The biggest race in the world? The 24 Hours of Le Mans is this weekend.

Doriane Pin is one of two women racing at Le Mans this weekend, alongside Lilou Wadoux in one of the LMGT3 Ferraris. Sadly the Iron Dames team ran out of money.

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The value of LMGT3

The last category is for cars that started life as true street cars. In the past, Le Mans has had various flavors of what the sport calls GT cars, some more unique than others. In the end the money turned out to be too much GT1then GT2 (then called GTE, or GTLM in IMSA), and in 2024 the ACO decided to invite the GT3 team, which had already been created in 2005 by Stéphane Ratel as a way to create low-cost car racing for amateurs. (NB: Cheap is not the same as cheap.)

Under the old system (GT1 and GT2), the ACO published a rulebook with approved amendments; car manufacturers built their cars according to the rules and then raced to see who was the fastest. But every competition can have only one winner, and if one comes to dominate, the competitors start spending more, raising prices for everyone, or giving up and doing something else instead. The GT3 solved this problem, again with performance.

Each OEM builds their new car, then it is represented by a class, and the power and weight are adjusted for the best. Different cars have set their times in different ways, and some cars will be better at some tracks than others, but the team has been successful all over the world. And you can run GT3 car at the Rolex 24 at Daytona or the Spa 24 Hours or the Nurburgring 24, as well as shorter but not least events like the Bathurst 12 hours or the 12 Hours of Sebring, not to mention many other series and events. There are 25 LMGT3 cars in this year’s race, all from pro-am groups that must have a bronze and silver driver in one of their crews.

Various GT3 cars during the test.

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Another reading

Millions or perhaps billions of words have been used at Le Mans over its 94 circuits, some better than others. I can recommend the latest book by Richard Williams 24 hoursmarked the 100th anniversary of the tournament in 2023.

The race begins at 4 p.m. local time tomorrow—10 a.m. Eastern, 7 a.m. Pacific—and you can watch it in the US on HBO or Tru, or finally via the FIAWEC+ streaming service, which is no longer closed. There is also an excellent review of Radio Le Mans, which is broadcast for free on the Internet.