Kessel Racing misses out on first LMGT3 Title in ELMS by two Points

After taking victory in the last two rounds of the European Le Mans Series (ELMS), Kessel Racing finished an incredible season just two points short of taking the crown in the LMGT3 Championship. After what was always going to be a tough weekend, with the #57 Ferrari 296 GT3 having added an extra 45-kilogram ballast, the team crossed the finishing line after a great battle in fifth place. Whilst Kessel Racing secured the ELMS Runners-up title, the Swiss team finished in third in both the Drivers and Team Standings in the Michelin Le Mans Cup, which also had its last race of the season today.

Kessel Racing unlucky in last ELMS race of the year
With an extra ballast of 45-kilogram in the Ferrari 296 GT3, Takeshi Kimura put the #57 car in eighth spot on the grid. After an early Safety Car, the team brought the car in for a quick splash-and-dash pitstop and rejoined in seventh position. In a big moment, when Takeshi Kimura was turning into the first corner, he was hit by an LMP-car but was able to continue. However, in a decision made by Race Control, the Kessel Racing Ferrari was given a drive-through-penalty for causing a collision.

But the team didn´t give up and when it was Esteban Massons turn, he was flying through the field and putting in yet another great performance. Daniel Serra jumped into the car for the last hour of the race and after a long Safety Car phase, the Brazilian had 45 minutes on the clock to make up two positions. The Ferrari driver did that in style, passing the #97 Grid Motorsport by TF Aston Martin and hunting down the #86 GR Racing Ferrari.

Until the last corner, Kessel Racing was leading the Championship, however a late move by the #63 Iron Lynx Lamborghini to take the race lead, meant for Kessel Racing to be two points short of winning the title. A frustrating end to a season, where the team fought hard in every single race.

Kessel Racing P3 in both Teams and Drivers Championship in Michelin Le Mans Cup
For the last race of the 2024 Michelin Le Mans Cup, Andrew Gilbert underlined the good performance of the #74 Ferrari 296 GT3 by starting from fourth on the grid. It was, however, the time to shine for the sister car: Whilst having to start from the back of the grid due to causing a red flag during qualifying, the team was set to put the fastest of the two drivers in the car, and that was David Fumanelli.

The Italian had a phenomenal start taking the lead of the GT3 class on the first lap and running in P25 overall. Whilst Andrew Gilbert was running in seventh place, David Fumanelli went on to extend his lead in class to over one minute.

After both Ferrari 296 GT3 had completed their obligatory pitstops, Frédéric Jousset re-joined the race in a comfortable lead, but as he was now up against the PRO drivers, he was losing time to the competitors. Fran Rueda, now behind the wheel of the #74 car, was running in P6, making up good ground for yet another strong point finished.

After an exciting final race, which was unfortunately finished during a Full-Course-Yellow, the #12 Ferrari claimed a third-place-podium, with the #74 coming home in fourth place – clinching third place in the Drivers’ Championship and also securing P3 for Kessel Racing in the teams’ standings.