Diverse, exciting and full of appreciation for its fans: My first taste of ELMS

DIVERSE, exciting and full of appreciation for the fans. That is perhaps the simplest way I can describe my first experience covering the European Le Mans Series at Silverstone.

There is, of course, the racing. Multiple classes, vastly different cars and drivers of varying levels of experience all sharing one circuit means there is rarely a shortage of action.

But some of the things that impressed me most happened before the cars even started racing.

The LMP3-winning No. 85 R-ace GP Ligier racing past the Silverstone grandstands. — ^{The No. 85 R-ace GP Ligier JS P325, which Fabien Michal, Pierre-Alexandre Provost and Hugo Schwarze drove to victory in the LMP3 class at the 4 Hours of Silverstone. Photo by Damian Hall/The Hall of F1}

DIVERSITY THROUGHOUT THE PADDOCK

Walking through the paddock, one of the first things that struck me was its diversity. People from different ethnic backgrounds, men and women, could be seen throughout the teams and, importantly, were not confined to particular roles.

From drivers to mechanics, engineers and other team personnel, the paddock reflected the international nature of the championship. It wasn’t something being advertised on a billboard or pushed as a talking point. You could simply see it.

Vector Sport and Algarve Pro Racing team members speaking on the Silverstone grid before the ELMS race. — ^{Team personnel from Vector Sport and Algarve Pro Racing speak on the grid ahead of the European Le Mans Series race at Silverstone. Photo by Damian Hall/The Hall of F1}

PUTTING THE FANS FIRST

Then there were the fans.

I’ve covered several forms of international motorsport, but the level of accessibility at ELMS caught me by surprise.

Fan using a mobile phone to photograph the No. 43 Inter Europol Competition car on the Silverstone grid. — ^{A fan photographs the No. 43 Inter Europol Competition prototype during the pre-race grid walk at Silverstone. Photo by Damian Hall/The Hall of F1}

Fans could walk through the paddock, get remarkably close to the cars and speak directly with the people working on them. At times, it almost had the atmosphere of a gas station car meet, except the machinery sitting in front of you would shortly be racing around Silverstone.

Curious questions were answered. Fans could stop and speak with team personnel, learn more about the cars and wish them luck before the race.

You could even find yourself walking through the paddock and bumping into one of the drivers.

Eurointernational driver Matthew Richard Bell posing with a fan beside the pink No. 11 Ligier on the Silverstone grid. — ^{Matthew Richard Bell poses with a fan beside the No. 11 Eurointernational Ligier JS P325 on the grid at Silverstone. Photo by Damian Hall/The Hall of F1}

Rather than disappearing behind closed doors or being hurried away from supporters, drivers stopped to talk, posed for selfies and showed patience with the people who had come to watch them race.

And the accessibility did not end there.

Fans also had the opportunity to take part in a pit walk and autograph session, experiences which, at some major sporting events, might be associated with expensive hospitality packages or VIP access.

A large and diverse crowd of fans walking among the racing cars during the ELMS grid walk at Silverstone. — ^{Thousands of fans fill the Silverstone grid ahead of the European Le Mans Series race. Photo by Damian Hall/The Hall of F1}

At Silverstone, a £10 Platinum upgrade to a weekend ticket provided access to the pit walk, autograph session and pre-race grid walk.

I also noticed signs posted around the circuit inviting fans to register for the grid walk. All they had to do was collect a wristband, although places were limited.

Colourful handwritten sign inviting fans to collect a wristband for the ELMS grid walk at Silverstone. — ^{A sign at Silverstone invites fans to collect a wristband for access to the European Le Mans Series grid walk. Photo by Damian Hall/The Hall of F1}

A MULTIMILLION-POUND CAR SHOW

It was on the grid, however, that the level of accessibility became most striking.

Before the race, fans poured onto the Silverstone grid, where cars from LMP2, LMP2 Pro/Am, LMP3 and LMGT3 were lined up ahead of the start.

It was like walking through a multimillion-pound car show where nothing was behind a rope.

Fan using a mobile phone to photograph a green TDS Racing prototype on the Silverstone grid. — ^{A fan photographs a TDS Racing prototype at close range during the pre-race grid walk at Silverstone. Photo by Damian Hall/The Hall of F1}

Fans could get close to the cars, pose for photographs, peer inside the cockpits and take in details that are difficult to appreciate from a grandstand or through a television screen.

For anyone who loves cars or motorsport, it was an incredible sight.

THE ROAD TO LE MANS

What makes the experience even more remarkable is the level at which these teams are competing.

The European Le Mans Series forms part of the pathway to one of the biggest prizes in endurance racing: the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

LMGT3-winning No. 62 Team Qatar by Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG leading an LMP prototype at Silverstone. — ^{The No. 62 Team Qatar by Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG, which claimed victory in the LMGT3 class at the 4 Hours of Silverstone, leads an LMP prototype. Photo by Damian Hall/The Hall of F1}

At the end of the 2026 season, the LMP2 champion and runner-up will earn automatic invitations to compete in LMP2 at the 2027 24 Hours of Le Mans. The LMP2 Pro/Am champion will also receive an LMP2 invitation, while the LMP3 champion earns an invitation to step up to LMP2 and the LMGT3 champion receives an invitation in LMGT3.

Put that into perspective.

Some of the teams and drivers fans were standing alongside at Silverstone are fighting for the opportunity to earn their place at arguably the most famous endurance race in the world.

Malthe Jakobsen smiling for a selfie with a fan during the ELMS grid walk at Silverstone. — ^{Algarve Pro Racing driver Malthe Jakobsen poses for a selfie with a fan on the grid at Silverstone. Photo by Damian Hall/The Hall of F1}

Yet you could walk up to them, ask a question, wish them luck or, in some cases, simply have a conversation.

And for all that access, tickets remain relatively affordable for a motorsport event of this calibre.

That matters.

CREATING LIFELONG FANS

Motorsport is competing for the attention of a new generation of supporters, and there may be no better way to create a lifelong fan than allowing someone to get close enough to see, hear and experience the sport for themselves.

Fan filming ELMS drivers celebrating with champagne and fireworks on the Silverstone podium. — ^{A fan records the podium celebrations following the European Le Mans Series race at Silverstone. Photo by Damian Hall/The Hall of F1}

A youngster who gets to peer inside the cockpit of a prototype, meet a driver, speak to a mechanic or engineer and then watch that same car race around Silverstone is no longer just a spectator. They have become part of the experience and could remain invested in the sport for life.

That may ultimately be what impressed me most about ELMS.

There is serious racing taking place. There are professional teams, talented drivers and multimillion-pound machinery, with some competing for a route to Le Mans.

TDS Racing drivers and a team representative holding trophies after winning the LMP2 Pro/Am class at Silverstone. — ^{TDS Racing celebrate their LMP2 Pro/Am victory at the 4 Hours of Silverstone. Photo by Damian Hall/The Hall of F1}

But somehow, the championship manages to maintain the feeling of a grassroots motorsport weekend, where the people in the paddock haven’t forgotten who they are putting on the show for.

The fans aren’t treated as though they are standing on the outside looking in.