The Formula Drivers are Ready for 24 Challenging Hours at Le Mans

Conrad and Johnny Laursen team up with American Jordan Taylor as they enter the 2024 edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans with Swiss Spirit of Race.

The Danish drivers from Formula Racing, Conrad Laursen and Johnny Laursen, face the most important weekend of the season as they prepare for the 24 Hours of Le Mans next week. The two Danes team up with American Le Mans winner Jordan Taylor in the new GT3 class, where they will share a Ferrari 296 GT3 for the Swiss team Spirit of Race.

This is the second time Johnny Laursen participates in the French classic. The 60-year-old race car driver debuted at Le Mans in 2016 after a championship victory in the European Le Mans Series the previous year. This year, however, is quite extraordinary as Laursen will compete alongside his son, 18-year-old Conrad Laursen, who is among the youngest drivers in this year’s field.

“We are extremely excited! There is no doubt that Le Mans is the highlight for us, and we are very proud to be back again. The atmosphere down here is fantastic, and it’s almost hard to believe that it’s been eight years since I was last here. It’s great to be back, especially because I now have the opportunity to compete with Conrad, who was just a 10-year-old kart driver the last time we were here. But we are here to perform, and with our team, car, and lineup, I think we have a really good composition this year,” says Johnny Laursen.

Conrad Laursen already has a distinguished motorsport career on his CV. After several successful karting seasons, the young Laursen transitioned to Formula 4 at the age of 14 and won the Danish championship in 2020. This was followed by two seasons with the Italian top team Prema Powerteam, resulting in a victory and several podiums in the Italian and German championships, before he switched to sports cars at the age of 16 – with two GT3 podiums and a win in the European Le Mans Series so far.

"This is my first Le Mans, so everything is new to me, and I am naturally very excited about everything. I still remember the first time I was at Le Mans as a little kid, and to be here now as one of the drivers is almost surreal. Performance-wise, I would say we have good chances to compete for good results. We have a strong car and a good team behind us, and with Jordan (Taylor, ed.) on board, we have plenty of Le Mans experience with us. We are just looking forward to getting started,” says Conrad Laursen.

Being one of the most successful drivers in the American IMSA Championship with three titles in various classes, 33-year-old Jordan Taylor returns to Le Mans, where he last participated in 2022 and has multiple podium finishes, including a 2015 victory. Taylor, a full-season co-driver for WTRAndretti competing in the IMSA GTP Championship, replaces Nicklas Nielsen, who is usually a part of Formula Racing’s lineup in the European Le Mans Series. Nielsen will instead be competing in the Hypercar class for Ferrari in the 24-hour race.

"I first heard of the opportunity with the Danish squad through my buddy Marco Sorensen. Marco asked if I would be available for Le Mans this year. My initial answer was ‘definitely’, and I was excited to hear about who it was going to be with. Marco’s manager, Oliver Kristensen from 5P Agency, jumped in and helped connect me with Johnny, and it seemed like things came together really quickly," Taylor says.

"We had a really good test at Paul Ricard, and it was really great to get to know Conrad and Johnny. I have followed their racing over the past few years, and I still can’t believe how young Conrad is. Not only is he incredibly fast, but he is also very knowledgeable about what he wants from the race car. At the same time, Johnny brings a lot of experience from many years in sports car racing. Coming from a racing family myself, it’s exciting to be joining another passionate racing family. I think we’ll have a great lineup overall."

Laursen, Laursen, and Taylor will compete against 22 other teams in the brand-new GT3 class. A total of 62 cars from 14 different manufacturers will participate in the 2024 edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The event kicks off with the first practice sessions on Wednesday, June 12 – the race starts at 4:00 PM (CEST) on Saturday, June 15.