WEC Le Mans: Double points, high stakes and glory on the line at the world's greatest endurance race
Le Mans, WEC & DTMWednesday, 10 June 2026 at 09:28
The FIA World Endurance Championship heads to its biggest event of the season this weekend as the 94th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans promises a crucial chapter in the 2026 title battle.
With double championship points available in both Hypercar and LMGT3, success at the Circuit de la Sarthe could transform the standings. Drivers will tackle 13.626km of public roads and permanent circuit, spending around 70 per cent of each lap at full throttle and reaching speeds approaching 340km/h in one of motorsport’s toughest tests.
BMW arrives at Le Mans leading the momentum after securing a historic one-two finish at Spa-Francorchamps. The result delivered the German manufacturer's first outright FIA endurance racing victory since its famous Le Mans triumph in 1999 and moved it firmly into championship contention.
BMW, Toyota and Ferrari are separated by only 17 points in the manufacturers' standings after the opening two rounds. That sets up a fascinating battle between three of endurance racing's biggest names.
Toyota remains one of the favourites despite Ferrari dominating recent editions of the French classic.
Ferrari seeks fourth straight Le Mans victory
The Japanese manufacturer won five consecutive Le Mans races between 2018 and 2022 and opened its 2026 campaign with victory at Imola. Four-time Le Mans winner Sébastien Buemi remains the most successful driver on the current Hypercar grid, while Kamui Kobayashi's four overall pole positions place him among the event's all-time great qualifiers.
Ferrari, however, has owned the modern Le Mans story. The Italian marque has won the last three editions with the 499P and arrives looking to extend that remarkable run.
The #51 Ferrari crew has stood on the podium every year since the manufacturer returned to top-level endurance racing, while the #83 AF Corse Ferrari produced one of Le Mans' great stories in 2025 by winning from 13th on the grid. It was the first overall victory for a customer entry in 20 years.
Behind the leading trio, several manufacturers believe they can challenge for outright victory.
Cadillac and Alpine target breakthrough
Cadillac has shown strong pace at both Imola and Spa and has proven particularly competitive at Le Mans. The American manufacturer secured pole position and a front-row lockout in 2025, while local favourite Sébastien Bourdais recorded the race's fastest lap.
The only thing missing from Cadillac's Le Mans record in the Hypercar era is victory.
Alpine also enters the race with growing confidence. The A424 delivered competitive performances at both Imola and Spa, and the French manufacturer will be eager to shine in front of a home crowd during its 75th FIA WEC championship appearance.
Peugeot has additional motivation as it celebrates 100 years since its first Le Mans appearance. The French manufacturer showed encouraging pace earlier this season and arrives determined to convert potential into a long-awaited podium result.
Aston Martin's Valkyrie continues its development in its second season, while Genesis will make history as the first Korean manufacturer to compete at Le Mans.
The LMGT3 category features a record 25-car grid, with Manthey entering as the team to beat after maintaining a perfect Le Mans winning record in the class.
Biggest LMGT3 and LMP2 fields in WEC history
A further 19 LMP2 entries join the field outside the FIA WEC championship, bringing the total number of starters to 62 cars.
Track action begins with free practice and qualifying on Wednesday before Hyperpole determines the starting grid on Thursday evening. The legendary twice-around-the-clock race starts on Saturday afternoon, with double championship points and Le Mans immortality awaiting the winners.
Fans at Le Mans on Tuesday can enjoy a packed programme before track action begins, including the popular pit walk, Pit Stop Challenge and autograph session. The pit lane opens at 13:45, giving spectators access to all 62 competing teams as final preparations continue for the 94th running of the race.
The Pit Stop Challenge returns for its fifth edition at 14:00, with mechanics competing to complete the fastest wheel change. Peugeot TotalEnergies won the Hypercar category last year with a time of 8.83 seconds.
Drivers will also meet fans during a revised autograph session, appearing on the podium before heading to the pit straight for signings, photos and fan interactions.
Away from the circuit, the 10th edition of the R'Hunaudières festival takes place in nearby Ruaudin, celebrating local Le Mans hero Jean Rondeau and the 50th anniversary of his remarkable racing journey.
