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24 Hours of Le Mans: Penske and Cadillac sweep front row

Posted by Talbot Payne on June 24, 2024

Le Mans, France — In a show of Motor City muscle, Detroit race teams swept the front row for this weekend’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Partnered with Porsche, Team Penske’s 963 Hypercar nipped the Cadillac V-Series.R for pole in the final seconds of Thursday qualifying while Chairman Roger Penske looked on. The 87-year old Penske is seeking his first Le Mans win in an illustrious racing career.

Le Mans, France — In a show of Motor City muscle, Detroit race teams swept the front row for this weekend’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Le Mans: Roger Penske, right, congratulates driver Kevin Estre on winning the pole in the Porsche 963 on Thursday, June 13, 2024. HZ, Porsche / Juergen Tap

The 92^nd running of the world’s greatest endurance race has brought an unprecedented entry from Motown brands, including three Hypercars from Porsche Penske Racing, three Cadillac V-Series.R Hypercars, two Ford Mustang GT3 racers and two Chevy Corvette Z06.R GT3s.

The #6 Porsche 963 piloted by Kevin Estre and #2 Caddy entered by Chip Ganassi Racing will lead the 62-car, multi-class field to green at 4 p.m. local time Saturday after a thrilling qualifying duel that saw the Porsche Penske and Cadillac machines out-duel Hypercar entries from Ferrari, Toyota and BMW. Pole-sitter Estre beat Cadillac driver Alex Lynn’s lap by just 0.148 seconds.

Adding to the Motor City swagger, Ford’s Mustang entry qualified an impressive fourth in the GT3 class in its Le Mans debut. The Proton Competition entry will start behind only McLaren, Porsche and Ferrari entries in the 25-car GT3 field.

The #6 Porsche 963 will sit in pole position for the start of the 24 Hours of Le Mans on Saturday.

The Corvette TF Sport team also qualified strongly with a seventh place starting grid effort.

Cadillac nearly had two cars on the front row for the 24-hour marathon before Frenchman Estre’s heroics on his last qualifying lap.

“Seeing us in pole position for Le Mans is really a dream come true,” Penske said at a Friday press conference in the paddock.

The #2 Cadillac V-Series.R almost grabbed the pole for Saturday’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. It will start second behind the #6 Porsche 963. Chris DuMond, Special To The Detroit News

Cadillac has been the dominant make in North American IMSA prototype racing over the last six years, and last year — thanks to international sportscar rules changes — it got a shot at the 2023 Le Mans, finishing on the podium in third place. The Ganassi and Whelen race teams have looked strong all week.

“I’m so proud of everyone tonight,” said #2 Cadillac driver Lynn. “Qualifying at Le Mans is a big moment because it’s a true test of pure speed. I think Cadillac with second and third position was a great night for the whole team and I’m proud that I had the privilege to drive with everyone’s efforts behind me.”

All three Cadillac Racing Hypercar entries ranked in the top seven of the Wednesday qualifying preceding Hyperpole on Thursday as the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R displayed the pace the Action Express Racing-run team has expected.

The #77 Mustang GT3 qualified fourth in class for the start of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

“We’ve definitely made steps forward, which is great because this was the last opportunity to improve the car before the race,” driver Jack Aitken said. “We started a bit on the back foot, but we’re feeling a lot more comfortable with it now. We’re clearly much more in the ballpark and now it’s a matter of fine-tuning.”

The Ford Mustang wowed in its Le Mans qualifying run, outpacing veteran entries from Aston Martin, Porsche 91 and Lamborghini.

“That’s the best lap I’ve ever done around here,” said Ryan Hardwick, driver of the #77 Proton Competition Mustang GT3. “It was only five-tenths from second (place), which is very close. The car was such a joy to drive, and it’s been the best it’s been all week. I really like our chances of being really competitive in the 24-hour race.”

The #3 Cadillac will start third when the green flag drops Saturday at Le Mans.

Hiroshi Koizumi was equally upbeat about the performance of the #82 Corvette in TF Sport’s debut at Le Mans in Chevy’s iconic sportscar.

“It’s my first Le Mans and my first Hyperpole,” said the Corvette ace. “I’m so thankful to the team and everyone who is supporting us. We will absorb all the data and learn from it, and hopefully that leads to a good result Sunday.”

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

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