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Larbre Competition set to enter LMP2 ranks for 2017 Le Mans 24 Hours

Multiple Le Mans 24 Hours class winner Larbre Competition is set to mark its 25th start in the French enduro this June by stepping up to the LMP2 ranks.

The French team, which has taken five class victories at Le Mans since its Le Mans debut in 1993, has entered a Ligier-Gibson JSP217 for the World Endurance Championship round on June 16/17.

Larbre will dovetail its assault on the 24 Hours, which is dependent on the acceptance of its entry, with a campaign in the Michelin Le Mans Cup on the European Le Mans Series undercard with a pair of LMP3-class Ligier-Nissan JSP3s.

Former Aston Martin factory driver Fernando Rees, who claimed the GTE Am class pole in Larbre's Chevrolet Corvette C7.R at Le Mans last year, is the first confirmed driver for the P2 programme.

Larbre will be fielding a prototype for only the second time at Le Mans.

It competed in the 24 Hours in 2014 with a Morgan-Judd/BMW LMP2 (above) built by Onroak Automotive, which now uses the Ligier name for its prototypes.

Team boss Jack Leconte said: "We wish to use our 30-year experience in endurance racing for a new adventure, heading towards the LMP2 and LMP3 classes.

"Choosing Ligier was obvious, as it allows us to compete in two classes, and work with Onroak Automotive again."

The entry list for Le Mans is scheduled to be announced on February 9.

Larbre contested only a limited programme last year around Le Mans, taking in the Monza ELMS round in May with its Corvette in preparation for the 24 Hours.

Zdroj: autosport.com