxime Martin qualified the #61 machine fourth, the #63 machine was crashed heavily enough by Stephen Grove in first practice to require a chassis change.

Having missed qualifying and not completed sufficient night practice laps, Grove is not permitted to drive during the night. The stewards also stipulated that factory driver Luca Stolz must also start the race.

#63 Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG LMGT3: Stephen Grove, Brenton Grove, Luca Stolz after the crash

Photo by: Andreas Beil

Drivers and mechanics are lining up shoulder to shoulder in their car crews on the pit straight, in readiness for the national anthem. Before that though, the winners' trophy is brought back aboard a Ferrari, as the Prancing Horse won the race last year.

Can WRT deliver glory for BMW?

It’s still taking this writer a bit of time to get used to seeing Martin in silver, such is his affinity for BMW. And he’s not too far away from the #46 WRT-run M4 he campaigned last year, which Valentino Rossi stuck third on the LMGT3 grid in H2. It was a game effort from the MotoGP legend, after WRT played safe and deployed factory driver Kelvin van der Linde to ensure it made the pole shootout. 

The sister car is starting 16th in class, but has an ace up its sleeve in bronze Yasser Shahin. The Aussie won this class last year, driving a Manthey Porsche, and got most of his driving out of the way before the lengthy overnight safety car. He will duly start the race and Shahin’s contribution, alongside Timur Boguslavskiy and Augusto Farfus will be key if WRT are to improve on its runner-up finish from last year.

But WRT gets two rolls at the dice (well, four if you're going by individual cars), because its M Hybrid V8 LMDh machines appear in fine fettle in the Hypercar race. Dries Vanthoor qualified fourth and Sheldon van der Linde fifth. Kevin Magnussen and Rene Rest will take the start in their respective mounts.

#46 Team WRT BMW M4 LMGT3: Ahmad Al Harthy, Valentino Rossi, Kelvin Van Der Linde

Photo by: Marc Fleury

We mentioned earlier that Roger Federer will be waving the Tricolore, but first it has to be delivered to him. That job is conducted by the French armed forces via helicopter. Nowhere does the pomp and circumstance of pre-race build-up quite like Le Mans.

Female winner chances

Five female drivers in the field are vying for honours in the LMP2 and LMGT3 classes.

Jamie Chadwick has made an electric start to the year in the European Le Mans Series, taking two LMP2 class wins and one outright victory with the Genesis trajectory-backed IDEC Sport team. With regular ELMS co-driver Dani Juncadella on duty for the TF Corvette squad in LMGT3, Chadwick and fellow event rookie Mathys Jaubert are joined here by three-time outright winner Andre Lotterer and launch from 14th.

A freak foot injury suffered by Michelle Gatting during pitstop practice during the Test Day was not the ideal preparation for the all-female Iron Dames crew, but in Sarah Bovy it has a match-fit replacement who is familiar with the Manthey Porsche from racing it in the ELMS. Bovy joins event rookie Celia Martin, who together with Gatting won the ELMS opener in Barcelona, and Rahel Frey in a line-up that could well be in the mix for the podium.

Lilou Wadoux is also an ELMS race winner in 2025, taking the flag in the most recent event at Paul Ricard. Alongside Riccardo Agostini and Custodio Toledo, her Ferrari 296 will start 21st in class. 

#85 Iron Dames Porsche 911 GT3 R LMGT3: Celia Martin, Rahel Frey, Sarah Bovy

Photo by: Andreas Beil

LMP2 wide open

The LMP2 class no longer forms part of the WEC, so is in effect an invitational category here comprising entries from the ELMS, IMSA and Asian Le Mans Series. Every car in the field is an ORECA-Gibson 07. 

Pole was captured by the #29 TDS Racing entry of Mathias Beche, the Swiss making his 12th attempt at Le Mans. He’ll be hoping to better a best result of third overall with Rebellion in 2018, but taking LMP2 honours will be no easy feat.

Expect the battle in this class to rumble on, with another interesting sub-plot at play. Whisper it quietly, but a pro-am crew featuring a bronze-rated driver could get in amongst the regular P2 crews that have to include a minimum of one silver-rated driver.

#29 TDS Racing Oreca 07 - Gibson: Rodrigo Sales, Mathias Beche, Clement Novalak

Photo by: Rainier Ehrhardt

Starting drivers are now clambering into their cars. We'll run through those in each class next.

