What’s new to the WEC in 2023
Ahead of the start of the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship, there is a natural focus on the 13-entry Hypercar category.
But there is more to the FIA WEC’s 11th season than the influx of manufacturers to the top class – there are significant regulatory changes across all classes.
NO MORE TYRE HEATING
As part of the tyre road map developed and following consultations with tyre manufacturers, any form of tyre heating will not be permitted in 2023. Also as part of this road map, the amount of available tyre specifications in the Hypercar class will be reduced to two specifications per circuit (and three for Le Mans).
NEW HYPERCAR SUB-CLASIFFICATION
Manufacturers competing for the FIA Hypercar World Endurance Championship must enter at least one and a maximum of two cars. Any additional cars from the same manufacturer must be entered in the new Hypercar Teams' World Cup classification.
QUALIFYING FORMAT REFINED
In order to make qualifying easier to follow, to guarantee the competitors sufficient driving time and to broaden the window of optimal conditions for setting times, Qualifying will be composed of three separate 15-minute sessions, with a dedicated session per class, as opposed to the previous format of two sessions, one for prototypes (including Hypercar and LMP2 machinery) and one for GT cars.
AMENDED NEUTRALISATON PROCEDURES
First introduced to FIA WEC in 2014 in order to reduce the number of Safety Car interventions per race, Full Course Yellow (FCY) procedure that orders all the cars to reduce their speed to 80 km/h and not to overtake was revised ahead of this season.
Under the 2023 Sporting Regulations, Pit Lane will be closed during FCY periods. The procedure was amended in order to mitigate the impact of FCY periods on the results of the race as under previous regulations pitting under FCY gave significant advantage over the cars that already completed their pit stops under green flag conditions.
Cars running down on fuel or those carrying damage will be allowed to come in for an emergency pit stop to refuel for 5 seconds or to repair any damage. In this case, the cars must again enter the pit lane as soon as the pit entry opens.
NO MORE PRO/AM IN LMP2
In response to the demands of the market and following consultations with participating teams, there will no longer be a separate classification for Pro/Am crews involving a Bronze-rated driver in the LMP2 class.
As announced the at the FIA World Motor Sport Council meeting last December the homologation period for the current generation of LMP2 cars was extended until the end of 2025.
NEW SUSTAINABILITY AWARD
The ACO and the 24 hours of Le Mans launched in 2021 their Sustainable Strategy EngageMans pour le Futur. In 2023, WEC has also developed a Sustainable Strategy aligned with the FIA ambition.
With the Sustainable Endurance Award launched in 2021, ACO, WEC and the 24 Hours of Le Mans are following its tradition in innovation in accordance with its role as a player in sustainable mobility.
For the 2023 WEC season, all participating Teams (Competitors) have the obligation to participate and expose their social and environmental responsibility (CSR) commitments on:
· “Low Carbon Impact”: Action to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
· “Positive Innovation“: develop projects with positive social and/or environmental impact
This prize demonstrates the commitment of the Competitors and the WEC to the challenges of the social and ecological transition.
