In four weeks the final round of the FIA World Endurance Championship 2018-2019 Super Season will be underway (15h00 local time, Saturday 15 June) and, 24 hours later, at the culmination of this unique 14-month season, the newest World Endurance Champions will be known. No fewer than 62 cars will be on track for this year's edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans,  with HSH Princess Charlene of Monaco being present to officially start the proceedings. The FIA World Endurance LMP1 Championship and GT Manufacturers’ FIA World Championship were sealed at the previous round at Spa-Francorchamps, but there are still plenty of titles to be decided including the World Drivers' titles and that of the highly-competitive LMP2 category. Tickets for the 24 Hours of Le Mans can still be purchased HERE.  Don't miss a minute and follow all the action, interviews, live timing, onboards and more on the official 24 Hours of Le Mans/FIA WEC App.

Le Mans Esports Series format revealed for Super Final The format for the Super Final of the Le Mans Esports Series (LMES) has now been revealed. The teams and drivers, which were recently announced, will compete in nine races on the Xbox One exclusive Forza Motorsport 7. There will be 36 top gamers from across the world, who will be competing on 12 different simulators.  The teams will have a virtual budget of €150m to build a fantasy garage, and competitors will race on both the historical and modern varieties of the Le Mans track as well as getting to experience WEC races at Silverstone, Sebring and Spa-Francorchamps. The first and final race will use a traditional Le Mans start, meaning drivers must run to their rig and take the wheel to start. The Le Mans start will play a crucial role in the ninth race, which will decide the LMES champions, as points accumulated over the first eight races set the grid and the intervals between teams.  The first ever LMES champions will take their share of a $100,000 prize pool and also celebrate their victory on the real-life 24 Hours of Le Mans podium. For more information on LMES. CLIQUEZ ICI  pour la version française

Tickets go on sale for 6 Hours of São Paulo With just under a year until the WEC returns to Brazil, tickets have now gone on sale for the highly-anticipated 6 Hours of São Paulo via the event’s official website.  The 6 Hours of São Paulo forms the fifth round of the 2019-2020 WEC season and will be staged at Autódromo José Carlos Pace, also known as Interlagos, on 1 February 2020.  Indeed, Brazil is no stranger to endurance racing with the country already having hosted three WEC events at Interlagos between 2012 and 2014. Local hero and successful LMP1 driver Bruno Senna has also been named as the event’s official ambassador.  Fans can purchase three types of tickets for the grand festival of speed that will run from 30 January – 1 February, 2020. In addition to the track action, the three-day event will have a host of other entertainment. Tickets are now on sale at a discounted rate via the event’s official website: https://www.6horasdesaopaulo.com.br/comprar-ingressos/ ICI pour la version française

In 4 weeks the Super Finale to the Super Season will be underway: the 24 Hours of Le Mans!

• 24 Hours of Le Mans Endurance Championship Esports Series FIA
• At 5/18/2019 05:06:00 p.m.
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29 cars for collective test on 9-10 March The provisional entry list for the WEC collective test session on 9-10 March - just 16 days away - has been revealed. Of the 34 cars due to take the start of the 1000 Miles of Sebring, 29 will be using the two-day test to learn the track and how to respect the bumps!  The first WEC practice session will take place on Wednesday 13 March, just 20 days from now.

Only at Sebring! A dive into the history books... As Sebring is one of the oldest race tracks in the USA, there are many myths and legends. Here are some of our favourites from over the years. Who from the WEC might be the next driver(s) or team(s) to create their own myth or legend, and be talked about in years to come? Photo shows a Le Mans style start at the 1968 Sebring 12 Hours.

The FIA WEC Panel of Stewards: What happens behind closed doors “It’s with the Stewards.” “They have been called to the Stewards.” “It’s the decision of the Stewards.”  These phrases can often be heard at international motorsport meetings, but what exactly do they mean and what actually happens behind the closed doors of the Panel of Stewards at all rounds of the FIA World Endurance Championship, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans?  In order to find out more about the work of these FIA Officials and the extent to which they go to ensure parity, a fair hearing and justice for all, we spoke to the permanent Chairman of the Panel of Stewards for the WEC, Jean-Francois Veroux.  To read the interview click on the links below.

20 days to go to 1000 Miles of Sebring action!

