Samwise Sportscar & Endurance Newsletter
Saturday, June 27, 2026
2026 CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa Gets Underway with Lamborghini Temerario GT3 Race Debut
The 2026 CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa got underway at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps on Saturday afternoon, with 69 GT3 cars taking the start at 16:30 CEST. The race marks the first 24-hour endurance appearance for the Lamborghini Temerario GT3, with Grasser Racing Team and Rutronik Racing fielding the new car — making it a milestone outing for Lamborghini's first in-house competition machine. The field spans 10 manufacturers across Pro, Gold Cup, Silver Cup, Bronze Cup and Pro-Am categories. As a round of both the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup and the Intercontinental GT Challenge, the race is one of the year's most prestigious GT3 events.
Sources: Motorsport.com Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Ferrari Tops Spa 24H Superpole After GetSpeed Mercedes Excluded for Brake Infringement
Alessio Rovera claimed Spa 24 Hours Superpole for the No. 51 AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO, dominating all four elimination segments to set a 2m18.330s benchmark. The result followed a significant upset: Mercedes-AMG Team GetSpeed, which had set the fastest time in regular qualifying, was excluded from Superpole after mechanics performed brake work on the No. 17 car during Q3, violating the regulations. GetSpeed's trio of Maxime Martin, Maximilian Goetz and Fabian Schiller lost all Q3 times as a result. Rovera's pole gives AF Corse Ferrari an advantageous grid position for the 24-hour race heading into night.
Sources: Motorsport.com Motorsport.com (superpole results) Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Aitken Tops Both Watkins Glen GTP Practice Sessions Ahead of Sunday Six Hours
Jack Aitken led both GTP practice sessions at Watkins Glen International ahead of Sunday's Sahlen's Six Hours of the Glen, reinforcing the championship-leading No. 31 Action Express Racing Cadillac V-Series.R's pace on the 3.4-mile road course. Aitken set a 1:33.846 lap in the opening 90-minute session, outpacing the No. 93 Meyer Shank Racing Acura ARX-06 of Renger van der Zande by 0.315 seconds. In Saturday morning's second session, Aitken clocked a 1:33.865 to edge fellow Cadillac driver Ricky Taylor in the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing entry by 0.131 seconds. The six-hour race starts Sunday at 12:10 PM ET.
Sources: Racer.com Sportscar365 Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
IMSA and SRO to Run Historic First Joint GT3 Balance of Performance Test at Daytona
IMSA and SRO Motorsports Group announced a landmark collaboration to conduct a joint Balance of Performance test at Daytona International Speedway in December 2026, ahead of the 2027 season. Each GT3 manufacturer will be required to supply a car for the dedicated sessions, which will establish BoP parameters for the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona. While IMSA and SRO will each maintain their own separate BoP frameworks, the joint test marks the first cooperative venture between the two organizations. SRO founder and CEO Stephane Ratel said the opportunity to collaborate with IMSA at Daytona would prove mutually beneficial to both parties.
Texas 8 Hours at COTA Joins 2027 Intercontinental GT Challenge Calendar, Replacing Indianapolis
The 2027 Intercontinental GT Challenge calendar will feature an inaugural Texas 8 Hours at Circuit of The Americas, replacing Indianapolis Motor Speedway as the American round of the globe-trotting GT3 series. SRO announced the change at a press conference during the Spa 24 Hours weekend, citing an upcoming Indianapolis repave scheduled for late 2027 or 2028. COTA becomes the newest American venue on the IGTC calendar. The full 2027 IGTC calendar includes Bathurst, the Texas 8 Hours, Nürburgring 24 Hours, Spa 24 Hours and Suzuka 1000km, alongside a new partnership with Super GT.
