The 10-hour Petit Le Mans season finale will close the 2023 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship at Road Atlanta, with a released list of 54 entries from five categories.
Former F1 champion Jenson Button is one of the highlights on the unveiled pre-event entry list, who is set to debut in the #5 Porsche 963 GTP run by JDC Miller MotorSports.
As announced earlier in the year, he will join full-season drivers Mike Rockenfeller and Tijmen van der Helm.
“I love endurance racing,” Button said in an interview with IMSA.
“I love the teamwork that goes into it, and how drivers have to work together rather than being rivals within the team.
“The racing is just awesome.”
Team Penske’s Indianapolis 500 winner Josef Newgarden will make his GTP debut as the third driver in Porsche Penske’s #7 GTP entry, which completed a 1-2 finish at the previous sprint race at Indianapolis (Road Course).
Proton Competition are set to take on their first IMSA endurance race of the year, with the full WEC driver crew enlisted for the challenge ahead.
A thrilling title fight is set to be finalised in the GTP class, with just five points covering the top-three in the standings. The #31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac V Series.R leads on 2460 points, as the #10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-06 trails behind on 2457, and the #25 BMW M Hybrid V8 sits in third place.
Scott McLaughlin, who finished third in the Indycar Series for the Penske outfit, will return to the wheel of the #8 Tower Motorsports Oreca 07-Gibson, after claiming an LMP2 win earlier in the year at Sebring.
The return of AF Corse and Rick Ware Racing closes off nine entries in the category.
The 2023 edition of Petit Le Mans will mark the final IMSA WeatherTech race for the LMP3 category, which has eight entries from three Duqueine D08s and four Ligier JS P320s.
GTD Pro includes eight entries, with the likes of AF Corse and Iron Lynx returning in Italian machinery, as the Ferrari 296 GT3 has yet to race at Petit Le Mans although it finished second in GTD Pro at the Glenn, with credit to Ferrari GT works drivers Davide Rigon and Daniel Serra.
Rigon and Serra will front the #62 Risi Competizione Ferrari once again, this time with additional input from one of this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans winner, Alessandro Pier Guidi.
Corey Lewis will join the #1 Paul Miller Racing GTD champions Bryan Sellers and Madison Snow, as the trio will attempt to add onto their record-breaking five win tally with a targeted sixth at Road Atlanta.
Furthermore in the 19 entries for GTD, the Iron Dames return with a Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 with drivers Rahel Frey, Michelle Gatting and Doriane Pin.
Cetilar Racing will make it a third Ferrari 296 GT3 entry for the race, featuring Roberto Lacorte, Giorgio Sernagiotto, and Ferrari Hypercar driver Antonio Fuoco.
The 26th annual Petit Le Mans race will take place next week on 14 October, which will conclude the 2023 IMSA WeatherTech season.
Editor’s Note
Sean Creech Motorsport has announced their withdrawal from the race, reducing the LMP3 count down to seven.
Rick Ware Racing in LMP2 has withdrawn their #51 Oreca 07 from this weekend which reduces the overall field to 52 cars, eight in LMP2. Motorsport Week has reached out for an official comment.
