FIA WEC Adopts Le Mans Style Starting Procedure

Photo: FIA WEC

The FIA World Endurance Championship will embrace the sprit of the 24 Hours of Le Mans all season long, with confirmation Tuesday that it will adopt the Le Mans-style starting grid procedure this year.

The echelon grid format revives the starting procedure used in the early days of the French endurance classic, which saw drivers run to their cars from a standing start.

While the championship will still utilize a rolling start, the grid formation will help add to the atmosphere of the event, according to FIA WEC CEO Gerard Neveu.

“At each and every race the World Endurance Championship provides every visitor a sense of the spectacle of the world’s greatest race, the 24 Heures du Mans,” Neveu said.

“Sports cars and the teams are the real stars of the event. These changes will put the emphasis on that and provide the spectators with a much better experience at each of the 6-Hour race weekends.”

The starting grid procedure will be used for the first time in this weekend’s season-opening Six Hours of Silverstone, a race that will also see the elimination of grid girls, a move that has seen mixed within the motorsports community.

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John