Lamborghini is set to become the latest manufacturer to commit to an LMDh prototype program.
After previous confirmations from Acura, Audi, Porsche and BMW, as well as a likely bid by Cadillac, RACER reports that the Italian manufacturer looks set to join the new top category of global prototype racing from 2024.
The effort is said to be based on the same Multimatic chassis used by fellow Volkswagen-owned brands Porsche and Lamborghini, with official confirmation reportedly set for September.
Alongside a factory effort, Lamborghini’s LMDh efforts will have a heavy focus on customer racng as the Italian manufacturer does not have a similar factory racing operation as Porsche.
“We are not 100 percent over the line, I can confirm that, but if I was to say we’re 90 percent of the way there, that would be pretty accurate,” Lamborghini senior motorsport manager Chris Ward told RACER. “We’ve got a couple of I’s to dot and T’s to cross with a couple of the main providers.
“That’s what has separated us from a lot of the manufacturers; historically, we don’t go factory racing in the way that you might see Porsche or others go factory racing. To get us all the way there, it’s going to take a customer effort behind it.
“But we’re in a fortunate position as a manufacturer to have the relationships and individuals among our existing and growing portfolio that could help us achieve that. So those are the elements that we’ve got to really get over the line with to make sure that it’s 100 percent.”
The finding of customer outfits to facilitate the program has been one of the key priorities prior to any official confirmation.
Lamborghini currently has a number of noteworthy customer teams in global motorsport, including K-PAX Racing in the GT World Challenge America, Orange1 FFF Racing in the Intercontinental GT Challenge, and GRT Grasser Racing Team and Paul Miller Racing in the IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship.
“The missing 10 percent I mentioned, and why I said we were not quite all the way there yet, is because it’s difficult to ask a team that you’re talking with to do nothing for a year (in 2023),” Ward continued.
“That’s a big ask, which takes more effort to find a solution, but we are very lucky. We’ve got a huge breadth internationally of existing customer teams, some of whom it would be easier to step into an LMDh program than others.”
“I think it’s fair for me to say it’s more likely that we would grow upward with an existing customer [GT] racing effort, than take over the reins of an existing prototype team.
“With all of that said, we’re also speaking to existing prototype teams. But we have a vast array of people that would be more than capable of being able to do it. We’re just working to get things lined up before they’re all snapped up by others.”
If Lamborghini joins the LMDh ranks, both programs in the IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship and FIA World Endurance Championship would be on the table.
Lamborghini has rarely been engaged with prototype racing since its founding, with a noteworthy but short-lived Group C program without factory support in 1985.
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