• 24 Hours of Le Mans Endurance Championship FIA World Motor sport
• At 2/21/2019 08:24:00 p.m.
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The FIA World Endurance Championship is delighted to announce it will make a welcome return to the spiritual home of Brazilian endurance racing, Autódromo José Carlos Pace (Interlagos) in São Paulo, from the 2019-2020 season. 

Announced today (22 March 2018) at a packed and enthusiastically received press conference in the Brazilian city, the 6-hour race will form part of a calendar which is due to be revealed this summer. A date for the 6 Hours of São Paulo will be communicated in due course, and it will mark a return for the WEC to the popular South American venue for the first time since 2014. 

The announcement regarding the multi-year deal to stage the 6 Hours of São Paulo was made by WEC CEO Gérard Neveu and the new local promotion agency, N Duduch Motorsports, led by CEO Nicholas Duduch. 

It was also announced that 2017 LMP2 Champion Bruno Senna, present at the press conference, will become an ambassador for the event. His deep involvement, together with the WEC race participation of other South American champions such as José María López from Toyota Gazoo Racing and Augusto Farfus of BMW Team MTEK, will help to ensure a successful and well-attended race weekend. 

Photo caption below:  Seated either side of Gerard Neveu of the WEC (centre) are Nicholas Duduch and Bruno Senna, also present are Mr Dadai, President of the CBA (Brazilian Motorsport Federation) and Joao Amaral representing the São Paulo Tourism department.

Jean Todt, President of the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile: “The return of the FIA World Endurance Championship to São Paulo is very good news for the many Brazilian motor sport fans and is fully supported by the FIA. The history and heritage of this great country, which is so passionate about all forms of motor sport, has always included the discipline of endurance racing. A return by the FIA WEC to Brazil enables us to continue to bring our sport to audiences around the world.  “I would like to send my best wishes to the CBA, the City of São Paulo, Nicholas Duduch and the local promoter agency, my good friend Bruno Senna, Gérard Neveu and the whole WEC organisation including all the competitors. We are all now very much looking forward to the start of what promises to be a very strong 2019-2020 season. I am sure you will join me in wanting to see a Brazilian driver winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and why not an FIA World Championship title in the same season as well?”  Pierre Fillon, President of the Automobile Club de l’Ouest: “The confirmation of the return of the WEC to São Paulo is very welcome news. Brazilian fans have always shown a genuine passion for the 24 Hours of Le Mans and for endurance racing in general. Who can forget the marvellous race which took place at our last visit to Brazil in 2014? We are very happy to go back to Interlagos from the 2019-2020 season to share our passion for motorsport with our Brazilian friends.”  Gérard Neveu, CEO of the World Endurance Championship: “This is very good news not only for the huge number of extremely passionate and loyal Brazilian fans of the WEC, but also for the championship’s competitors who love to race on the legendary Interlagos circuit.  “Our return to South America has been something we’ve been working towards for several years now, and our thanks must go to Nicholas Duduch and his organisation for their hard work to make it happen, with the support of the city of São Paulo. Having Bruno Senna as our WEC race ambassador in Sao Paulo is a real honour; he is undoubtedly one of the best drivers from the FIA WEC. Together with the whole FIA WEC paddock and our partners, we’re now looking forward to being back in Brazil in 2019-2020 and for a great event.”  Nicholas Duduch of N Duduch Motorsports: “We are honored to be part of this huge project. In partnership with the FIA WEC, we want to offer a complete experience for motor sport fans. The culture of endurance racing goes beyond the race itself, and our desire is to make the public get used to it, to understand it better and enjoy the best of what the FIA WEC has to offer.”

