Romain Dumas, the fighter - During the awards ceremony for the Fédération Française du Sport Automobile, Romain Dumas admitted his dream had always been to become a rally driver, before he joined the Elf pathway and turned his sights on a career on the track. His 2016 season is a perfect microcosm of that double life. Other than fulfilling his longtime dream to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans at the wheel of a Porsche, one week later the French driver made his mark again on the famous American hillclimb Pikes Peak, the oldest race in the history of motorsports. Then his love of rally led him to victory at the historic Tour de Corse race. The World Endurance Drivers Champion title, shared with his teammates Neel Jani and Marc Lieb, was the perfect ending to a stunning season, achievements worthy of Gérard Larrousse, one of his idols who in the 1970s won with the Matra prototype at the 24 Hours of Le Mans circuit as well as on the roads of the automobile Tour de France.

Nicolas Lapierre, a new one to beat - There was no doubt that Lapierre's invaluable experience in LM P1 hybrid prototypes (five wins with Toyota from 2012 to 2014) would soon seek out a new challenge. So for 18 months now, the winner of the 2011 Sebring 12 Hours has emerged as the one to beat in the LM P2 field. Winner in LM P2 at the 2015 24 Hours of Le Mans with the Chinese team KCMG, he joined Signatech Alpine this year. A natural leader in a team with two debuting drivers, Gustavo Menezes and Stéphane Richelmi, he led the charge toward a triumphant season with a perfect overtaking at the WEC 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, before clinching a second consecutive win in LM P2 at Le Mans. In all, four victories and three other podium finishes allowed Signatech Alpine to secure the trophy as early as the 6 Hours of Shanghai with one race still to go in the season. Nicolas Lapierre has also participated in the debut of the American team DragonSpeed in the European Le Mans Series, with one victory and three podium finishes in six races, and a fourth place overall finish in the LM P2 class.

François Perrodo and Emmanuel Collard, a gentleman-driver and his mentor - The owner of an oil company when he's not on the track, since 2012 François Perrodo and Emmanuel Collard, a former protégé of Henri Pescarolo, have built a relationship that has turned into a solid friendship over the years. Collard's comprehensive experience (22 participations in the 24 Hours of Le Mans) has allowed Perrodo to make giant leaps of improvement, all the way to the 2016 FIA Endurance LM GTE Am Drivers Trophy, shared with their respected Portuguese teammate Rui Aguas. As in 2015, their consistency is remarkable. This year, of the nine rounds of the World Endurance Championship (WEC), the trio driving the #83 Ferrari 458 Italia won the opening round at Silverstone, scored the 50 points at the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the best competitor entered for the year in the World Endurance Championship (WEC), and claimed six other podium finishes. In 2017, François Perrodo and Emmanuel Collard will join the LM P2 class, with equal success let's hope.

Photo: After Benoît Tréluyer in 2012 then Loïc Duval in 2013, Romain Dumas became the third French driver to win the world endurance drivers' title.