Hypercar starting drivers

1. Will Stevens (#12 Jota Cadillac)
2. Earl Bamber (#38 Jota Cadillac)
3. Julien Andlauer (#5 PPM Porsche)
4. Kevin Magnussen (#15 WRT BMW)
5. Felipe Nasr (#4 PPM Porsche)
6. Rene Rast (#20 WRT BMW)
7. Nicklas Nielsen (#50 AF Corse Ferrari)
8. Jack Aitken (#311 Action Express Cadillac)
9. Fred Makowiecki (#36 Alpine)
10. Sebastien Buemi (#8 Toyota)
11. James Calado (#51 AF Corse Ferrari)
12. Ferdinand Habsburg (#35 Alpine)
13. Phil Hanson (#83 AF Corse Ferrari)
14. Ricky Taylor (#101 WTR Cadillac)
15. Marco Sorensen (#009 HoR Aston Martin)
16. Mike Conway (#7 Toyota)
17. Loic Duval (#94 Peugeot)
18. Paul di Resta (#93 Peugeot)
19. Neel Jani (#99 Proton Porsche)
20. Harry Tincknell (#007 Aston Martin)
21. Kevin Estre (#6 PPM Porsche)

Roger Federer gives the order for drivers to start their engines. Time for the cars to file around on the long formation lap.

LMP2 starting drivers (all cars ORECA-07 Gibson)

1. Mathias Beche (#29 TDS Racing)
2. Tom Dillmann (#43 Inter Europol Competition)
3. Louis Deletraz (#199 AO by TF)
4. Oliver Jarvis (#23 United Autosports)
5. Renger van der Zande (#22 United Autosports)
6. Tom Blomqvist (#37 CLX Racing)
7. Matthieu Vaxiviere (#183 AF Corse)
8. Patrick Pilet (#16 RLR M Sport)
9. Job van Uitert (#28 IDEC Sport)
10. Nicky Catsburg (#45 Algarve Pro Racing)
11. Esteban Masson (#48 VDS Panis Racing)
12. Theo Pourchaire (#25 Algarve Pro Racing)
13. Bent Viscaal (#11 Proton Competition)
14. Andre Lotterer (#18 IDEC Sport)
15. Jonas Reid (#9 Iron Lynx - Proton)
16. Luca Ghiotto (#34 Inter Europol Competition)
17. Colin Braun (#24 Nielsen Racing)

No tyre warmers in the WEC, remember, so this warm-up lap really is crucial for generating temperature in the tyres. The last thing anybody wants is for a first lap faux pas to undo a whole 24 hours.

LMGT3 starting drivers (B denotes bronze)

1. Mattia Drudi
2. Francois Heriau (B)
3. Kelvin van der Linde
4. Maxime Martin
5. Ryan Hardwick (B)
6. Charlie Eastwood
7. Darren Leung (B)
8. Jack Hawksworth
9. Chris Froggatt
10. Dennis Olsen
11. James Cottingham (B)
12. Davide Rigon
13. Ben Barker
14. Clemens Schmidt
15. Daniel Serra
16. Yasser Shahin (B)
17. Valentin Hasse-Clot
18. Celia Martin (B)
19. Antares Au (B)
20. Orey Fidani (B)
21. Lilou Wadoux
22. Daniel Juncadella
23. Lorcan Hanafin
24. Luca Stolz

As the cars come towards the end of the formation lap, they begin to pair up in two-by-two formation. Yannick Dalmas in the safety car will soon peel off and the Le Mans 24 Hours will be under way.

Looks to be a clean start, as Andlauder makes a rapid start. He clears Bamber in the first sector, then blasts past Stevens to snatch the lead. 

We said the #6 Porsche would be one to watch, and from 21st on the grid Kevin Estre is already up to 15th spot.

Nielsen has gained two spots in the leading Ferrari and is up to fifth, demoting both BMWs. 

In LMP2, Beche continues to lead the pack, with Deletraz moving into second ahead of Dillmann. GT3 polesitter Drudi retained his advantage meanwhile, with bronze-rated Heriau unsurprisingly falling back behind Kelvin van der Linde and Maxime Martin.

Estre's advance continues. He's up to 13th and splitting the Alpines. No hanging about from last year's WEC Hypercar champion.

Andlauer already has 2.8s on Will Stevens in second. Early days yet, but Porsche does appear to have plenty of performance.

As you'd expect, the pro drivers in the LMGT3 class have been migrating towards the top of the timesheets. Heriau remains the leader of the group to have installed bronzes from the start, 10th in class. The bronzes have to complete six hours during the 24 hours, so how teams choose to deploy them will be vital.

The top seven cars in the GT3 pack are each from different manufacturers. Aston Martin (Mattia Drudi) leads BMW (Kelvin van der Linde), Mercedes (Maxime Martin), Lexus (Jack Hawksworth), Corvette (Charlie Eastwood), Ford (Dennis Olsen) and Ferrari (Davide Rigon) before the sequence is spoiled by Valentin Hasse-Clot in the second Aston.

Aitken has moved ahead of Rast for seventh in the Hypercar class, while Estre has taken Makowiecki for 12th. Next in the Porsche driver's sights is Hanson in the yellow #83 Ferrari.

Change for second in the LMGT3 class, with Maxime Martin taking the #46 BMW of Kelvin van der Linde. Martin was driving that car last year before switching brands to Mercedes.