Iron Lynx, Prema Announce Joint LMP2 Program

Ferrari GT racing outfit Iron Lynx and FIA Formula 2 teams’ champion Prema will jointly enter the LMP2 ranks next year with an FIA World Endurance Championship program.

The Italian organizations joined forces in July under the direction of Swiss company DC Racing Solutions SA, with the primary aims of promoting young driving talent and launching collaborative projects.

One of those collaborative projects has been confirmed as a prototype racing program.

The team will run Oreca 07 Gibson machinery that will soon be delivered to Prema’s headquarters in northeast Italy. An Iron Lynx spokesperson told Sportscar365 that the entry will consist of at least one car, with a potential second car being looked into.

Iron Lynx recently won the TotalEnergies 24 Hours of Spa with Ferrari and also claimed a GTE-Am podium at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The team is best-known for its GT racing exploits, while Prema Powerteam guided Mick Schumacher to last year’s F2 title.

“Iron Lynx has achieved important results this season in GT endurance racing and PREMA is widely recognized as one of the best teams in single-seater racing,” said Iron Lynx team principal Andrea Piccini.

“The expertise from both teams will create the perfect blend to compete at the highest level.”

Prema team principal Rene Rosin added: “This is an incredibly exciting development for our team and will lead us into a highly motivating new dimension.

“We are looking forward to collaborating with the Iron Lynx team to share best practice and knowledge, which we hope will be only the start of a successful future in endurance racing.” 

The move to LMP2 for both teams comes at a time of growth for the Gibson-powered category, as teams look to explore prototype racing ahead of evaluating potential programs in the burgeoning Hypercar class which includes both LMH and LMDh.

Ferrari, which has close links to both Iron Lynx and Prema, is developing a hybrid-powered LMH prototype for an AF Corse factory entry into the 2023 WEC season.

Piccini told Sportscar365 in May that Iron Lynx needs “to be smart to make the right decisions and get into the right markets” as the sports car racing landscape evolves over the next few years.