Le Mans Test Day: Aston Martin tops as Valkyrie signals Hypercar intent
Aston Martin laid down an early marker ahead of next weekend's 24 Hours of Le Mans after the Valkyrie Hypercar topped the timesheets during the official test day for the FIA World Endurance Championship blue-riband event.
All 62 entries took to the 13.626km Circuit de la Sarthe for six hours of running on Sunday as teams fine-tuned preparations for the 94th edition of the endurance classic, which doubles as round three of the 2026 WEC season.
Briton Tom Gamble delivered the standout lap of the day in the #007 Aston Martin Valkyrie, stopping the clock at 3:26.293 in the afternoon session. The benchmark, set just over an hour into the session, remained unbeaten through to the chequered flag.
"It was a pretty successful and positive day overall," Gamble said.
"Coming to Le Mans, you never know where you're going to be compared to everyone else, but the team did an amazing job preparing for the test and already this morning, the #009 was P4 so we've shown strong pace throughout and everything is running smoothly so far."
The result marked another encouraging step forward for Aston Martin's second season in Hypercar competition, with the British manufacturer showing competitive pace throughout the day.
"It's such a pleasure to drive the Valkyrie around this amazing circuit," Gamble added. "It feels night-and-day compared to last year, and we're constantly chipping away and improving.
"Going quickest is a nice morale boost for the team, but it doesn't mean anything really as we don't know who has shown their hand yet. The main thing is to be up at the sharp end come Sunday afternoon. Le Mans is like the Super Bowl of our season, and I'm sure the atmosphere during the race will be incredible."
Toyota closes in despite damage scare
Three-time Le Mans winner Brendon Hartley brought Toyota closest to Aston Martin's pace, ending the day just over one tenth of a second adrift in the #8 Toyota GR010 Hybrid.
Toyota's day had begun with concern after Ryō Hirakawa collided with LMP2 driver Jake Hughes at the Goodyear Chicane late in the morning session. The incident caused significant damage to the Japanese manufacturer's car and triggered a red flag while repairs were carried out.
The top two cars finished around half a second clear of the #12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R. Will Stevens had led the way early in the day before Norman Nato improved the American marque's pace in the afternoon as Cadillac continued its push for a strong result at La Sarthe.
Alpine also showed impressive speed. Ferdinand Habsburg posted the team's best lap in the #35 A424 after Charles Milesi had briefly climbed to second in the opening session. The second Cadillac entry from WTR completed the top five thanks to Filipe Albuquerque's morning effort.
The remaining top ten positions were occupied by the #36 Alpine driven by Victor Martins, the Spa-winning #20 BMW of Robin Frijns, the #51 Ferrari of Alessandro Pier Guidi, the #7 Toyota of Kamui Kobayashi and the #19 Genesis piloted by Paul-Loup Chatin.
Eight manufacturers covered by less than a second
Genesis also impressed on its Le Mans debut. The Korean manufacturer's #17 GMR-001 finished just outside the top ten after Pipo Derani set the car's best time in the morning session.
The outing also provided Genesis Magma Racing Trajectory Programme driver Jamie Chadwick with her first Hypercar laps around the famous circuit.
Perhaps most significantly for the race itself, all eight Hypercar manufacturers finished within one second of the fastest time, underlining the competitive balance expected over 24 hours.
In LMGT3, Vista AF Corse dominated both sessions. Alessio Rovera topped the morning before fellow Ferrari driver Francesco Castellacci went quickest in the afternoon aboard the #54 Ferrari 296 GT3.
Castellacci's best effort edged Timur Boguslavskiy's #91 Manthey Porsche by just 0.009 seconds, while Jonny Edgar completed the top three in TF Sport's Corvette Z06 GT3.R.
LMP2 honours went to Job van Uitert in the #28 IDEC Sport Oreca, with the Dutchman finishing 0.175 seconds clear of 2025 class pole-sitter Mathias Beche in the #14 TDS Racing entry.
With the test complete and the field tightly packed, the stage is set for one of the most competitive editions of Le Mans in recent years when racing begins on June 14.
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