Preview: BAPCO 8 hours of Bahrain

Text: Rick Kiewiet

Images: Rick Kiewiet, WEC.

The coming weekend will mark the end of the 2024 WEC campaign, with the final round being held in Bahrain. With the drivers' championship almost decided, 35 points separate the Penske Porsche #6 crew (Vanthoor, Lotterer and Estre) from runners up from Ferrari's Fuoco, Molina and Nielsen. With 39 points still up for grabs (38 for a race win and 1 for Pole), this means only an eight place finish separates the Porsche trio from the title.

Mathematically, Kobayashi, de Vries and Conway in the #7 Toyota also still have a chance to win the title, but they're an extra 2 points behind on the #6. This however, makes the battle for p2 in the final standings ever more interesting.

Where early in the season the Porsche, Ferrari and Toyota were clearly the faster car, the battle behind is also heating up. Cadillac probably leads the charge towards the top-3, witnessing their pole position in Fuji. They've suffered numerous setbacks during races, but speed is not the issue. Alpine and BMW also look stronger and stronger, where BMW even managed to score its first podium last time out in Fuji.

In the teams' standings, things are a lot closer, as only 10 points separate leaders Penske Porsche from the Toyota Gazoo Racing team. With over 50 points to score, this championship is still wide open. Ferrari also still has chance, as they're only 17 and 27 points behind p2 and p1 in the championship.

In LMGT3, both the drivers' and teams' championships have been decided. With their p2 finish in Fuji, the #92 PureRxcing Porsche 911 crew of Malykhin, Sturm and Bachler sealed the deal, claiming the teams championship in the process. Behind Porsche, BMW (WRT) and Aston Martin (HRT and D'Station) are only 13 points apart, the Brits leading the Germans.

The race in Bahrain will be Lotterer's last for Porsche. Porsche revealed its 2025 line-up last week and the German veteran was not on the roster. The 42-year old already became World Endurance champion iwth Audi in 2012, and now has the chance to claim his second title in his last race for Porsche. Lotterer also won Le Mans 3 times: 2011, 2012 and 2014.