Is McLaren planning for a Le Mans return with the 650S GT3?

McLaren was once a dominant force in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where they grabbed the overall win with the F1 GTR back in 1995, outgunning even the dedicated Le Mans prototype machines back then. And after a 19-year hiatus, it is said that McLaren might be making a comeback in this legendary endurance race with their brand new race machine.

While they might not be gunning for the overall victory, the 650S GT3 does has some potential in triumphing against the cars in its class. “I would be very surprised if you don’t see a 650S running at Le Mans at some point and we hope to be there from 2016,” said McLaren boss Andrew Kirkaldy.

Of course, they will need to come up with a GTE version of the race car to comply with the regulations of the GTE class in the World Endurance Championship, the United SportsCar Championship and the European and Asian Le Mans Series set by the Automobile Club de l’Ouest and the FIA.

“The new car is not far from a GTE carin some aspects, like the hubs, suspension and bigger wheels and tyres – it is a good step towards that,” explained Kirkaldy. However, McLaren did not state whether they will be fielding a factory team in the race should the 650S GTE be built.