DUQUEINE Team and R-ace GP join forces for a new chapter in LMP2

Founded in 2014, DUQUEINE Team has been competing in the ELMS (European Le Mans Series) since 2018 with an ORECA 07 LMP2 and has participated in the 24 Hours of Le Mans six times, clinching a third-place finish in 2023 (N. Jani, R. Binder and N. Pino). Today, the team wishes to continue its commitment and take a new step forward by joining forces with R-ace GP.

Drawing on the expertise of the Vendée-based team, Gilles Duqueine has forged an alliance based on performance and ambition, facing the challenge of building an organisation capable of reconciling sporting excellence with budgetary rigour.

The meeting of two structures with shared values and ambitions

‘We needed a partner capable of meeting ambitious objectives within a controlled framework,’ explains Gilles Duqueine, president of DUQUEINE Team. ‘Thibaut de Mérindol and his team embody this culture of excellence, combining rigour with a constant quest for performance. Their entrepreneurial approach, already successful in single-seaters and LMP3, is a major asset for our LMP2 project. I am convinced that this synergy will enable us to build a structure where every detail will be optimised to achieve our sporting ambitions.’

Founded in 2011 by Thibaut de Mérindol and Cyril Comte, R-ace GP has forged a strong identity over the years through its successes in single-seater racing in Europe (Formula Renault Eurocup, NEC, FRECA and F4) and the Middle East (FR Middle East, F4 Middle East). In 2024, the team created an endurance program and entered the Michelin Le Mans Cup in the LMP3 category. It finished runner-up before winning the title the following year, in 2025. Today, R-ace GP has 10 Team Championship titles, 9 Driver Championship titles and more than 132 victories to its name.

A shared passion for motorsport and its fundamental values

‘At the end of 2023, convinced by Gilles and his teams’ sporting ambitions and technical expertise, we decided to collaborate with Duqueine Automotive to launch our LMP3 program,’ explains Thibaut de Mérindol. “It is clear that we share the same passion for the fundamental values of motorsport: competitiveness, technical expertise and team spirit, so it was only natural that the idea of an association with the aim of creating an ambitious LMP2 program was born. DUQUEINE Team is a fantastic project for R-ace GP, and we are committed to putting all our motor racing expertise at its service, with humility but also with lots of ambition,’ concludes Thibaut de Mérindol.

One clear objective for DUQUEINE Team: the highest level of endurance racing

This association marks the beginning of a strategic and innovative collaboration, with the goal of raising DUQUEINE Team to the highest level of endurance racing. The two entities will combine their expertise to maximise results, offer a show that lives up to the expectations of racing enthusiasts and provide the best opportunities for drivers aspiring to a career in endurance racing.