ACO - Asian Le Mans Series

It looks like the Asian Le Mans Series is destined to become a retirement home for obsolescent cars from TUSC/ELMS/WEC.

Here is the ACO official statement ...

Since taking over the organization of the Asian Le Mans Series and further to the announcement of its new management structure, the following decisions have been made by the ACO.

I – Calendar

In order to enhance the initial 2015 calendar, the following revisions have been decided:

An additional event will be held in Buriram (Thailand) on January 8-10 2016
Sepang: Initially scheduled on Dec 20th 2015, the Malaysian round will now be held on 22-24 January 2016 instead.

The full 2015/2016 Asian Le Mans Series will then consist of four events:

Fuji (Japan) – October 10th 2015 – 1 x 2h race (WEC event)
Shanghai (China) – October 31st 2015 – 1 x 1h20 race (WEC event)
Buriram (Thailand) – January 10th 2016 – 1 x 3h race
Sepang (Malaysia) – January 24th 2016 – 1 x 3h race

The 2016/2017 calendar will consists of five 3h (minimum) races and be held from September 2016 till the end of February 2017 in Japan, China, Malaysia and Thailand.

Both the 2015/2016 and 2016/2017 calendars will as much as possible, avoid clashes with other major Asian Pacific international motorsports events.

II – Incentives & Promotion

Teams entering the 2015/2016 Asian Le Mans Series season will benefit from:

‘Early bird’ rates for full season entrants
A special entry fee for CN and GTAm entries
Furthermore, in addition to Pan Asian TV broadcasts and a redefined Communication plan (with more efficient online, digital and social media exposure) the organization is currently considering opportunities aimed at improving both the teams support and the Series promotion.

III – Sporting & Technical regulations

Eligible cars

LM P2
LM P3
CN specified within the 2014/2015 ACO CN form and accepted by the ACO (Appendix 3 of the Sporting Regulations).
GT in conformity with the 2015 Technical Regulations of: LM GTE, GT3 FIA, GT 300 Japan.
GTAm : GT Cup in conformity with the 2015 Technical Regulations of: Porsche Cup Asia, Ferrari Challenge Asia, Super Trofeo Lamborghini, Audi R8 LMS Cup Asia, Lotus Cup Asia..
3 competitors will be invited to the 2016 Le Mans 24 Hours*, as follows:

The 1st LM P2
The 1st GT team (invited in the GTE class)
The 1st LM P3 invited in the LM P2 class subject to a minimum of 3 entries in the category. Should this minimum be not reached the invitation will be granted to the 2nd team of the GT overall classification which will be invited in GT Am.
* Mandatory entries to all the 2015/2016 Asian LMS events.

Stability

The Asian Le Mans Series organization pays a great attention to the long term stability of the rules. Thus, despite the coming new regulations for Le Mans GT Cars (2016) and new LMP2 cars (2017), the current Asian Le Mans Series eligible cars will be accepted until the end of the 2018/2019 season calendar.

Pierre Fillon, President of the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO): «The ACO strongly believes in the Asian market potential for Endurance Racing and wishes to play a major role in this region in the near future. That is why we have decided to take over the organization of the Asian Le Mans Series, in order to secure this very important pillar of our racing pyramid »

Cyrille Taesch Wahlen, Asian Le Mans Series Operations Manager: «This proposed calendar combined with the substantial effort from the ACO to design a more attractive platform will contribute to a newly revitalized Asian Le Mans Series. With 4 events, a first visit in Thailand and a calendar that will better suit both the Asian and European teams we are ready for a new start»