Forestier Racing by Panis on Pole, IDEC Sport to Lead the LMP2 Field at the Start of the 2026 24 Hours of Le Mans

For the first time since 2018, IDEC Sport will lead the LMP2 field away at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. While the ORECA 07 #29 of Forestier Racing by Panis secured pole position, it will ultimately be the #28 IDEC Sport entry that starts from the front of the class grid on Saturday at 4:00 PM. Following a post-qualifying penalty for impeding an LMGT3 car, the #29 has been demoted to second on the starting grid.

Qualifying

LMP2

Esteban Masson continues to establish himself as one of the standout performers of the LMP2 season. After impressing throughout the European Le Mans Series campaign, the Frenchman claimed the most prestigious pole position of the year at Le Mans. With a lap of 3:32.855, the Forestier Racing by Panis ORECA 07 #29 topped the final Hyperpole session. Unfortunately, a post-session penalty has forced the crew to relinquish the top spot on the grid.

Second fastest on the timesheets, the IDEC Sport ORECA 07 #28 will now line up at the head of the LMP2 field on Saturday. When Job van Uitert snatched second place in the closing moments of the session, he could hardly have imagined it would ultimately promote him to the front of the class.

Despite setting the outright fastest Sector 1, Jack Doohan could do no better than third aboard the Nielsen Racing ORECA 07 #24. Nicholas Yelloly placed the Inter Europol Competition ORECA 07 #43 fourth. Completing the top five was the CrowdStrike by APR ORECA 07 #4. Laurin Heinrich, who drove in the final Hyperpole session alongside George Kurtz and Alexander Quinn, secured LMP2 Pro-Am pole honours.

Julien Andlauer qualified the Duqueine Team ORECA 07 #30 in sixth position. Second in the Pro-Am category, Kévin Estre finished seventh in the TDS Racing ORECA 07 #14. After starting third on the grid last year, the AO by TF ORECA 07 #99 will line up eighth. The AF Corse ORECA 07 #183 and the Inter Europol Competition ORECA 07 #343 completed the overall top ten.

The first ORECA 07 to miss out on Hyperpole 1 progression was the United Autosports #22, which will therefore start eleventh. The sister #222 entry also failed to advance. The Vector Sport #26, CLX Motorsport #37 and Proton Competition #9 ORECA 07s will start thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth respectively.

Hypercar

Among the front-runners throughout the Le Mans week so far, Alpine Endurance Team matched its best-ever qualifying result at Le Mans. Thanks to a 3:23.620 lap, Antonio Félix da Costa secured third place, equalling the team’s benchmark set in 2021. The #35 Alpine, shared by the Portuguese driver, Frenchman Charles Milesi and Austrian Ferdinand Habsburg, will start from the second row of the grid.

The sister #36 Alpine of Jules Gounon, Frédéric Makowiecki and Victor Martins will line up thirteenth.

In its very first qualifying appearance at Le Mans, Genesis Magma Racing progressed all the way to the final Hyperpole shootout. The #19 GMR-001, driven by Paul-Loup Chatin, Mathieu Jaminet and Daniel Juncadella, posted the sixth-fastest time. The sister #17 car, shared by André Lotterer, Mathys Jaubert and Luis Felipe Derani, qualified tenth.

LMGT3

Ferrari came close to securing pole position in LMGT3. The Vista AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 #21 of Alessio Rovera ultimately had to settle for second place. The Kessel Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 #74, driven by Dennis Marschall, recorded the seventh-fastest time.

Missing out on the top ten, the Vista AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 #54 of Francesco Castellacci will start fourteenth.