Le Mans Cup
 | |
| Country | International |
|---|---|
| Inaugural season | 2016 |
| GT Classes | GT3, LMP3 |
| Drivers' champion | LMP3: Jean Glorieux Alexander TorilGT3:  Fabio Babini Emanuele Busnelli |
| Teams' champion | LMP3:  DKR EngineeringGT3: Ebimotors |
| Official website | lemanscup.com |
 Current season | |
The Michelin Le Mans Cup (GT3 Le Mans Cup in 2016) is an International sports car racing endurance series inspired by the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and run by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO).
The GT3 Le Mans Cup was created in 2016 after the GTC category being dropped off European Le Mans Series due to a lack of entries during 2015. Aiming to increase the number of GT3 entries, ACO created a new six event competition (5 events of 2 hours and a one-hour race at Le Mans - with LMP3) destinated primarily for amateur drivers, leading to more media coverage and competitive races (in ELMS, GT3 were much slower than the other 3 categories).[1][2][3] The champion team receives an automatic invitation to take part on the following 24 Hours of Le Mans in LMGTE Am category.[4]
For 2017 season, the series adopted a new format with LMP3 and GT3 category cars competing in their respective class, with ACO aiming to create a kind of LMP3 secondary division regarding ELMS, promoting the best teams from Michelin LMC to ELMS.[5]
All races have a duration of 2 hours except the Le Mans round, which had a 1-hour race in 2017, and two 55 minutes races since 2018.
Champions
LMP3 Drivers
| Season | Drivers | Team | Poles | Wins | Podiums | Points | Clinched | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Jean Glorieux Alexander Toril
|
DKR Engineering
|
5 | 4 | 5 | 114 | 6 of 7 | 24 |
| 2018 |  Jens Petersen Léonard Hoogenboom
|
DKR Engineering
|
0 | 3 | 4 | 103 | 6 of 7 | 11,5 |
| 2019 | Laurents Hörr François Kirmann
|
DKR Engineering
|
4 | 2 | 5 | 100 | 7 of 7 | 8,5 |
LMP3 Teams
| Season | Team | Car | Poles | Wins | Podiums | Points | Clinched | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | DKR Engineering
|
Norma M30 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 114 | 6 of 7 | 24 |
| 2018 | DKR Engineering
|
Norma M30 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 103 | 6 of 7 | 11,5 |
| 2019 | DKR Engineering
|
Norma M30 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 100 | 7 of 7 | 8,5 |
GT3 Drivers
| Season | Drivers | Team | Poles | Wins | Podiums | Points | Clinched | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 |  Aleksey Basov Viktor Shaytar
|
SMP Racing
|
3 | 4 | 5 | 121 | 5 of 6 | 14 |
| 2017 | Fabio Babini Emanuele Busnelli
|
Ebimotors
|
0 | 2 | 5 | 104.5 | 7 of 7 | 2 |
| 2018 | Giacomo Piccini Sergio Pianezzola
|
 Kessel Racing
|
4 | 5 | 5 | 138 | 7 of 7 | 55 |
| 2019 | Giacomo Piccini Sergio Pianezzola
|
Kessel Racing
|
1 | 4 | 6 | 130 | 7 of 7 | 21 |
GT3 Teams
| Season | Team | Cars | Poles | Wins | Podiums | Points | Clinched | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 |  TF Sport
|
Aston Martin Vantage GT3 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 107 | 6 of 6 | 11 |
| 2017 | Ebimotors
|
Lamborghini Huracán GT3 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 104.5 | 7 of 7 | 2 |
| 2018 | Kessel Racing
|
Ferrari 488 GT3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 138 | 7 of 7 | 55 |
| 2019 | Kessel Racing
|
Ferrari 488 GT3 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 130 | 7 of 7 | 21 |
See also
References
- ^ Release, News (4 May 2016). "Villorba Corse to enter 2016 Michelin GT3 Le Mans Cup".
{{cite web}}:|first=has generic name (help) - ^ "History - Michelin Le Mans Cup".
- ^ Ltd., Crash Media Group. "ACO launches Michelin GT3 Le Mans Cup - Sportscars News".
- ^ "Prize fund revealed for new GT3 Le Mans Cup".
- ^ "LMP3 Cars Added to Michelin Le Mans Cup for 2017 - Sportscar365".