The grid of the 24 Hours of Le Mans is divided into four classes, resulting in many 'races within a race'.

Introducing the LM GTE Am class 

In the GTE Am class, each car can only have only one professional driver. As a result, the class hierarchy is more dependent on the cohesiveness of the crews than the competitiveness of a single driver. For each team, the challenge is to add the best gentlemen drivers to one pro. The philosophy is the same in the preparation of cars for which favours a more forgiving set-up rather than outright performance. Finally, the GTE Am cars do not benefit from the latest technical developments seen in Pro class competitors. 

Corvette C6-ZR1 : Could they make it three in a row?
The American sports car remains unbeaten since the inception of the category in 2011 ... And every time, the same pair of gentlemen drivers (Bornhauser Canal) that have mounted the top step of the podium. The French team Larbre Competition know the recipe for success and could well repeat it for a third consecutive time, especially as the team of Jack Leconte celebrates its 25th anniversary and its 20th participation in the 24 Hours of Le Mans . For this double celebration, the team boss also promises a few surprises in the composition of driver crews ...

Ferrari 458 Italia : The law of big numbers ...
Numbers are a significant advantage to the Italian marque, but matched also by the quality of the competitors, it could make the difference. With AF Corse (at Le Mans since 2007) and Krohn Racing (Le Mans since 2006), Maranello can count on four impeccably prepared cars to face the twice around the clock challenge. The two beginners should not be underestimated either. The first, 8Star Motorsports, could repeat the feat of Starworks Motorsport in whose debut last year resulted in a victory in LM P2. Finally you can't discount Extreme Speed Motorsports who are used to competing in the "Pro" class in the American Le Mans Series. 

Porsche 911 RSR : Out for revenge!
Leading up to the start of the last hour of the race last year, Imsa Performance Matmut will be back with a single goal: victory! To achieve this, the team from Rouen can count on two cars, including one driven by Jean-Karl Vernay, a promising French driver and candidate for a driving in the future Porsche LM P1. Two cars, too, for Proton Competition, one entrusted to actor/driver Patrick Dempsey who enters under his own team, but has technical support of the team who beat the cream of GT in 2010.

Aston Martin two works cars!
A factory team in the "amateur" class ... and why not? They are all official works entry but the two British cars are over one year old and do not have the latest advances made in both models entered in GTE Pro. Do they really need the latest developments? The 2012 version has already demonstrated its competitiveness finishing 3rd in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and won the last round of the FIA World Endurance Championship in Zhuhai (China). Aston MArtin has gathered some of the best drivers classified as "amateurs" such as Christoffer Nygaard, Kristian Poulsen and Stuart Hall who was considered professional until 2012.

Photo : CIRCUIT DES 24 HEURES (LE MANS, SARTHE), 24 HOURS OF LE MANS, 16th JUNE 2012. Corvette C6-ZR1, Larbre Competition.