The Code Racing Development Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3 of Sebastian Moreno has again showed his qualifying pace at least as he qualified the #11 car that he now shares with Ethan Ischer onto another pole position within the Michelin Le Mans Cup Series.

This time competing at the Paul Ricard circuit in the south of France, the Columbian bronze driver did what he did at the opening round from Barcelona just few weeks ago to go nearly three quarters of a second quicker than anyone else within their ten strong GT3 class to claim his second pole position of the season. His teammate, Ischer also secured a fastest class lap of the event during an earlier Free Practice session

 

The #10 Racing Spirit of Leman AMR Vantage GT3 of Philipp Sager (shared with Valentin Hasse-Clot) sadly could not replicate his qualifying pace of Barcelona as they eventually qualified P8 in class with the #91 Ecurie Ecosse by Blackthorn AMR of Claude Bovet (and Tom Canning) had better fortune this time to make it through to the grid of this afternoons race in nineth after an earlier spin for Bovet.

They sadly had a heavy off in Spain that prevented them from racing in Spain, as did the #11 Code of Racing Development AMR during the opening laps of that race which eventually allowed the #10 RSLM car to come through to claim a season opening race win. It’s just now time for the teams to join together all those dots for the race.

 

The second two-hour round of the Le Mans Cup season is waved off at 18:20hrs local this evening.

Photo credits – Teams / Series / social media

 

Blackthorn filled in their missing blanks today ahead of their return to the Michelin Le Mans Cup Series this year with their #91 Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3.

Team owner and lead driver, Claude Bovet was confirmed by the team and the series when the provisional entry list to this season’s campaign was confirmed back in January.

 

 

Today’s news sees the team confirm that Tom Canning will be stepping up to the European series for the first time having spent the last few seasons competing in GT4 after a brief racing period through 2020-21 in GT3 with TF Sport across three series.

Fellow AMR Vantage GT3 runners, Racing Spirit of Leman are apparently (according to Endurance Info) concluding their final test and appreciation sessions with various drivers to see who will be partnering Tom Wood within their #10 car entry. We also await confirmation of who will be joining Antoine Leclerc within the declared #11 Code Racing Development AMR Vantage GT3.

 

 

The Michelin Le Mans Cup suddenly became even more interesting than it usually is today as they announced their multi-classed entry list for 2026 which this time sees THREE Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3’s entered within their six-round season.

Last year we had just the Code Racing Development team fly the flag for the brand and for the first half the season at least, they were very much in contention at the head of the class before sadly falling away during the final two rounds.

 

 

Again bearing the #11 number, this year sees the French based team join forces with Antoine Leclerc with a bronze ranked driver yet to be determined whilst the new for 2026 #10 Racing Spirit of Leman entry will also carry a familiar surname around the door as British GT Silver-Am Champion Tom Wood deservedly moves back into the European racing arena. The #91 Blackthorn AMR entry will again see team boss Claude Bovet compete within the series as they continue this weekend with their Asian Le Mans Series commitments.

These three entries help to make up the ten GT3 entries within the class as well as the thirty-five LMP3 cars that will compete amongst their two classes making up for a very healthy forty-five car entry.

 

 

The Le Mans Cup season will get officially underway on the 8th March with the pre-season Prologue test from Barcelona before quickly moving into the first race of the year at the Catalunya circuit that weekend. In the meantime, there obviously needs to be three further drivers announced within the teams but already, the season is looking very interesting indeed.

Don’t forget that the series (in support of the European Le Mans Series) will again be attending Silverstone this September as the penultimate round of the season.

 

An enhanced grid entry has just been confirmed for this weekend’s second round of the British GT Championship from Silverstone as now thirty-three crews prepare themselves for the Blue Ribband Silverstone 500 event.

The opening round to the 2025 season from Donington Park saw twenty-six GT3 and GT4 crews take to the track for the first time of asking at the start of the month and todays entry news out of the SRO sees one further Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3 to add to the two full season AMR GT3’s and the Endurance Cup entered Vantage GT4.

