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Writer's pictureOwen Bradley
Nov 27, 20232 min read

Valentino Rossi Joins WEC in 2024 - McLaren on Grid too

Written by Owen Bradley

Credit: Antonin Vincent


Valentino Rossi will be joining the World Endurance Championship in 2024, participating in the LMGT3 category with BMW and Team WRT in a #46 car once again.


Rossi, the 9-time MotoGP World Champion, and GT World Challenge Europe Race Winner, has stated his intention on competing in the World Endurance Championship multiple times since he retired from MotoGP back in November 2021.


Just Two years later, and it's official that Rossi will be granted his wish... in some form. Rossi wants to be driving in the Top-Class of the WEC, Hypercar. However, this is a great starting point to get used to all the different World Endurance circuits, and he will drive a BMW GT3 car for 2024, a car which he took a victory in at the Misano GTWC Sprint round in Race 2. He has also taken podiums in Brands Hatch this year, as well as Zandvoort too, coming from P15 to a P3 finish.

Credit: Kevin Pecks


Rossi, especially for a man who spent his entire life on two-wheels, has exceptional talent and pace in the GT3 class, a three-time podium sitter and a Race Winner too. However, as impressive as that certainly was, he was racing in a European series. In 2024, Rossi will be competing across the globe, just like he did back in his MotoGP days.


It is understood that because the World Endurance Championship only has Eight rounds throughout the year, Rossi will also be competing in the GT World Challenge Endurance Cup - meaning he will continue racing in the GT World Challenge too for 2024 at least. However, it is unlikely that Rossi will be able to commit to the GT World Challenge Full Series, which included a Sprint Cup series. The Sprint Cup series, was two races across the weekend, each one hour long for two drivers.

Credit: Antonin Vincent


Rossi has claimed six podiums in his GT Career overall so far, with Five of those coming from 2023, and Two being Victories. Rossi won at the 2023 Road to Le Mans Cup, a One hour race in GT3 cars on the full Le Mans circuit, and a race where people test to see if they have what it takes, and he certainly proved that, and has been rewarded with a full-time drive in the World Endurance Championship.


Elsewhere in World Endurance Championship News:


Dries Vanthoor will be driving in the BMW Hypercar in 2024. A GTWC Sprint Cup Champion twice, and the fastest driver in the Bahrain LMP2 Test a few weeks ago, Vanthoor has finally made it to the top level of Endurance racing.


McLaren - Join the World Endurance Championship, partnering United Autosports for a place on the grid. McLaren in 2024 will now compete in Formula One, IndyCar, Formula E, WEC and Extreme E, a true Motorsport-Driven team.


What do you think of Valentino Rossi joining the World Endurance Championship? let us know in the comments below!


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