Le FIA WEC revient à São Paulo pour la saison 2019-2020 Le Championnat du Monde d'Endurance FIA (WEC) est très heureux d'annoncer son retour sur l'Autodromo José Carlos Pace (Interlagos) à São Paulo, berceau de l'endurance brésilienne, pour la saison 2019-2020.  Officialisée ce jeudi 22 mars 2018 lors d'une conférence de presse qui s'est tenue dans la cité brésilienne dans l'enthousiasme général, cette course de 6 heures fera partie intégrante du futur calendrier qui sera révélé l'été prochain. La date de ces 6 Heures de São Paulo sera dévoilée en temps et en heure et marquera, pour la première fois depuis 2014, le retour du WEC sur cette piste légendaire du sport automobile sud-américain.  Cette annonce, inscrivant ces 6 Heures de São Paulo dans la durée, a été faite par Gérard Neveu, Directeur Général du WEC, et la nouvelle agence brésilienne qui sera le promoteur de cet événement, N Duduch Motorsports, représentée par son dirigeant Nicholas Duduch.  Il a été également annoncé que Bruno Senna, champion LMP2 2017, également présent lors de cette conférence de presse, sera l'ambassadeur de cet évènement. Sa totale implication, ainsi que la présence en Championnat du Monde de grands champions sud-américains comme Jose Maria Lopez (Toyota Gazoo Racing, catégorie LMP1) ou encore Augusto Farfus (BMW Team MTEK, catégorie LMGTE Pro), seront incontestablement une aide précieuse pour assurer un beau succès et une forte affluence des fans brésiliens pour ce week-end de course à venir.  Jean Todt (Président de la Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile) : "Le retour du Championnat du Monde d'Endurance FIA à São Paulo est une très grande nouvelle pour les nombreux fans brésiliens de sport automobile et bénéficie du soutien total de la FIA. L'Endurance a toujours eu sa place dans l'histoire et le patrimoine de ce grand pays, si passionné de toutes les formes de sports mécaniques. Le retour du FIA WEC au Brésil nous permet de montrer notre sport à tous les publics du monde entier.  "Je voudrais adresser tous mes vœux de réussite à CBA, à la ville de São Paulo, à Nicholas Duduch le promoteur brésilien, à mon grand ami Bruno Senna, à Gérard Neveu et toute l'organisation du WEC, ainsi qu'à tous ses concurrents. Nous avons déjà hâte de voir débuter ce qui promet d'être une grande saison 2019-2020. Je suis sûr que vous désirez tout comme moi voir un pilote brésilien remporter les 24 Heures du Mans, et pourquoi pas un titre mondial FIA à la fin de cette même saison ?" Pierre Fillon (Président de l'Automobile Club de l'Ouest) : "La confirmation du retour du WEC à São Paulo est une nouvelle que nous accueillons avec enthousiasme. Les fans brésiliens ont toujours fait preuve d'une authentique passion pour les 24 Heures du Mans et les courses d'endurance en général. Comment oublier la magnifique course qui s'est déroulée lors de notre dernière visite au Brésil en 2014 ? Nous sommes très heureux de revenir à Interlagos pour la saison 2019-2020 pour partager notre passion du sport automobile avec nos amis brésiliens."  Gérard Neveu (Directeur Général du WEC) : "C'est une très bonne nouvelle, non seulement pour les très nombreux et toujours fidèles fans brésiliens du WEC, mais aussi pour les concurrents de notre championnat, qui adorent venir rouler sur le légendaire circuit d'Interlagos.  "Nous travaillons depuis déjà plusieurs années sur notre retour en Amérique du Sud, et il faut remercier Nicholas Duduch et son organisation pour l’important travail réalisé qui a rendu cette course possible, avec le support de la ville de São Paulo. Avoir Bruno Senna comme Ambassadeur du WEC à São Paulo est une grande chance, il est sans aucun doute un des meilleurs pilotes du championnat du monde. Tout le paddock du FIA WEC, ainsi que tous nos partenaires, sommes d'ores et déjà très impatients de revenir au Brésil pour ce fantastique évènement."  Nicholas Duduch (Directeur de N Duduch Motorsports) : "Nous sommes très honorés de participer à cet important projet. En partenariat avec le FIA WEC, nous voulons proposer une expérience globale aux fans de sport automobile. La culture de l'endurance va bien au-delà de la course elle-même, et notre souhait est de fidéliser le public, de lui permettre de mieux comprendre cette discipline et de lui faire apprécier le meilleur de ce que le FIA WEC peut lui offrir."

FIA WEC to return to São Paulo in 2019-20 season

• Autódromo José Carlos Pace Brazil Endurance Championship FIA WEC São Paulo
• At 3/22/2018 05:35:00 p.m.
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Kobayashi and Conway take Shanghai pole for Toyota  Toyota took pole position for the 6 Hours of Shanghai this afternoon as Mike Conway and Kamui Kobayashi combined to head all challengers and secure the No.7 Toyota TS050 HYBRID’s fourth top spot of the season. The average time of 1m42.832s was enough to seal the pole after Kobayashi had set an ultimate best of 1m42.526s.  Joining the No.7 Toyota on the front row for tomorrow’s rolling start will be the No.1 Porsche 919 Hybrid which was driven by Nick Tandy and André Lotterer in qualifying. Tandy set the early pace but the session was slightly compromised when Lotterer had one of his laps deleted after violating track limits at Turn 16.  The No.8 Toyota, which is aiming to stop the No.2 Porsche crew taking the Drivers’ title this weekend, starts third as Sébastien Buemi and Anthony Davidson shared the cockpit in the qualifying session.  Brendon Hartley and Earl Bamber continued their all-Kiwi qualifying attack but ultimately came unstuck as Bamber suffered a mid-session spin. This meant that the leaders of the points classification will start fourth.  For all classifications and timing CLICK HERE Retrouvez ICI tous les articles de notre site en version française

