Six DTM drivers and one team will compete in the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans 2024 – the drivers’ chances in France are so good
The 24 Hours of Le Mans is one of the crown jewels of global motorsport and the majority of active drivers dream of contesting the endurance classic on the Sarthe one day. No fewer than six DTM drivers will be competing at Le Mans in 2024, and a DTM team is also involved. But what are the chances for the DTM drivers in France?
Marko Wittmann clinched his first DTM victory of the season at Zandvoort in a Schubert-BMW and wants to take this momentum with him to Le Mans. However, the German will have to make some changes as he will be driving the BMW LMDh car at the 24 Hours. The car is based on a Dallara chassis and competes not only in the World Endurance Championship (WEC) but also in the American IMSA series.
The BMW M Hybrid V8 was developed late, which is why the brand initially had to make up for a development backlog. This has now been successfully achieved, which is why Wittmann could spring a surprise in the number 15 car, which he shares with Dries Vanthoor and Raffaele Marciello.
Sheldon van der Linde and Rene Rast, who will drive the second BMW hypercar with starting number 20, will go from competitors to team-mates. The two BMW drivers are still winless in the 2024 DTM season and are only separated by two points in eighth and ninth place in the overall standings. Van der Linde is eagerly awaiting his start at Le Mans
Sheldon van der Linde wants to have fun
“I’m now looking from race to race and trying to enjoy the races more than in previous years,” says van der Linde, who is traveling to Le Mans with a broad chest as leader of the DTM standings. “I’ve had a lot of bad luck and haven’t had as much fun. It’s nice to be at the top again, and the same goes for Marko, who has been through a similar phase. I’m just enjoying it and after Le Mans we’ll take a three-week vacation.”
“It’s been a lot of work up until then, the body is tired,” continued van der Linde, who is also competing in Formula E. “That’s a lot of pressure, but at Le Mans we just want to have fun. We have no expectations, because it’s just the beginning of this project. After that, we’ll take the vacation we’ve earned.”
Mirko Bortolotti is another driver who will have to master the transition from a GT3 car to a hypercar, as the Italian will sit in one of the two SC63 hypercars as a Lamborghini works driver. Bortolotti will share the car with Daniil Kwjat and Edoardo Mortara. The Lamborghini only saw the light of day in 2024 and is still in the development phase. The car has already been put through its paces for over 12 hours at the IMSA race in Sebring
Jack Aitken is one of the secret favorites among hypercar drivers, as the Briton has already gained a lot of prototype experience in the IMSA. At Le Mans, he competes for Action Express in a Cadillac. He also regularly drives this very car in the USA. The Dallara chassis is fast, at a good level of development and has already contested a number of endurance classics such as Daytona and Le Mans, which is why Aitken definitely has a chance with Luis Felipe Derani and Felipe Drugovich.
The siblings are inseparable, as Kelvin van der Linde will also be competing in the 24 Hours of Le Mans alongside Sheldon. However, the twin brother of the BMW driver does not have to change too much, as he will be competing in the GT3 class in a Lexus, not an Audi. He shares the car with Timur Boguslavskiy and Arnold Robin. The Lexus GT3 is very successful in the IMSA series and, if the balance of performance is right, can also be among the front runners at Le Mans.
All that is missing now is a complete team that can compete in both the DTM and the WEC – and therefore also in the 24 Hours of Le Mans: Manthey-EMA with its Porsches. Richard Lietz, Morris Schuring and Yasser Shahin will start in the number 91 Porsche, while the second Porsche with the number 92 will be driven by Klaus Bachler, Alex Malykhin and Joel Sturm. Pure Porsche power, with drivers who are at home in the Porsche Carrera Cup
