Nissan Confirms LMP1 Withdrawal

Nissan has confirmed on Tuesday that it has withdrawn its LMP1 program from the 2016 FIA World Endurance Championship. (En Français)

A statement released Tuesday brings to an end the lifespan of the GT-R LM NISMO, which ultimately just raced once, at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The statement reads: “Today, Nissan announced that it will withdraw its LMP1 entry from the 2016 FIA World Endurance Championship.

“Nissan entered LMP1 in the 2015 season with an innovative new, and bold concept, with the ambition to compete at the front of the field.

“The teams worked diligently to bring the vehicles up to the desired performance levels. However, the company concluded that the program would not be able to reach its ambitions and decided to focus on developing its longer term racing strategies.

“Racing is a core part of the Nissan DNA, and the company has a proud history of innovating to win. Nissan’s commitment to motorsports remains strong, as evidenced by its victorious track record in the 2015 season – from achieving the overall winner of Super GT two years in a row in Japan, to winning the Blancpain Endurance Pro Class, Bathurst 12hr race with the GT-R GT3.

“Nissan will continue its support of WEC through its various engine programs including recent introduction of LMP3 engine.”

Michael Carcamo was appointed new LMP1 program director, replacing Ben Bowlby in that position, and the team has undergone some testing at NOLA Motorsports Park in recent weeks.

After running without its hybrid system and other persistent technical issues have limited the car’s on-track presence to just tests beyond its race debut at Le Mans.

Ultimately the decision was made by Nissan to pull the plug, with what’s believed to be fairly late notice to the staff of the decision.

It will leave the manufacturer LMP1 grid at just six cars for next season, two cars apiece from Porsche, Audi and Toyota, with Rebellion and ByKolles the two privateer teams.