LMS Announces 2012 Plans
Still Very Much Alive And Kicking
 
After much speculation as to what will happen to the Le Mans Series in the wake of the creation of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC), the series has today issued an announcement on its intentions for next year.
 
Although much has yet to be finalised, the outline plan is as follows:

* Calendar to comprise five or six races of six-hour duration, held exclusively on ‘famous European circuits’ between March and October. There will be no clashes with the WEC calendar
   
* LMS teams to have priority in obtaining entry to the Le Mans 24 Hours and the two European WEC rounds, subject to spare grid slots being available
   
* LMP1 no longer accepted, as format and costs are better suited to WEC
   
* LMP2 to be the top class, followed by GTE-Pro and Am, Formula Le Mans and GTC
   
* GTC class to be formed from one-make series cars, such as the Porsche Carrera Cup or Ferrari Challenge
 
* 20-25 prototypes and the same number of GT cars targeted
 
This announcement is very welcome news as it indicates that the LMS still very much has a future, and will in effect become a feeder-series for the WEC, as well as retaining the potential to be a strong and viable series in its own right.
 
Although the devil is, as always, in the detail, DSC’s initial reaction to the news is positive.
 
The removal of the LMP1 class won’t be welcomed by many fans, and not by some teams either, but in terms of reserving grid numbers might well prove to be a sensible step, as it potentially bolsters the WEC and removes the spectre of one or two LMP1s dominating the LMS in 2012. The subsequent elevation of the LMP2 class to the headline class offers existing teams the opportunity to compete for overall wins, while also encouraging new teams into the category. Even so, and even with the retention of the FLM class, is the stated target of 20-25 cars feasible?  And how many of them would be FLM Orecas?
 
There should be no problem in attracting such numbers in the GT classes, particularly with the creation of the new GT Cup class. DSC has already been contacted by one team – Scuderia Vittoria – in the wake of the announcement, with the news that they will definitely be applying for entry (probably for two cars) into the new class in 2012. The question here is, how many cars will be let in and what is the selection criteria?
 
One obvious consequence of the announcement is that there will be no fewer than seven - and probably eight - major sportscar races in Europe next year, in addition to the Le Mans 24 Hours, and that is a lot of racing. Le Mans will have no problem filling its spare grid slots, but how will the two WEC rounds fare? How many teams running a five or six round series will have sufficient budget to add another two races to their programmes?
 
What is unclear at the moment is whether any automatic entry to Le Mans (or the WEC) is on offer to the overall or class winners, and in just what terms the “priority” Le Mans entry will be couched for those that fall short of a relevant class win . The 24 Hours is often a key factor in obtaining the necessary budget for a full-season campaign, so this could well be an important detail.
 
The news that the races will take place on ‘famous European circuits’ is encouraging, in that it suggests that the intention is to keep the series’ profile at a high level, and we await the calendar with interest.  As always we must be careful about things being lost in translation, but one senior source has indicated not only that the dates will not be shared with WEC races, but that the circuits which the WEC is confirmed for won’t feature either! 
 
Overall then, a positive development, and one that, if managed correctly, could greatly strengthen the sport – we’ll have some further thoughts on the current state of affairs between the major series in the coming days, as well as a few more details of the current machinations regarding the WEC calendar!