 

Some significant Aston Martin Racing powered news has been announced today regarding entries Partner teams entered into ACO rules series.

Starting at the top, saw the Heart of Racing today their full driver line up within their #27 Aston Martin Racing Vantage LMGT3 that will compete again within the World Endurance Championship that starts again in just a few weeks’ time.

Having raced so competitively last season with drivers Ian James, Alex Riberas and Daniel Mancinelli behind the wheel sees team manager James return to the car but this time alongside the likes of Zacharie Robichon and Mattia Drudi.

 

Significant changes are afoot within the Aston Martin Racing powered entry of the Asian Le Mans Series as forty-seven cars are confirmed ahead of their next double header race round around the Dubai Autodrome in just under two weeks’ time.

Having already competed at Sepang back at the beginning of December, todays provisional entry list shows both an addition of one new AMR Vantage GT3 from the Blackthorn AMR as well (taking the tally to three GT cars) as well as a completely new driver line up within the #89 Earl Bamber Motorsport AMR entry compared to last time out.

 

With not too much time in-between for the refettling of both driver and machine, todays second race of the opening round of the Asian Le Mans Series was soon underway again early today around the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia.

Yesterday’s opening four hour round had already been a typical first day back scenario with incident and accident happening as early as turn one lap one for some, but at least for the two Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3 crews there was just the learning from yesterday to put into the equation for today.

 

It was another particularly chaotic start to the proceedings earlier today as the 2024/25 Asian Le Mans Series finally got underway with their opening one of two races around the Sepang International Circuit earlier today.

With another pair of Aston Martin Racing Vantage LMGT3’s again helping form another record breaking forty-two all entry (twenty-five of those within the GT class), it was always going to be something of a first day back at school scenario for the #89 Earl Bamber Motorsport and #19 Blackthorn AMR entries.

With both private testing and then Free Practice already behind them, today also saw the teams allotted driver take part within a qualifying session that would see their best and second-best lap times taken to form the grids for today’s opener as well as tomorrows second four-hour race.

 

With little under a week still to go before the opening track sessions of this season’s Asian Le Mans Series still to go, both Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3 teams have today put their new liveries out there for us to enjoy.

Starting at the Sepang International Circuit with a double header of four-hour races across the 7th and 8thDecember, both the Blackthorn AMR and Earl Bamber Motorsport entries (alongside the collective forty-two LMP2, LMP3 and GT3 classes of course) will then move onto the Dubai Autodrome for another double header there in early February before culminating with another season finale double at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi.

 

Whilst Aston Martin Racing powered participation within next year’s IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Championship and FIA World Endurance Championship brews along nicely at the moment, there has today been further news into next this forthcoming Asian Le Mans Series too.

Confirming a healthy and buoyant forty-two, multi-classed entry for this latest season of the Asian based ACO rules series that kicks off in Sepang (Malaysia) in just over two week’s time, there was also news as to the identity within the two Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3’s as previously listed this time around as full season entries.

 

Within another hectic weekend of motor racing involving multiple Aston Martin Racing powered teams and of those series reaching their finales, only the European Le Mans race from Portimao stands out as a must watch event.

Having now completed for exciting rounds, the state of the LMGT3 class Championship means that multiple crews retain a mathematical chance of securing top hours within that class come the fall of the chequered flag after this final four-hour race in Portugal.

 

The long summer break is finally over for the ACO rules European Le Mans Series and Supporting Michelin Le Mans Cup Series as both sets of cars travel out to the Spa Francorchamps circuit in Belgium for their respective fourth round of their season’s this weekend.

With entry tightly regulated in terms of numbers, this weekend’s entry list comes as no real surprise in terms of participating teams although there is a slight adjustment for the sole Aston Martin Racing powered team running again within the Le Mans Cup Series.