NASCAR plans to showcase Next Gen at 24 Hours of Le Mans race next year
NASCAR intends to go endurance racing at Le Mans for the first time in nearly half a century. The premier U.S. stock car racing series will pursue a modified Next Gen car entry at the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in 2023.
The iconic event is a 24-hour-long sports car endurance test, described as auto racing’s “Boston Marathon,” and held annually in Le Mans, France.
NASCAR plans to return to Le Mans for the first time since 1976 in partnership with Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet, IMSA and Goodyear. Official entry is pending a formal invitation from the l’Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO).
“I think everybody sitting at this table is a racer. We like challenges,” NASCAR chairman and CEO Jim France said during an announcement at Sebring International Raceway.
France gathered in Florida to unveil the project, joined by other motorsports executives, including NASCAR president Steve Phelps, Hendrick Motorsports owner Rick Hendrick and ACO president Pierre Fillon.
U.S. vice president of Chevrolet performance and motorsports Jim Campbell, IMSA president John Doonan and Goodyear general manager of global racing tires Stu Grant were also present for the announcement.
“It’s a tremendous opportunity for the sport that my dad started to further its reach with other fans, new fans,” France said about his father, the late Bill France Sr., who facilitated NASCAR’s ‘76 entry at Le Mans. “I’m also very much into the sports car racing and road racing, as dad was.”
NASCAR plans to field a modified version of the Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 that debuted in the Cup Series this year.
The race features four different classes of cars (Hypercar, LMP2, LMGTE-Pro, LMGTE-Am), but NASCAR’s entry would come in a special Garage 56 category, an extra slot introduced in 2012 for innovative entries that do not partake in official competition. For NASCAR, it’s an opportunity to showcase the new car on a global stage.
“We are, as a sport, trying to look at things that are unique and different, puts us apart,” Phelps said. “I think that’s exactly what we’re doing. That’s what this opportunity is.”
Fillon said that he was “immediately enthusiastic” about the idea of NASCAR showcasing Next Gen at the endurance spectacle. Hendrick said that conversations with France began in November 2020 about the project.
ACO’s Selection Committee will have to sign off on the entry, but Fillon said that he is “very confident” that will happen.
“I think this new generation of NASCAR with the hybrid system is innovative,” he said. “This is the future of NASCAR.”
A driver lineup and technical details will be announced at a later date, executives said. Typically, three or four drivers compete in a single car for competitive entries. Hendrick Motorsports vice president of competition Chad Knaus, a seven-time champion crew chief with driver Jimmie Johnson, plans to serve as NASCAR’s Garage 56 program manager.
Hendrick indicated that Johnson could have an interest in driving if his schedule allows, but that they have not yet spoken yet about it. Hendrick said that it would be “nice to have a mix” of active Cup drivers and those from other series in the car for the race.
“We’ll just wait and see what’s available,” Hendrick said. “But we’ve got from the IMSA drivers, a lot of drivers that have Le Mans experience. Especially with Chevrolet’s involvement, we’ll be covered with drivers.”
Hendrick, whose organization is the all-time leader in Cup championships, including the last two titles won by driver Kyle Larson last year and Chase Elliott in 2020, called it a privilege to undertake the project and thanked France. He said that while the focus at HMS remains on its Cup schedule, the team isn’t taking the event lightly in terms of expectations, and will aim to run competitive times.
“We’re not going over there to ride around,” Hendrick said. “We’re going to put the best effort out there and run very competitively and finish the race. That’s a tall order. I feel strongly that we can do it.”
Hendrick Motorsports leads NASCAR’s top series in laps led and points-paying race victories, winning two of the first four races this season.
Chevy is NASCAR’s winningest manufacturer and already backs a Corvette Racing program at Le Mans, with eight class wins in 21 starts since 2000. Goodyear tires are run on the LMP2 class vehicles.
NASCAR race cars made their first and only Les Mans start in the summer of ‘76 when Bill France Sr. reached a deal with event organizers to showcase American stock cars, reportedly dubbed “the two big monsters” by French media. Those entries were a Dodge Charger driven and owned by Hershel McGriff, and a Ford Torino/Junie Donlavey car driven by Richard Brooks and Dick Hutcherson.
They competed in a Grand International Class. McGriff’s car engine blew on the second lap, but the Donlavey-prepared Ford ran until the 11th hour before a broken transmission ended the run.
Next year, a NASCAR entry wouldn’t compete for a win at Le Mans, but it could improve on its last showing while gaining international respect. France said that his expectations were in line with Hendrick’s: “The goal is to finish the race and not be last.”
This story was originally published March 17, 2022 at 1:05 PM.
