IRON LYNX, SILVER ARROWS PRIMED FOR MEMORABLE LE MANS EXPERIENCE

MERCEDES-AMG RETURNS TO GREAT FRENCH CLASSIC RACE AFTER 26 YEARS

The traditional public scrutineering in Place de la Republique got the 93rd edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans underway in the heart of the northern French city, and while Iron Lynx prepares for its seventh appearance at the great classic, history is already being made as the team brings the iconic Mercedes-AMG Silver Arrows back to Le Mans after 26 years.

Painted with the marque’s famous silver color, three Silver Arrows will compete in this year’s event with a solid mix of drivers and considerable preparation work carried out in the opening rounds of FIA WEC, on track in testing and at the Cesena headquarters. The effort is a nod to the three-car run that saw Jochen Mass, Manuel Reuter, and Stanley Dickens take a sensational win with the Sauber Mercedes C9. Like back then, every car has different color accents to make it distinguishable on track.

The warm Le Mans crowd is expected to give teams and drivers its phenomenal welcome, transforming the city into a high-passion motorsport festival lasting for the good part of 10 days. More than 350.000 fans are expected for the race, and a similarly impressive number will take part in the two parades, one for cars and one, arguably the world’s most famous and exciting motorsport parade, for drivers on Friday, June 13th.

Speaking of drivers, the #60 car, featuring yellow accents, will be shared by Andrew Gilbert, Fran Rueda, and Lorcan Hanafin. The team’s newest lineup makes its first FIA WEC start and will do so in its most legendary race before continuing for the rest of the year. Sporting white accents, the #61 car will welcome Martin Berry, Lin Hodenius, who is the youngest driver in the field, and Mercedes-AMG Performance Driver Maxime Martin. With red accents, the #63 car, sporting the same number that won in 1989, is set to be driven by Stephen Grove and his son Brenton, who had an early taste of FIA WEC at the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, and another top Mercedes-AMG Performance Driver, Luca Stolz.

It is worth noticing that while Martin and Stolz are the only drivers in the team’s LMGT3 lineup with prior experience in the 24-hour race, Gilbert, Rueda, Hanafin, and Berry had the chance to compete there in the Road To Le Mans event. For Martin, it will a special occasion as he will be entering his 10th Le Mans 24 Hours.

The Iron Lynx family will also chase victory in the LMP2 class with the #9 Oreca 07 LMP2 fielded in collaboration with Proton Competition. After strong showings in ELMS earlier this year, Maceo Capietto and Jonas Ried will be partnered for this occasion by Reshad De Gerus. A Réunion native, De Gerus has been residing in Le Mans and is thus considering a home favorite. He secured a podium in the LMP2 class in the 24 Hours last year.

Matteo Pianezzola and Gregorio Bertocco will also take turns at the 13-km Sarthe circuit, as round 3 of the Ligier European Series will be held on Sunday, June 7th. While teams competing in the 24 Hours of Le Mans will line up for a Collective Test, the #60 Ligier JSP4 will be in for a fast-paced challenge featuring practice, qualifying, and a 1-hour race, all within the same day.

The Le Mans 24 Hours programme will kick-off with the autograph session and pit-stop challenge on Tuesday, while Practice 1/2 and Qualifying will be on Wednesday. Two more practice sessions, and the mighty Hyperpole, will be on Thursday. The Parade des Pilotes on Friday will pave the way for the start at 16:00 sharp on Saturday.

“We are really excited to come back to Le Mans and honoured to line up the Silver Arrows after so much time. It will be a great responsibility, but we know we have prepared well and the positive energy is tangible within the team. Eight of our nine drivers never raced in the 24 Hours, but I think all of them have the skills needed to leave their mark in Le Mans. I want to thank Mercedes-AMG for placing their faith in us for such an outstanding occasion, and our whole team in advance for what I’m sure will be a great effort.”

Andrea Piccini – Team Principal & CEO