Danes gain pole for Aston Martin  In one of the most important qualifying sessions of the season, due to the crucial extra one point available towards the GT FIA World Endurance Championship, Danish duo Marco Sorensen and Nicki Thiim took their first pole position of the season at Shanghai in their No.95 Aston Martin.  The pair averaged 1m59.697s average, which put them just over two tenths up on the Porsche pair of Michael Christensen and Kevin Estre’s 1m59.916s.  Points standing leaders and winners of the last two FIA World Endurance Championship events, James Calado and Alessandro Pier Guidi of AF Corse Ferrari, placed third as they look to extend their advantage in the penultimate race of the season tomorrow.  The No.67 Ford GT of Harry Tincknell and Andy Priaulx made it four manufacturers in the top four positions.

Vaillante Rebellion's Senna and Canal claim LMP2 pole In LMP2 the Vaillante Rebellion duo of Bruno Senna and Julien Canal took a first category pole of the season for the No.31 car.  Senna set the quickest overall time, but it was Canal’s lap which confirmed the pole as the Frenchman, who is aiming to become a double LMP2 champion this season, drove a faultless final sector to even eclipse Senna’s earlier benchmark.  A fine second place was taken by the G-Drive Racing car, driven by WEC newcomer Nico Muller and recently crowned ELMS champion Léo Roussel.

Lamy and Dalla Lana maintain Aston Martin record at Shanghai! The LMGTE Am pole fell to the No.98 Aston Martin Racing pairing of Pedro Lamy and Paul Dalla Lana. It was the sixth time the pair has taken pole this season and Lamy celebrated a fourth consecutive top spot in as many years at the Chinese track.  The extra point gained by the No.98 ensured that they are now level with the Dempsey Proton Racing drivers going in to tomorrow's race.

Toyota's Kobayashi & Conway take pole in Shanghai; Aston Martin scoop pole in GTE

• Endurance Championship FIA GT FIA World Shanghai
• At 11/04/2017 01:12:00 p.m.
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There are few trophies in the world of sport – let alone in motorsport – that can boast the heritage of the Royal Automobile Club’s Tourist Trophy, which was first awarded in 1905.  The world’s oldest motorsport trophy is engraved with the names of sporting luminaries such as Tazio Nuvolari, Stirling Moss, Graham Hill and Derek Bell to name but a few, and since 2012 has been awarded to the winners of the FIA World Endurance Championship season opener, the 6 Hours of Silverstone.  Last week seven of the championship’s British drivers and WEC CEO Gérard Neveu joined the RAC Club’s Chairman of the Motoring Committee Peter Read, other senior club figures, members and selected media for a special dinner to celebrate the Tourist Trophy’s history and its links to the WEC’s British round.  To learn more about the Trophy and what Anthony Davidson had to say about it CLICK HERE

This time next week, action will be underway at Silverstone In just one week's time, the Home of British Motor Racing will be full of the sights and sounds of the FIA World Endurance Championship and practice will be underway.   To keep in touch with all the latest news follow our social media channels by clicking on the links below, or look at our new website which will be fully operational next week.

Sport 1 to broadcast WEC free-to-air in Germany Leading German free-to-air sports TV channel, SPORT1, will broadcast live coverage and highlights from the 2017 FIA World Endurance Championship 2017 (all rounds except 24 Hours of Le Mans), beginning from next weekend’s opening round on 16th April, the 6 Hours of Silverstone.  It will also stream the full races live on its website, alongside selected broadcasts on its Pay TV channel, SPORT1+. Live coverage from qualifying and races is complemented by appealing programming formats, featuring circuit presentations, race highlights, driver analysis, podium coverage and interviews.

British drivers target Royal Automobile Club Tourist Trophy

• British Motor Racing Circuito Endurance Championship FIA Motorsport Sport
• At 4/07/2017 02:03:00 p.m.
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