A cult name looks set to return to endurance racing in 2024. Pescarolo Sport – the plucky underdogs that came close to unseating the Audi's Le Mans dominance in the mid-2000s on a couple of occasions – has confirmed it's entering as a customer in 2024. It will be buying a Peugeot 9X8, becoming the first privateer entry to get hold of the French marque’s Hypercar.
Legendary Le Mans team to race first private Peugeot 9X8
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Founded by four-time Le Mans winner and record entrant Henri Pescarolo in 2000, the team will look to enter the 2024 World Endurance Championship subject to confirmation of having the adequate funds to run the Peugeot Hypercar for the season.
The team no longer has any involvement from its founder, who was Graham Hill’s teammate when the Briton won the 1972 edition of the race, becoming the first and as yet claimant to the Triple Crown of Motorsport.
In the mid-2000s, the Le Mans-based team came closest of anyone to unseating Audi at the 24-hour race. The team’s Judd V10-powered Courage C60 chassis took pole position and second for a front-row lockout in 2005 before finishing 2nd in the race, two laps down on the winning Audi R8. In 2006, the team successfully split the new diesel-powered Audi R10 TDIs, with another 2nd place finish.
So, is more of the same on the cards? Or is the deep manufacturer investment in the LMH/LMDh hypercar class – including entrants from Ferrari, Toyota, Porsche, Cadillac, BMW, and Lamborghini from 2024 – going to make life for privateers like Pescarolo too difficult? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Lead Pescarolo image courtesy of Motorsport Images
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