In a few days, Le Mans Endurance Management will reveal the entry list for the 2026 World Endurance Championship season, which kicks off on March 28 in Qatar.
But one high-profile name will be absent: the #85 Iron Dames Porsche 911 LMGT3 R, the one with an all-female line up, one of the championship's most recognisable cars.
The news, confirmed on Thursday afternoon, doesn't mean that the Iron Dames project is coming to an end. So what does the announcement really mean? The Race breaks it all down.
What is Iron Dames?
Iron Dames is a pioneering initiative dedicated to promoting and empowering women to compete on equal footing with men in mixed-gender motorsport. Founded in 2018 by Déborah Mayer, the project has grown at remarkable speed and made its mark well beyond the paddock.
Mayer, a former amateur racer who began competing in the Ferrari Challenge Europe in 2013, founded Iron Lynx in 2017 with her husband, Claudio Schiavoni, as well as Sergio Pianezzola and Andrea Piccini. And quickly, Iron Dames became the team's dedicated programme for advancing female talent.
Since then, Iron Dames has expanded into a full-scale, multi-discipline organisation. After motorsport came a surprise new chapter in 2023: Iron Dames Equestrian, the first all-female show jumping team to compete at top-level events. In 2024, "Cannes Stars powered by Iron Dames" became the first all-female team to win the Global Champions League show jumping event.
After stints linked with Ferrari and Lamborghini, Iron Dames struck a high-profile partnership with Porsche last year: "Porsche X Iron Dames - Because Every Dream Matters." Michelle Gatting, part of the project since its inception, even joined Porsche's driver roster.
Its biggest achievements
Iron Dames has fielded an all-female line-up at the Le Mans 24 Hours and across Automobil Club de l'Ouest championships since 2019. The team scored a fourth place in GTE Am at Le Mans in 2023 (it should have finished on the podium without brake problems at the end of the race), followed by fifth in 2024.
In 2021, Gatting became the first woman to win the Ferrari Challenge Europe Trofeo Pirelli. Doriane Pin matched the achievement the following year.
And that following year proved a landmark: Iron Dames became the first all-female crew to stand on a WEC podium and the first to win a race in the European Le Mans Series thanks to Gatting, Pin and Sarah Bovy. There was also a Gold Cup victory at the Spa 24 Hours, that trio plus Rahel Frey becoming the first all-female line-up to win in the GT era of the race.
Two more ELMS wins were added in 2024 and 2025, and a breakthrough WEC victory came in Bahrain in 2023 with Gatting, Bovy and Frey, a win that also secured them second place in the GTE Am championship.
And then there is Pin, the standout graduate of the programme, who joined Mercedes-AMG last year. Pin switched to single-seaters in 2024 with F1 Academy, finishing runner-up in her rookie season. A victory and a fifth-place finish in Las Vegas last week earned her the 2025 title.
Why the Porsche is disappearing
Iron Dames announced the news through their social media channels - as is now standard - confirming that the pink Porsche will not return to the WEC grid next season, to the disappointment of many fans.
Until very recently, the #85 Porsche was expected to continue in WEC, even if the overall programme was likely to shrink. But everything changed last week, forcing Porsche's factory partner Manthey to search for a replacement line-up.
The FIA WEC Entry List will be revealed soon — and when it is, you won’t see a Porsche entry under the Iron Dames banner.
— Iron Dames (@IronDames_) November 27, 2025
We know this may come as a surprise — and may feel emotional for some of our fans.
But it’s a change by design — one that strengthens our long-term vision.… pic.twitter.com/U2NaUzFczJ
"The FIA WEC entry list will be revealed soon, and when it is, you won't see a Porsche entry under the Iron Dames banner," the team announced. "We know this may come as a surprise...but it's a change by design, one that strengthens our long-term vision.
"As the only all-female line-up for five seasons, we didn't just take part - we reshaped the narrative, with unforgettable moments like the historic Bahrain victory in 2023."
With Iron Dames stepping back, the WEC grid will be without an all-female crew for the first time since 2020.
The Hypercar programme fallout
Although Iron Dames's strategic pivot is deliberate, it also reflects reduced investment from Iron Lynx. Prema Racing - majority-owned by Iron Lynx since 2021 - faces an uncertain IndyCar future, with rumours suggesting René Rosin's outfit may seek to regain independence.
The Lamborghini Hypercar programme, bankrolled largely by Iron Lynx, also left deep marks. Regulatory changes and disagreements between the two sides triggered a split at the end of 2024 after just one racing season. The fallout ultimately killed the SC63 programme, mothballed after the 2025 IMSA finale at Petit Le Mans.
Relations have deteriorated further: Lamborghini and Prema Racing are now in a legal dispute, with Prema Engineering accusing Lamborghini of stealing intellectual property and trade secrets linked to the SC63 steering system, allegedly used this year by Riley Motorsports in IMSA.
While Prema Engineering is reportedly confident it can secure partners to continue its IndyCar ambitions, the team's junior formula programmes remain unaffected. Meanwhile, Iron Dames, despite the shake-up, is not going away.
Last but not least, according to our information, Iron Lynx's two Mercedes-AMG LMGT3 entries in WEC will continue unaffected next year, as they are fully-funded by paying drivers, a very different business model from the Iron Dames car.
What happens to the Iron Dames drivers
Iron Dames currently brings together 19 female drivers across multiple generations. In 2025, the Iron Dames roster included: Pin (F1 Academy, Formula Regional Europe); Gatting (GT); Frey (GT); Célia Martin (GT); Bovy (GT); Vanina Ickx (GT); Marta García (GT); Karen Gaillard (GT); Sarah Rumeau (Rally) and co-driver Julien Ablard. Plus six young talents and four drivers supported by Iron Dames.
Have their futures now darkened? The team insists otherwise.
"Racing is our ground, our drive, and still one of our strongest frontiers - and yes - we'll be on many racetracks in 2026, Dames and young talents further strengthening the future of the project," the statement explained. "The Iron Dames spirit has never lived on one grid only.
"Our journey taught us that standing still is never an option. Our purpose lives in the next step, in the mission to keep climbing, keep inspiring, keep dreaming big. What began on track has grown into a powerful movement - one that reaches far beyond motorsport - and you are part of it. Your support fuels everything we do - today and tomorrow."
The message is clear: the project is evolving, not vanishing.
But the transition won't be equally smooth for everyone. Pin and Gatting - contracted respectively to Mercedes and Porsche - will have clear opportunities. Whether Pin remains in single-seaters or returns to endurance racing remains to be seen, though the latter seems more likely.
Bovy has strong market appeal, but what about the others? Will they all receive ongoing support from Iron Dames? It's an open question.
The loss of the pink Porsche is a blow; visually, symbolically, and emotionally. But Iron Dames will continue supporting its drivers across multiple disciplines, including endurance racing. That alone is reassuring after several weeks of uncertainty and the worst was to be feared.
Right now, no other initiative in global motorsport invests as much, or as effectively, in female talent as Iron Dames. No one wants to see that momentum fade.
