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- Le Mans Ultimate will exit early access on the 22nd July – there will be no new headline features, but a notable patch with changes to the driving experience
- Two new cars will be added for free alongside the 2025-WEC-season paint schemes
- European Le Mans Series content confirmed for a later date, bringing three extra tracks, quicker LMP2s and the LMP3 category
- A single-player career mode – with sponsors, driver ratings, cash, media opinions and some form of insurance – is set for Q1 2026.
This weekend marks the 93rd running of the real-world 24 Hours of Le Mans event, and as is tradition, the Friday before the big race, its organisers hold a press conference.
As Le Mans Ultimate is a joint venture between creators Motorsport Games and Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO), this year it included significant game news too – namely, Le Mans Ultimate will leave early access on 22nd July.
Unlike most titles hitting Version 1.0, there will be no price increase initially, although one in the future has not been ruled out.
Earlier this week, 10th June, a divisive game update fundamentally changed the way the LMGT3 cars drove alongside adding mid-race multiplayer driver swaps and (for subscribers) livery creation. The driver swap feature will be slowly ramped up and tested in Special Events only, before being more readily available come July, meanwhile, further physics and tyre model changes are expected for Version 1.0.
“It almost feels like it’s Le Mans Ultimate ‘Version 2’,” said Motorsport Games CEO Stephen Hood to Traxion.
“We call it Version 1.0 because it’s coming out of early access, but it feels like a big step up for the overall experience. It’s broader and really brings home that concept of endurance racing, what it’s meant to be, in an accessible format.”
You can watch our thoughts on these announcements, plus a brief interview with Stephen Hood on YouTube, embedded below.
Two new cars for July
Recently, car roster expansions have been part of a paid Season Pass or DLC packs, with the odd free car thrown in. On 22nd July, two more free cars will be added, with the Mercedes-AMG LMGT3 joining the Ford Mustang LMGT3, McLaren 720S LMGT3 Evo and BMW M Hybrid V8 joining the no-extra-charge vehicles.
So too will the creaming, naturally aspirated, V12 Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH – an early build shown via social media and on-site at the 24 Hours of Le Mans race this weekend.
- Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH
- Mercedes-AMG LMGT3
European Le Mans Series content coming to Le Mans Ultimate
With the 2023 and 2024 FIA World Endurance Series season cars and tracks now complete – following the release of the Lamborghini Huracán LMGT3 EVO2, Lexus RC F LMGT3 and Qatr’s Lusail International Circuit earlier this month – and the 2025 calendar identical, creators Strudio 397 and Motorsport Games will be looking to adjacent championships to expand the roster further.
It will start with the European Le Mans Series, which is seen as a rung below WEC and still run by the same ACO organisation.
It runs the same GT3 and LMP2 cars, although in ELMS the LMP2 cars have a power bump (compared to WEC), which will be replicated in Le Mans Ultimate. The real-world liveries will also be included.
More importantly, ELMS races at three different venues from WEC and has the LMP3 category – a more entry-level prototype car that fits between LMP2 and GT3 machinery.
That means the following tracks and cars are confirmed for Le Mans Ultimate inclusion, although the release date and timing have not yet been confirmed. CEO Stephen Hood told Traxion: “I think it’s something you might see this year.”
New ELMS tracks coming to Le Mans Ultimate
- Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya
- Circuit Paul Ricard (Le Castellet)
- Silvertone
New ELMS LMP3 cars coming to Le Mans Ultimate
- Duqueine D09
- Ginetta G61-LT-P3 Evo
- Ligier JS P325
Single player career aiming for Q1 2026
While you can run single races, asynchronous co-op and ranked (or private server) multiplayer races, a form of single-player championship or career mode is a glaring omission in Le Mans Ultimate presently.
A basic championship mode or a more in-depth career will still be absent when the sim title leaves early access, sadly. On track, AI-driver swaps will feature.
The latter is in the words, however, with a target estimate of Q1 2026 for release. The company is rather bullish about its prospects, too.
“I think it will be the best career mode that exists in racing,” said Hood to Traxion. Blimey.
Two work-in-progress menu images have been released. They showcase some form of insurance mechanic, having to keep sponsors happy, dealing with contracts, a media opinion rating and cash.
There also appears to be a calendar and message system, plus a driver market.
Le Mans Ultimate recently hit an all-time concurrent player record on PC and has been confirmed for PlayStation and Xbox devices, but not until 2026.
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Very exciting times indeed and also looking forward to 2026 for the possibly for PS5.
Here’s hoping! Actually, it will happen, just need to wait a but longer for consoles!