One of the main reasons the LMP3 category was created by the ACO was to provide the first step on a drivers’ career ladder towards the pinnacle of endurance racing and over the years we’ve seen many of the top LMP3 drivers move up to LMP2 or even LMP1 and Hypercar.
2023 will see two LMP3 champions, Malthe Jakobsen and Laurents Hörr, make their full season debuts in LMP2, joining 2018 champion Job Van Uitert on the grid in Barcelona.
19-year-old Dane Malthe Jakobsen took the ELMS by storm in 2022, becoming the first driver to score six pole positions from six attempts in a single season in ELMS history.The 2019 Danish Formula 4 Champion also took the LMP3 title alongside Michael Benham and Maurice Smith for Swiss outfit Cool Racing, securing two wins and two further podium finishes.
25-year-old Laurents Hörr from Gerlingen in Germany is already a triple LMP3 champion, winning the Michelin Le Mans Cup title in 2019 and 2020 and then adding the ELMS crown in 2021, all with DKR Engineering.The German also made his LMP2 debut in 2022, driving for the team at the 2022 24 Hours of Le Mans and finishing on the third step of the Pro/Am podium.
Jakobsen will stay with Cool Racing, racing alongside team boss Nico Lapierre and Alexandre Coigny in the team’s Pro/Am entry.“I feel super good and almost like a family in Cool Racing,” said Malthe Jakobsen. “I’m really happy to have Nicolas and Alex as my teammate, they both have a lot of experience with this car, so it’ll be very useful for me to learn from them!”
Laurents Hörr will race in first full season in LMP2 with 2019 champions IDEC Sport, alongside title winners Paul Loup Chatin and Paul Lafargue.When asked how the deal with IDEC came about, he said, “I have known Nico Minassian for a since I started LMP3 in 2018, we always had a good relationship and after the season we had a few chats and quickly came together, it was quickly clear that we want to work together in the future.”
Working with two former champions must be a good experience when working with a new team? “I had quite some contact with both ‘Pauls’ in the last couple of seasons” Laurents said. “I am looking forward to learning further from their experience, especially for Le Mans. I think as we all come along together well, it will be a good work atmosphere which is worth a lot!”
The step up from LMP3 to LMP2 can be a challenge but LMP3 has been devised to allow an easier transition into the more powerful Le Mans Prototype category, so what do our two drivers think will be their most difficult challenge?
“For sure there will be a lot of new stuff to learn”, said an eager Malthe Jakobsen.“I think the most difficult thing, will be the tyre management and the traffic, as you’re closing down the GT cars a lot quicker now.
“The main difference between the LMP2 and LMP3 car is the engine power, down force and brakes”, the young Dane continued “But as a driver the car is a lot more sensitive, so the driver feedback has to be very good precise to help the engineers to make a good setup.”
Laurents Hörr agreed with a lot of Jakobsen said, “The biggest obvious difference is the speed, but that took only a few laps to adapt. A little bit more technical would be the brakes, coming from steel to carbon discs. It’s something that can be quite different in the driving style.”
“I think the biggest challenge will be setting my goals not too high,” he continued “I have been very successful with DKR in the last few years, and I want to continue like this. Nevertheless, it is a new team and a new challenge for me, so I will take the things as they come and trust the process.”
With 18 full season entries, the competition for the Driver and Team titles is going to be extremely fierce this season.So, who do our two champions think is going to be the biggest challengers this year?“Looking at the entry list, I think there is no favourite”, said Laurents Hörr. “We will do our best to leave the others behind, and I am very much looking forward to the fights on track! Nevertheless, I will try to be ahead without fighting, by being quicker.”
Malthe Jakobsen was also quite uncommitted as to where the main challenge would come from, but he was just as eager to get to work, “As we all know the LMP2 category is looking super competitive this season, I’d say that all of the cars entering the grid will be our competitors.”
2018 LMP3 Champion Job Van Uitert has competed in four seasons of LMP2 and has been Vice Champion on three occasions, including last season with Panis Racing.The 24-year-old from Dongen in The Netherlands knows the challenges that Malthe Jakobsen and Laurents Hörr will face and had this bit of advice for his fellow LMP3 Champions.
“The biggest challenge moving from LMP3 to LMP2 is definitely the level of competition”, Van Uitert said. “In LMP3 you’re mainly up against silver and bronze rated drivers, where in LMP2 you will fight with a lot of gold and platinum drivers. Their skill level is definitely a lot higher, and it just requires you to step up your game and make zero errors.
“LMP2 is a great step compared to LMP3. The car will actually feel easier to drive, since they are so well engineered. Also, it is nice that you don’t have to check the mirrors that often anymore since you will be the fastest class of the ELMS field! Try to learn as much as possible from your teammates and have fun!”
The six round 2023 European Le Mans Series will start in Spain with the 4 Hours of Barcelona on the 21-23 April. The event will be preceded by the ELMS Prologue, the official two day preseason test on the 18/19 April at the same venue.