Sources: DailySportscar Sportscar365 Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
United Autosports Extends Phil Fayer Through 2027 as LMP2 and Hypercar Programs Grow
United Autosports has extended Canadian Bronze driver Phil Fayer through the end of 2027, confirming his second full season in IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship LMP2 competition. The extension keeps Fayer within the Anglo-American outfit as it prepares for a landmark period that includes operating McLaren's Hypercar program in the FIA World Endurance Championship from 2027. United will continue to field the Oreca 07 through 2028 in both IMSA and the European Le Mans Series before transitioning to the next-generation ORECA 09. The team also recently confirmed an extended technical partnership with ORECA through 2032, underscoring its long-term commitment to prototype racing.
Sources: DailySportscar Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Christensen on Extended Racing Absence: 'Not What You Wish For'
Former Porsche factory driver Michael Christensen has spoken publicly about his extended period away from racing, following the Danish driver's departure from the Porsche Penske Motorsport line-up. Christensen, who competed extensively in the FIA World Endurance Championship and IMSA with Porsche, acknowledged that prolonged time away from competition was not ideal. His exit from Porsche's program came in the context of the manufacturer's withdrawal from the WEC Hypercar class for 2026, which prompted significant changes to its driver roster. Christensen was not retained for the 2026 IMSA-focused program and has since been seeking a return to top-level sportscar competition.
Sources: DailySportscar Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Car Collection Porsche Leads Spa 24H Warm-Up; Tresor Attempto Audi Second
Car Collection Motorsport's No. 8 Porsche 911 GT3 R led the 30-minute Warm-Up session ahead of the 2026 CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa, with Joel Sturm setting a 2m18.445s to top the order in the final track session before the race. A brief rain shower fell at Spa-Francorchamps during the session, adding an element of track evolution. The No. 99 Tresor Attempto Racing Audi of Alex Aka finished second, 0.195s from the benchmark. Mercedes-AMG machinery occupied third and fourth through Fabian Schiller in the No. 17 GetSpeed entry and Maro Engel in the No. 48 Team Mann-Filter car. The race subsequently started at 16:30 CEST Saturday afternoon.
Sources: GT World Challenge Europe DailySportscar Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
WEC Hypercar — Drivers
1. Kamui Kobayashi / Mike Conway / Nyck de Vries — 75 pts
2. René Rast / Robin Frijns — 71 pts
3. Sheldon van der Linde — 61 pts
4. Brendon Hartley / Ryō Hirakawa / Sébastien Buemi — 56 pts
5. Alessandro Pier Guidi / Antonio Giovinazzi / James Calado — 39 pts
6. António Félix da Costa / Charles Milesi / Ferdinand Habsburg — 28 pts
7. Louis Delétraz / Norman Nato / Will Stevens — 26 pts
8. Kevin Magnussen / Raffaele Marciello — 25 pts
9. Antonio Fuoco / Miguel Molina / Nicklas Nielsen — 23 pts
10. Harry Tincknell / Tom Gamble — 22 pts
WEC Hypercar — Teams
1. Toyota — 132 pts
2. BMW — 96 pts
3. Ferrari — 62 pts
4. Alpine — 38 pts
5. Cadillac — 32 pts
6. Aston Martin — 26 pts
7. Peugeot — 15 pts
8. Genesis — 6 pts
IMSA GTP — Drivers
1. Jack Aitken — 1,760 pts
2. Laurin Heinrich — 1,616 pts
3. Felipe Nasr / Julien Andlauer — 1,606 pts
4. Nick Yelloly / Renger van der Zande — 1,552 pts
5. Kevin Estre / Laurens Vanthoor — 1,501 pts
6. Earl Bamber — 1,412 pts
7. Colin Braun / Tom Blomqvist — 1,391 pts
8. Dries Vanthoor / Sheldon van der Linde — 1,385 pts
9. Marco Wittmann / Philipp Eng — 1,383 pts
10. Tijmen van der Helm — 1,379 pts
IMSA GTP — Manufacturers
1. Cadillac — 1,797 pts
2. Porsche — 1,772 pts
3. Acura — 1,676 pts
4. BMW — 1,628 pts
5. Aston Martin — 1,432 pts
Curated by JD · samwise.agency
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