Sarah Bovy steps in for injured Gatting in Iron Dames Le Mans line up

The Iron Dames have confirmed a last-minute driver line-up change for the 2025 24 Hours of Le Mans after Michelle Gatting sustained a foot injury during a pit stop in the official test session on Sunday.

Photo credits: Porsche AG

The Iron Dames have confirmed a last-minute driver line-up change for the 2025 24 Hours of Le Mans after Michelle Gatting sustained a foot injury during a pit stop in the official test session on Sunday.

The team revealed that Gatting suffered fractures to her right foot during a driver change, ruling her out of what would have been her seventh consecutive Le Mans start with the all-female squad.

"This is deeply disappointing for Michelle and the entire team, but she is in good spirits and now focusing on her recovery, with the full support of everyone at Iron Dames and Manthey."

Gatting, who joined the Porsche official driver roster this year and was set to contest her first Le Mans under the banner of Manthey, who runs the Iron Dames operation in WEC, expressed her heartbreak over missing the iconic race.

"This is the race we are all preparing for, this is the highlight of the year, this is the race of them all", said Gatting. “I worked extremely hard to be ready for this, with new motivation after signing with Porsche and joining Manthey. I felt ready, fit, lighter than ever—but it wasn’t meant to be.”

"Yesterday during a regular pitstop, which I did so many of in my career, there was an incident which resulted in two broken fractures on my right foot. The pain in that moment was the worst I have ever felt, and I knew it was going to be the end of my Le Mans journey this year."

"I’m heartbroken, as Le Mans is very close to my heart, so close that I have it tattooed on my arm to remind myself of my journey getting there the first time back in 2019."

Gatting remains focused on recovery and pledged her full support to the team.

"I’ll hand over my seat, to my dear team mate and very close friend Sarah, and I’m sure she will do absolutely great together with Rahel and Celia that I will support this year from the sideline."

Sarah Bovy, a key part of the Iron Dames project since 2021, will step into Gatting’s seat, joining Rahel Frey and rookie Célia Martin for the French endurance classic. It will mark Bovy’s fifth start at Le Mans.

Recently reclassified from Bronze to Silver at the start of 2025, Bovy had continued to shine in the team’s European Le Mans Series campaign.

With seven pole positions in the FIA World Endurance Championship—making her the first woman to claim pole in WEC—and five in ELMS, Bovy had cemented herself as one of the leading bronze drivers in the world before her reclassification. Her achievements include four major victories across both series, as well as a fastest lap at the 6 Hours of São Paulo.

The original 2025 Le Mans line-up had been composed of Gold-rated Gatting, Silver-rated Rahel Frey, and Bronze-rated Célia Martin—who is set for her Le Mans debut after a strong rookie season in the Michelin Le Mans Cup. With Gatting’s withdrawal, Iron Dames will field a revised trio of Frey, Martin, and Bovy.

The news comes shortly after the team also announced the withdrawal of their Michelin Le Mans Cup entry for the Road to Le Mans race due to health issues for Vanina Ickx, who was scheduled to race alongside Marta Garcia in the support event.

Despite the setbacks, the groundbreaking all-female team remains determined to make its mark at Le Mans, ready to take on the world’s most prestigious endurance race.