In 1998, 1999, and 2000, the Dodge Viper dominated the GTS class of the World Endurance Championship and the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans race. Since then, the Viper has been noticeably absent from Le Mans, spending most of the past decade in the hands of privateers rather than factory-backed teams.

But this year will be different, as for the first time in more than a decade Chrysler will field a pair of Vipers to compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. These two SRT Viper GTS-Rs will have a field full of powerful competitors, and the SRT team is surely up to the task.

Chrysler has made it clear from the start that the new SRT Viper will have a racing pedigree, and they aren’t disappointing. With the new Viper TA, SRT has taken the Laguna Seca track record back from the Corvette ZR1, and now with it heading to Le Mans, the Viper will once again have a chance to unseat the Chevy supercar from its racing throne.

This is also the first time that the SRT brand will be competing in an international motorsports race, it’s debut at the big show if you will. SRT engineers attended last year’s race, but weren’t expecting an invite to the Le Mans race so soon. Even so, the SRT team has been working extra hard to ensure its pair of Vipers are ready for the drivers. Early guesses indicate that Marc Goossens, Tommy Kendall, Kuno Wittmer, Dominik Farnbacher and Jonathan Bomarito will be driving the SRT Vipers, though other drivers could be added later on.

This is a big deal for SRT, but we’re sure the Viper is up to the challenge. The competitors better beware of the snake on the track next month.