Magnussen Le Mans reunion possible if Peugeot delays entry

Last season's father-and-son line-up at the High Class Racing LMP2 squad looks set to be repeated at La Sarthe should Peugeot decide not to take part with its new Le Mans Hypercar and the Danish entrant gains the necessary entry.

The plan would be for the Magnussens to share an Oreca 07-Gibson in the pro/am LMP2 sub-class together with Mark Patterson, who raced with High Class in the 2019-20 FIA World Endurance Championship season.

Peugeot has stated that it will make a decision on whether to take its new 9X8 to Le Mans prior to publication of the entry list for this year's 90th edition of the race, which is due next Monday.

"I really hope to go back to Le Mans again, because I love the race so much," Magnussen Sr told Motorsport.com. "I'd love to do it with Kevin again, but I've got mixed emotions about it because I'd really like to see him there in the Peugeot going for the overall victory."

Magnussen Sr would be on course for his 23rd Le Mans participation if his High Class entry is accepted, though he said he would count it as his 24th even though his Chevrolet Corvette C7.R was withdrawn from the 2015 event after he crashed heavily in during qualifying.

A 23rd start this year would put Magnussen in joint eighth position on the list of all-time Le Mans participations.

 

High Class team principal Anders Fjordbach confirmed that the squad had made two entries for Le Mans this year.

He would race the second car together with team regular Dennis Andersen, with whom he is contesting the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in 2022, and a third driver yet to be decided.

High Class fielded two Orecas at Le Mans last year, its full-season WEC entry and an additional car in which Fjordbach joined the two Magnussens. They finished 29th overall and last in class after a long delay for repairs necessitated by a tyre deflation caused by contact with another LMP2 car.

Peugeot's decision to sit out the Sebring WEC season opener next month has freed up the younger Magnussen to reprise his role as part of the Chip Ganassi Racing Cadillac squad for the 12-hour IMSA event on the same weekend.

Magnussen, a full-time Ganassi IMSA driver last year, returned to the team for the Rolex 24 at Daytona season-opener in January alongside full-timers Earl Bamber and Alex Lynn, as well as Marcus Ericsson.

Ganassi IndyCar regular Ericsson is unavailable for Sebring due to a clash with the Texas round of the single-seater series, which has also prevented Scott Dixon taking up his IMSA endurance seat in Florida.