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Six quick thoughts:
1. The ACO and FIA WEC essentially told manufacturers to go big (technology and budget) or go home. Now that three of the manufacturers involved have decided to go home, the question is what comes next. And let’s not forget, that the WEC is a championship designed to meet the wants and needs of manufacturers.
2. The ACO and WEC will continue to want to attract manufacturers to LMP1. Recognizable brand names drives media attention and turnstile numbers, especially at races after the 24 Hours of Le Mans. This is in large part about saving the WEC.
3. Are LMP-1 privateers part of the answer? Maybe. Are they by themselves the answer? Almost certainly not in an era when LMP-2s are very quick and relatively affordable.
4. Many people are assuming that any future LMP-1 privateers will be amazing cars that will instantly top time sheets, have good reliability, and be able to win races. That’s absolutely not a safe assumption. The ByKolles is a hot mess. The Rebellion One was kind of mediocre, with suspect reliability. That Dome LMP2 was a failure. It’s far from certain that future privateers will be that much faster than LMP2 and reliable enough to go 24 hours or even six hours regularly, especially right out of the box.
5. The related question is whether privateer LMP-1 teams will have the money to develop their car. That’s not a given.
6. In theory, the existence of the WEC compels LMP-1 teams to do nine races a year. Six of those races are after Le Mans with five outside of Europe. The obvious way to save money to develop the car (or otherwise) is to skip most or all of the post Le Mans events. This is exactly what LMP-1 privateers are doing now and have done in the past. And really, for privateers what value comes from racing in places like China, Bahrain, or Mexico?
This tendency will make life even harder for the WEC. I wouldn't be at all surprised if the WEC season drops back down to eight or even seven races to cut costs for teams. Also some existing events may not be economically viable without the star power of LMP-1H competition.
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