ELMS

The ELMS Season Resumes at Imola with 44 Cars

European Le Mans Series

25 Jun. 2025 • 11:42

The second four-hour race of the 2025 European Le Mans Series will be the 4 Hours of Le Castellet and a maximum grid of 44 cars will line up at the Circuit Paul Ricard on the Côte d’Azur on Sunday 4 May.

The grid for the seventh visit by the ELMS to Imola since 2013 will feature 130 drivers and 33 teams from 27 different nations from all four corners of the world. The grid also features ten Italian drivers and six cars racing under the Italian flag who will be competing for the top step of the podium at their home race.

LMP2

The 13 strong LMP2 field is headed by championship leaders IDEC Sport, with the no18 Oreca-Gibson of Jamie Chadwick, Mathys Jaubert and Daniel Juncadella currently hold 50 points after class wins in Barcelona and Le Castellet. Their nearest rivals, Ryan Cullen, Vlad Lomko and Pietro Fittipaldi are 23 points behind in second place in the no10 Vector Sport on 27 points after the first two races.

In third place is the no48 VDS Panis Racing, which finished second in LMP2 at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Esteban Masson, Oliver Gray and Charles Milesi are currently on 26 points, six ahead of the 24 Hours of Le Mans LMP2 victors Jakub Smiechowski, Tom Dillmann and Nick Yelloly in the no43 Inter Europol Competition on 20 points.

There are three Italian drivers in the LMP2 field, with Matteo Cairoli in the no9 Iron Lynx-Proton, Luca Ghiotto in the no34 Inter Europol Competition and Francesco Simonazzi in the no30 Duqueine.

The LMP2 field is completed by Nielsen Racing, the second IDEC Sport Oreca-Gibson, CLX – Pure Rxcing, CLX Motorsport and Algarve Pro Racing.

LMP2 Pro/Am

After taking the class win in Le Castellet in May, the no27 Nielsen Racing Oreca tops the championship standings in the eight-car strong LMP2 Pro/Am category. Tony Wells, James Allen and Sergio Sette Camara head to Imola on 31 points, just 1-point ahead of the no29 TDS Racing of Rodrigo Sales, Mathias Beche and Clément Novalak.

Round 1 winners, and reigning class champions, Francois Perrodo, Alessio Rovera and Matthieu Vaxiviere are third on 29 points, just two behind the leaders with Rovera hoping to return to the top step of the podium in the no83 AF Corse at his, and the teams, home race.

Fresh from their class victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, PJ Hyett, Dane Cameron and Louis Delétraz will be looking to improve their standing in title race in Italy, returning to the top step of the podium after their overall victory in Barcelona in the no99 AO by TF Oreca-Gibson. The American flagged team are currently lying in 6th place but are just 8 points behind Nielsen Racing on 23 points.

King of qualifying, Giorgio Roda, will be hoping to return the no77 Proton Competition he shares with Rene Binder and Bent Viscaal to the front of the LMP2 Pro/Am grid for his home race after missing out on claiming pole in Le Castellet by just 0.144 seconds.

The class grid is completed by DKR Engineering, Algarve Pro Racing and United Autosports.

LMP3

CLX Motorsport have dominated the LMP3 category this season with Paul Lanchère, Adrien Closmenil and Theodor Jensen scoring a maximum 52 points from the first two races by taking victory from pole position in both encounters. Closmenil and Jensen also had success in Le Mans, winning the first 60-minute Road To Le Mans race to stand on the top step of the most famous podium in endurance racing.

The rest of the 10-car LMP3 field is led by the no68 M Racing Ligier with Stephane Tribaudini and Quentin Antonel heading to Imola on 30 points, 22 behind the class leaders.

Inter Europol Competition are currently third with Tim Creswick, Douwe Dedecker and Reece Gold on 27 points, nine ahead of reigning champions RLR MSport and Ultimate, who are tied on 18 points.

DKR Engineering is running the only Ginetta G61-LT-P325-Evo on the ELMS grid and in Le Castellet Antti Rammo, Wyatt Brichacek and Mikkel Gaarde Pedersen scored the British manufacturers first ELMS points since 2015 by finishing 5th in Le Castellet. Antti Rammo, along with Thomas Laurent, won the LMP3 Pro/Am category in the second Road To Le Mans race at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, another first for Ginetta and the fourth RTLM win for DKR Engineering.

Former ELMS Team Champions Eurointernational will be waving the flag for Italy in the LMP3 category, with Team Virage, WTM by Rinaldi Racing and Racing Spirit of Léman completing the class grid.

LMGT3

The 13 car LMGT3 grid has seen some of the most intense battles in the opening two races of the 2025 season, with Round 1 winners Celia Martin, Sarah Bovy and Michelle Gatting holding the top spot after two races in the no83 Iron Dames Porsche 911 GT3 R LMGT3. The all-female driver crew head to Imola on 31 points, 4 points ahead of 4 Hours of Le Castellet race winners Custodio Toledo, Lilou Wadoux and Riccardo Agostini in the no50 Richard Mille AF Corse Ferrari 296 LMGT3.

Agostini is one of five Italian drivers on the grid for the 4 Hours of Imola, with Gianmaria Bruni racing in the no66 JMW Motorsport Ferrari, Matteo Cressoni in the no60 Proton Competition Porsche, Davide Rigon in the no51 AF Corse Ferrari and Ricardo Pera, fresh from winning the LMGT3 category at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with Manthey, rejoins his teammates in the no86 GR Racing Ferrari.

There is one driver change for the 4 Hours of Imola, with former champion Christian Ried returning to the ELMS standing in for Claudio Schiavoni in the no60 Porsche alongside Matteo Cressoni and Alessio Picariello.

In total there are seven Ferrari 296 LMGT3s lining up for the 6th edition of the 4 Hours of Imola, with Spirit of Race, AF Corse, GR Racing and Kessel Racing running the Ferrari at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari.

Italian team Iron Lynx will run the only Mercedes-AMG LMGT3 on the grid, with Martin Berry, Lorcan Hanafin and Fabien Schiller finishing second in Le Castellet and Berry claiming pole position in Barcelona.

United Autosports will race the distinctive McLaren 720S LMGT3 Evo and TF Sport will run the only Corvette Z06 LMGT3.R. The LMGT3 grid is completed by the no59 Racing Spirit of Léman Aston Martin Vantage AMR LMGT3.

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