The European Le Mans Series (ELMS) will welcome the largest grid in its history when 47 cars contest the 2026 season across four categories. The entry comprises 11 LMP2 cars, 12 LMP2 Pro/Am challengers, 10 LMP3 prototypes and 14 LMGT3 entries. Together, they will compete across six rounds at some of Europe’s leading circuits.
Several reigning champions will return to defend their titles, while established teams will expand their programmes and new combinations will join the championship. The season will begin at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on 12 April before visiting Le Castellet, Imola, Spa-Francorchamps, Silverstone and Portimão.
Forestier Racing and Panis unite for LMP2 title defence
Panis Racing will continue in the championship under a new identity after winning the 2025 LMP2 title.
The French operation has joined forces with Forestier Racing and will compete as Forestier Racing by Panis in 2026. Meanwhile, 2025 vice-champions and Le Mans class winners Jakub Śmiechowski, Tom Dillmann and Nick Yelloly will return with Inter Europol Competition.
The Polish team will again operate two cars in the category, while IDEC Sport will also retain a two-car LMP2 programme. Algarve Pro Racing, which won the championship in 2023, will field one Oreca 07-Gibson in the main class.
CLX Motorsport will move reigning LMP3 champions Theodor Jensen and Adrien Closmenil into LMP2 after the pair secured the 2025 title with the Swiss team. Proton Competition will enter one car for Jonas Ried, while United Autosports, Vector Sport and Nielsen Racing will complete the 11-car field with single entries.
LMP2 Pro/Am expands to 12 entries
The LMP2 Pro/Am field will grow from eight cars in 2025 to 12 for the new season.
Reigning champions AO by TF will keep PJ Hyett, Dane Cameron and Louis Delétraz together. Delétraz will pursue his fifth ELMS title, while 2024 champion AF Corse will return with multiple title winner François Perrodo.
Algarve Pro Racing will add a Pro/Am entry alongside its regular LMP2 car. Former category champion and Peugeot Hypercar driver Malthe Jakobsen will return to the series as part of the programme.
Vector Sport will also field a second Oreca, with Pietro Fittipaldi named in its #7 entry. Elsewhere, two-time Michelin Le Mans Cup LMP3 champion Jean Glorieux will make his LMP2 Pro/Am debut with DKR Engineering.
TDS Racing will continue in the class, while reigning vice-champion Alex Quinn will join Nielsen Racing. United Autosports will retain Marino Sato, Oliver Jarvis and Daniel Schneider for another season.
Rossa Racing by Virage will make its ELMS debut under a UAE licence. Former LMP2 Pro/Am and LMP3 champion John Falb will share the #19 Oreca with Manuel Espírito Santo and Rik Koen.
Meanwhile, reigning LMP2 champion Charles Milesi will join Felipe Fraga and Georgios Kolovos at CLX Motorsport. Giorgio Roda will compete for Duqueine Team, while Horst Felbermayr and Horst Felix Felbermayr will form a father-and-son pairing in Proton Competition’s #88 entry.
LMP3 continues its role in driver development
Ten cars will contest the LMP3 category, which will feature nine Ligier JS P325-Toyotas and one Duqueine D09.
Reigning Michelin Le Mans Cup champion R-ace GP will operate the sole Duqueine, while defending ELMS champion CLX Motorsport will return with one Ligier for Brazilian drivers Alexander Jacoby and Bruno Ribeiro.
DKR Engineering will switch to the Ligier JS P325 after running a Ginetta in 2025. Romain Favre and Antti Rammo will represent the Luxembourg-registered team.
Former champions Eurointernational will also enter one Ligier, with Matthew Richard Bell joining Douwe Dedecker. Ultimate will continue its long-standing involvement in the category and has again named Matthieu Lahaye as its lead driver.
Rinaldi Racing, Team Virage, Racing Spirit of Léman and M Racing will each field one car to complete the LMP3 grid.
Six manufacturers form the LMGT3 field
Fourteen cars and six manufacturers will contest LMGT3 during the 2026 season.
Reigning champions TF Sport will defend their title with a Chevrolet Corvette Z06 LMGT3.R for Blake McDonald and Matthew Bell. The Corvette will compete against six Ferrari 296 EVO LMGT3s, three Porsche 911 GT3 R LMGT3s, two Mercedes-AMG LMGT3s, one McLaren 720S LMGT3 Evo and one Aston Martin Vantage AMR LMGT3.
Iron Lynx will run both Mercedes-AMG entries. The #62 car will carry Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation colours, with Abdulla Ali Al-Khelaifi named among its drivers.
Proton Competition will operate two Porsches, including the #91 entry for 2024 Michelin Le Mans Cup GT3 champion Matthew Kurzejewski. High Class Racing will field the third Porsche, with Icelandic driver Audunn Gudmundsson confirmed as its first signing.
United Autosports will retain Wayne Boyd, Garnet Patterson and Michael Birch in its McLaren. Meanwhile, Clément Mateu, Valentin Hasse Clot and Marius Fossard will share Racing Spirit of Léman’s Aston Martin.
Ferrari retains the largest LMGT3 presence
Ferrari will supply almost half of the LMGT3 field, with six examples of the updated 296 EVO entered.
Reigning vice-champion Custodio Toledo will return with Richard Mille AF Corse in the #50 car. ELMS race winner Duncan Cameron will also continue in the category with Spirit of Race’s #55 entry.
AF Corse will field a Ferrari for long-standing ELMS competitor Charles-Henri Samani, while GR Racing will enter the #86 car for Michael Wainwright.
Kessel Racing will complete the Ferrari representation with two cars. Takeshi Kimura will return in the #57 entry, while Andrew Gilbert will compete in the team’s #74 296 EVO.
ELMS leaders welcome record participation in 2026
Automobile Club de l’Ouest President Pierre Fillon highlighted both the size of the grid and the championship’s role within the endurance racing structure.
“The 2026 European Le Mans Series entry list underlines the championship’s outstanding vitality and its central role within the endurance racing pyramid. A record grid of 47 cars, strong representation across all categories and a compelling mix of established teams and new contenders once again highlight the ELMS as a benchmark platform for performance, competition and driver development.
This level of commitment from teams and manufacturers is a clear sign of the championship’s appeal, and we look forward to another highly competitive and exciting season, starting in Barcelona.”
Le Mans Endurance Management CEO Frédéric Lequien also welcomed the championship’s largest entry and pointed to the strength of each category.
“The 2026 European Le Mans Series will see the largest ever entry, with a huge grid of 47 cars. We are extremely pleased to see this important championship reach new heights and attract the best teams and drivers from around the world.
“LMP2 stands out, with a total of 23 cars across the two categories, with 11 cars for LMP2 and 12 in LMP2 Pro/Am. With six brands once again in LMGT3 and the Toyota powered LMP3 cars providing the perfect platform for emerging driver talent, it is no wonder that teams and drivers want to compete in the ELMS.
“We’d like to extend a warm welcome to both the teams and drivers who are returning to the ELMS and to those who will make their series debut in Barcelona. We can’t wait for 2026 and the first race in April.”
Six ELMS rounds form the 2026 calendar
Barcelona will host the opening round on 12 April. The championship will then travel to Le Castellet on 3 May before visiting Imola on 5 July.
Spa-Francorchamps will stage the fourth round on 23 August, followed by Silverstone on 13 September. Portimão will host the season finale on 10 October.
