In a major power-shifting move for the future of the LMP2 class, it was announced on Wednesday that three of the most successful teams in prototype racing today — Inter Europol Competition, Algarve Pro Racing, and Panis Racing — will all make the move from Oreca to Ligier for the launch of the new regulations ruleset in 2028.
The duo of Ligier and Oreca are primed to be the sole providers of LMP2 hardware in the new era of the formula, and both are in continued work developing the chassis of their next generation of prototypes.
For Ligier, the JS P228 will succeed the JS P217, while Oreca will be advancing to the Oreca 09.
Both prototypes will make their worldwide competitive debut at the 2028 European Le Mans Series season, followed by their debut in the World Endurance Championship the same year, meaning Ligier will make it’s return to Le Mans for the first time since 2022.
The JS P228 and Oreca 09 are set to debut in the IMSA WeatherTech series the following year in 2029, as was confirmed by IMSA president John Doonan back in June.
The JS P228 will carry with it the ambitions of many to rebalance the competitive landscape of LMP2 after so many years of worldwide dominance in the class by the Oreca 07. For those of you that had forgotten that Ligier actually made a prototype chassis for competitive purposes, you’re definitely not alone. Both the Oreca 07 and the JS P217 launched back in 2017 to usher in the new LMP2 ruleset that is still in place to this day. Over time, due to the amazing reliability, strength of performance and overall ease of use with the Oreca 07, virtually every team competing in any of the top racing series’ in the world eventually switched over to the platform, making the Oreca 07 a dominant force and de facto choice for teams, while also leaving the JS P217 behind in the dust.
Ligier’s last competitive victory in either the ELMS, IMSA WeatherTech Series or the World Endurance Championship came in the 2018 ELMS series at the 4 Hours of Portimao via United Autosports. Yeah, quite a while ago.
The news of Inter Europol, APR and Panis all choosing to work with Ligier is a major shot in the arm for the future of the class, as Oreca won’t have the same sort of stranglehold it’s had in motorsport for the last half-decade, well at least at the beginning of things, at least.
Inter Europol have rapidly blown up as one of the premier teams in all of motosports, having posted an insane four-year run at Le Mans with wins in 2023, a second place finish in 2024, and back-to-back wins in 2025 and 2026, with the most-recent triumph in ’26 also serving as a 1/2 finish along with the sister car.
Their success has transferred over to North America and IMSA to the tune of multiple class wins, over a dozen total podium finishes, a 3rd place finish in the standings in 2025 and a championship title in 2024. They currently sit second in the LMP2 standings with two races remaining in the season, behind only the No. 4 CrowdStrike Racing by APR – yes exactly that same Algarve Pro Racing.
Speaking of which, APR have run in tandem with CrowdStrike at different points in recent seasons, often bouncing their name combinations back and forth depending on the year and series, but long story short both APR and CrowdStrike have found success to the tune of winning the LMP2 championship in the 2023 ELMS season, and going back-to-back in the Asian Le Mans Series in 2023-24 and 2024-25.
Panis Racing meanwhile are the reigning ELMS champions in a joint effort with VDS Racing, which again highlights just how successful these three teams have been in recent years, making their commitment to Ligier all the more noteworthy.
On the other side of the coin, United Autosports and Duqueine Team have already been tabbed as the first customers of the new Oreca 09, and as we move on through the next months it’ll be great to see where the remaining teams opt to lay their allegiances by the time 2028 comes aorund.
As for the delay in getting the new prototypes to North America, IMSA President John Doonan explained the decision as a way to provide teams with additional runway ahead of the change, allowing the new cars more time to go through R&D in competition around the world before they are brought in to IMSA. For teams already facing the substantial costs associated with developing and purchasing new machinery, that extra year could prove valuable as the LMP2 enters its most significant change in more than a decade.
For the teams that also compete in IMSA – the aforementioned group of CrowdStrike Racing by APR, Inter Europol and United Autosports – the easy guess today is to assume that those teams will run their new prototype choices come 2029. Ideally that plays out exactly as we should expect while we avoid any potential cost-cutting measures for them maybe opting to focus on the European or Asian LM series first before taking on more and more.
