Formula E champion Jean-Eric Vergne back to WEC for Fuji with TDS
Formula E champion Jean-Eric Vergne will return to the World Endurance Championship in next month's Fuji round with the TDS Racing LMP2 squad
Vergne will replace Loic Duval in the team's #28 ORECA 07 for the Japanese race, as Duval has to prioritise his Audi DTM commitments and will be taking part in the Hockenheim season finale on the same weekend.
Duval (pictured below) managed to juggle his WEC and DTM commitments when the two championships' respective season openers at Spa and Hockenheim clashed, helped by the proximity of the two circuits.
He was able to take a helicopter shuttle from Hockenheim after the Saturday DTM race to Spa to take part in the closing stages of the six-hour race, before then returning to Hockenheim to complete the DTM weekend.
Vergne will partner TDS regulars Matthieu Vaxiviere and Francois Perrodo for his third WEC appearance of the season at Fuji, after competing for G-Drive Racing - whose #26 car is run by TDS - at Spa and the Le Mans 24 Hours.
He won both LMP2 in races alongside Roman Rusinov and Andrea Pizzitola, but was excluded at Le Mans.
Vergne, Rusinov and Pizzitola also lead the European Le Mans Series standings with two rounds to go after a hat-trick of race wins at Monza, the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone.
WEC investigating F1 calendar clash with races in Japan in 2019
Why Porsche's 919 Evo WEC car didn't break Brands Hatch Indy record
How Formula E's double-duty drivers influenced their Le Mans teams' fortunes
Eight Formula E drivers made the 7,000-mile sprint from the streets of Jakarta to the fabled Circuit de la Sarthe and every one had a story to share at this year's Le Mans 24 Hours. Despite a range of triumphs and disappointments, each driver doubling up on the day job played a key role in their teams' fortunes
How an Italian junior formula giant is readying for its Le Mans future
Prema remains a colossus in single-seaters, but the serial Formula 2 and Formula 3 title-winning squad has joined forces with top GT squad Iron Lynx for an attack on sportscars in the World Endurance Championship and European Le Mans Series. Ahead of its debut at the Le Mans 24 Hours, its sights are firmly fixed on LMP2 glory – and a future in Hypercars next year...
The British rookies targeting a good first impression at Le Mans
Three young Britons will make their first starts in the Le Mans 24 Hours this weekend in the highly-competitive 23-car GTE Am field. But how did they get here? Autosport hears their stories.
The wingless wonder Peugeot hopes will restore it to Le Mans glory
Peugeot went radical with the initial plan for its Le Mans Hypercar project, and then stuck to its guns. Here’s how things are shaping up a few weeks before the debut of the 9X8 in next month's Monza World Endurance Championship round
How Toyota’s sole survivor turned the tables at Spa
After a chastening opening to the season at Sebring that ended in an enormous accident, Toyota's #7 crew got their World Endurance Championship underway with victory at a treacherously slippery Spa to make up for its sister car's Sebring defeat to Alpine, as Glickenhaus's promising qualifying turned to disaster in the race
The Chinese sportscar protege targeting a path to the top with Porsche
Yifei Ye came within one lap of winning the LMP2 class on his Le Mans 24 Hours debut last year, and his eye-catching 2021 has gained Porsche’s interest. With the German manufacturer preparing for a return to the top tier, the Chinese youngster is on the path to join it
How WEC got off to a stormy start in 2022 as rulemakers dampen Toyota's dominance
Toyota’s stranglehold on the World Endurance Championship ended at the 2022 opener at Sebring, but all accusing eyes were on the Balance of Performance system as the key to the shake-up. Here's how it unfolded, to see Alpine celebrating under a stormy sky having blown away the defending champions
Why Penske remains ambitious for its WEC learning year
Team Penske is gearing up for its role in running Porsche’s LMDh programme from 2023 by entering this year's World Endurance Championship with an LMP2 car. Although the team is considering 2022 as a season to learn, it is no less serious about winning than ever - which should make the already fiercely competitive class even more so