In recent years, Dunlop have had notable success in ‘open competition’ GT racing as partners to the winners of the 2010 and 2013 Nurburgring 24hours, 2010 and 2011 American Le Mans Series GT2 class and 2012 European Le Mans Series Champions.  In 2014, Dunlop continued to enjoy success by partnering the European Le Mans Series Champions, Signatech-Alpine.

A new generation of Dunlop Sport Maxx GT racing tyres

This wealth of experience accumulated by winning at the highest levels of Endurance Racing will go into a new range of Dunlop Sport Maxx GT racing tyres that are being developed for the 2015 European Le Mans Series. The objective is to develop a tyre range that offers the parity, consistency and durability needed for a diverse range of LMGTE and GTC class cars.

Pierre Fillon, President of the ACO, said: “Dunlop and Le Mans are two leading brands that are linked through their achievements in the world of endurance.  Dunlop has won the 24 Heures du Mans overall 34 times in the history of the world’s greatest race and their experience of building tyres for endurance racing will be of immense benefit to the teams competing in the ELMS.  We are looking forward to the start of the 2015 season at Silverstone in April with interest.” 

Jean-Felix Bazelin, Director, Dunlop Motorsport Operations, said: “As the most successful tyre manufacturer in terms of overall wins in the Le Mans 24h race, it is an honour to extend our partnership with the ACO to become a partner to the European Le Mans Series.  We have many loyal customers in this championship and it has been a pleasure to see the championship rejuvenate and grow in recent seasons. We look forward to working proactively with the ACO to further raise the profile of this important and prestigious championship.”

Gérard Neveu, CEO of the European Le Mans Series, said: “We welcome Dunlop as a full partner in the European Le Mans Series for the 2015, 2016 and 2017 seasons and we look forward to developing our strong relationship even further as we move forward to the start of the 2015 season at the official test at Le Castellet in March.  All competitors in the LMGTE and GTC categories will use Dunlop tyres, which will give them the confidence and consistency of using a new range of tyres from a world class manufacturer developed for endurance racing.”

The 2015 European Le Mans Series will begin in the UK on the 10/11 April 2015 with the 4 Hours of Silverstone, followed by the 4 Hours of Imola (16/17 May), 4 Hours of the Red Bull Ring (11-12 July), 4 Hours of Paul Ricard (5-6 September) and the season finale, the 4 Hours of Estoril (17-18 October).  The season will be preceded by the Official Test at Paul Ricard on the 23-24 March.

Further Information : www.europeanlemansseries.com