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https://sportscar365.com/lemans/wec/hyu ... sis-brand/Hyundai Announces LMDh Program With Genesis Brand
Hyundai’s premium brand announces long-awaited entry into LMDh arena…
Hyundai Motorsport has announced a new LMDh program with its Genesis brand, which will see the Korean marque participate in the the FIA World Endurance Championship.
Speculation had been ramping up for some time that Hyundai was poised to make an entry into top-level endurance racing, with Sportscar365 first reporting the news in June after a delegation from the marque visited the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Confirmation of the program came via a brief statement issued by the WEC on Thursday morning, which stated that Genesis will enter the series in the “near future” pending approval by the championship’s selection committee.
It had been thought that 2026 would mark the project’s debut season.
An additional statement issued by Hyundai Motorsport read: “The LMDh program will add a new pillar to Hyundai Motorsport’s portfolio.
“Since its establishment in 2012, Hyundai Motorsport has been competing in WRC and TCR with Hyundai N brand.
“Genesis, the premium brand of the Hyundai Motor Group, will add endurance racing to the disciplines of its motorsport activities.”
Up to now, Hyundai has competing largely in the rallying and touring car arenas, with the brand having taken back-to-back World Rally Championship manufacturers’ titles in 2019-20 and three drivers’ titles in the FIA World Touring Car Cup.
No official word was given on who will operate the LMDh program, although previous speculation has suggested it could be conducted from Hyundai Motorsport’s existing Alzenau base in Germany.
Chip Ganassi Racing has been linked to a possible IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship effort under the Genesis brand following its split from Cadillac earlier this year, but no mention was made of this in Hyundai’s statement.
Hyundai has been a major presence in IMSA’s second-tier Michelin Pilot Challenge, where its partner team Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb-Agajanian has enjoyed a run of success in the TCR division.
While its LMDh chassis partner was not named in the announcement, Sportscar365 understands that it will likely be ORECA.
No mention was made of a potential LMGT3 program with the Genesis brand that had also been strongly rumored.
https://www.dailysportscar.com/2024/11/ ... a-wec.htmlLamborghini looks set to exit the FIA World Endurance Championship ahead of the 2025 season.
DSC expects that the Italian manufacturer will not be represented at all next season, departing, for now at least, after a single year in both Hypercar and LMGT3.
Which is also known as the natural course of action in the sport. ACO really needs to get their stuff together and start retaining privateers, because factory efforts will go away eventually.DoubleFart wrote: ↑1 month ago No surprise. I'm expecting half the Hypercar field to exit within 18 months.
Manufacturers are the headline.leon_90 wrote: ↑3 weeks ago When you look back at the great moments in the history of endurance racing, it has always been about the manufacturers and the factory efforts. Ferrari vs Mercedes, Ferrari vs Aston Martin, Ferrari vs Ford, Ferrari vs Porsche, Ferrari vs Matra, Porsche vs Renault, Porsche vs Jaguar and then again battles with Mercedes, Mazda, Peugeot, Toyota and so on. If a privateer is ever remembered, it will be in the context of a bigger battle between manufacturers.
In every category of motorsport, people are interested in seeing big brands go up against each other. That's why the categories where there are only privateers are hardly followed and watched by the fans.
If they want to stay relevant, they need to retain manufacturers, and they understand that.
Why is GT3 that popular? Because the privateers kept the class running. Why is there no GT1? No GT2/GTe/GTLM? No LMP1? Maximum manufacturers involvement. The LMP2 class (privateer teams) is still healthy. All the bad weather they have to endure is from the governing bodies who try to please the Manufacturers (who else?). Manufacturers are there to sell cars. Privateers are there because they love the sport! Without the privateers, every class is doomed to disappear. Again: GT1, GT2/GTe/GTLM, LMP1.leon_90 wrote: ↑3 weeks ago When you look back at the great moments in the history of endurance racing, it has always been about the manufacturers and the factory efforts. Ferrari vs Mercedes, Ferrari vs Aston Martin, Ferrari vs Ford, Ferrari vs Porsche, Ferrari vs Matra, Porsche vs Renault, Porsche vs Jaguar and then again battles with Mercedes, Mazda, Peugeot, Toyota and so on. If a privateer is ever remembered, it will be in the context of a bigger battle between manufacturers.
In every category of motorsport, people are interested in seeing big brands go up against each other. That's why the categories where there are only privateers are hardly followed and watched by the fans.
If they want to stay relevant, they need to retain manufacturers, and they understand that.
