Samwise Sportscar & Endurance Newsletter
Wednesday, July 1, 2026
WEC Reveals São Paulo Entry: Cadillac and Aston Martin Cut to Two-Driver Crews for Interlagos
The FIA WEC has published the entry list for the 6 Hours of São Paulo, with several driver lineup adjustments confirmed ahead of the July 12 race at Interlagos. Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA will field a two-driver pairing of Will Stevens and Norman Nato in the #12 V-Series.R, following Alex Lynn’s continued absence due to neck surgery. Both Aston Martin Valkyries have also slimmed to two-driver crews, with Tincknell/Gamble in the #007 and Ribéras/Sørensen in the #009. In LMGT3, Esteban Masson returns to the Akkodis ASP #78 Lexus RC F after competing in LMP2 at Le Mans.
Sources: dailysportscar.com Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Alex Lynn’s WEC Return Timeline Remains Uncertain After Neck and Shoulder Surgery
Alex Lynn remains sidelined from the FIA WEC following neck and shoulder surgery, with no confirmed return date ahead of the 6 Hours of São Paulo. The Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA driver has missed every 2026 round — Imola, Spa, and Le Mans — while recovering. Lynn, originally expected to return around Le Mans, has expressed his desire to be back “sooner rather than later.” Will Stevens and Norman Nato are confirmed as a two-driver pairing for Interlagos, with Cadillac — winners of the 2025 São Paulo round — still seeking their first WEC Hypercar podium of 2026.
Sources: sportscar365.com pitdebrief.com Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Toyota Heads to São Paulo as WEC Hypercar Championship Leader After Le Mans Triumph
Toyota enters the 6 Hours of São Paulo as the WEC Hypercar championship leader, with the #7 crew of Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi, and Nyck de Vries holding 75 points following their Le Mans 24 Hours victory. BMW’s René Rast and Robin Frijns sit four points back on 71, with the #8 Toyota crew of Buemi, Hartley, and Hirakawa and Ferrari’s #51 Pier Guidi/Giovinazzi/Calado further behind. Toyota has a strong record at Interlagos, having won two of the five previous WEC races at the circuit. Cadillac, despite their 2025 victory at Interlagos, still seeks a first WEC Hypercar podium of 2026 as the championship’s flyaway leg begins.
Sources: pitdebrief.com Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Catsburg and Barrichello Miss São Paulo as IMSA Clash Forces LMGT3 Lineup Changes
Two prominent LMGT3 drivers will miss São Paulo due to clashing IMSA commitments at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. Nicky Catsburg, currently third in the IMSA GTD Pro standings alongside Tommy Milner, steps aside from the Le Mans class-winning #33 TF Sport Corvette Z06 LMGT3.R; Corvette factory driver and Formula 2 racer Nicolás Varrone steps in alongside Ben Keating and Jonny Edgar. Eduardo ‘Dudu’ Barrichello, who leads the IMSA GTD class standings, also misses his home race for his THOR Team programme. Kobe Pauwels — the same substitute who filled in at Imola earlier this season — returns to Heart of Racing’s #23 Aston Martin Vantage in his place.
Sources: dailysportscar.com Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
IMSA Releases 35-Car CTMP Entry as LMP2 Takes Centre Stage Without GTP Class
IMSA has released the 35-car entry for Canadian Tire Motorsport Park at Mosport, running July 10–12, with LMP2 headlining as the GTP class sits out due to the simultaneous WEC São Paulo round. The 12-car LMP2 field features a strong roster of GTP regulars stepping into prototypes: Renger van der Zande (Tower Motorsports), Filipe Albuquerque (United Autosports), Pipo Derani (Richard Mille AF Corse), and Louis Delétraz (AO Racing) are all confirmed. The GTD Pro and GTD classes complete the field. With GTP on hiatus, CTMP offers LMP2 crews a rare opportunity to headline a WeatherTech weekend.
Sources: sportscar365.com Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Ben Hanley to Replace WEC-Bound Paul Di Resta at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park
British endurance specialist Ben Hanley will substitute for Paul Di Resta in the #22 United Autosports Oreca 07 at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, after the Peugeot WEC driver commits to the 6 Hours of São Paulo on the same weekend. Hanley, a regular in the European Le Mans Series with United Autosports, steps in alongside co-driver Daniel Goldburg, who currently leads the IMSA LMP2 drivers’ championship. The swap is the latest example of how the simultaneous WEC and IMSA rounds in July are reshaping driver rosters on both sides of the Atlantic. Di Resta is expected to return to United’s IMSA programme at subsequent rounds.
Sources: sportscar365.com Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
ELMS Confirms 47-Car Imola Entry as LMP2 Title Fight Tightens with Three Rounds Remaining
The European Le Mans Series returns from its post-Le Mans break for the 4 Hours of Imola on July 5, with 47 cars confirmed across LMP2, LMP3, and LMGT3. The LMP2 title fight is razor-thin: United Autosports leads Inter Europol Competition by just three points as the season enters its second half. In LMGT3, Kessel Racing Ferrari tops the standings by nine points over Proton Competition’s Porsche. The Imola round is the third of six ELMS events in 2026, making each result critical for championship-chasing teams heading into the summer stretch.
Sources: europeanlemansseries.com Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
AO Racing Breaks LMP2 Drought at Watkins Glen to Climb IMSA Championship Standings
The #99 AO Racing Oreca 07 of Dane Cameron, PJ Hyett, and Jonny Edgar ended a frustrating winless streak by taking LMP2 class honours at the IMSA Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen. It was Edgar’s first LMP2 victory — coming weeks after he claimed LMGT3 honours at Le Mans with TF Sport — and snapped a run of near-misses for the 2025 IMSA LMP2 team champions, who had led 521 laps across Daytona and Sebring this season without winning. The result moved AO Racing from sixth to tied second in the LMP2 standings on 952 points, equal with United Autosports, with Crowdstrike Racing by APR leading the championship.
Sources: dailysportscar.com Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
WEC Hypercar — Drivers (after Le Mans / Rd 3)
1. Conway / Kobayashi / de Vries (#7 Toyota) — 75 pts
2. Rast / Frijns (#20 BMW) — 71 pts
3. S. van der Linde (#17 BMW) — 61 pts
4. Buemi / Hartley / Hirakawa (#8 Toyota) — 56 pts
5. Pier Guidi / Giovinazzi / Calado (#51 Ferrari) — 39 pts
6. Félix da Costa / Milesi / Habsburg — 28 pts
7. Delétraz / Nato / Stevens (#12 Cadillac) — 26 pts
8. Magnussen / Marciello — 25 pts
9. Fuoco / Molina / Nielsen (#50 Ferrari) — 23 pts
10. Tincknell / Gamble (#007 Aston Martin) — 22 pts
11. Hanson / Kubica / Ye (#38 Cadillac) — 21 pts
12. Vanthoor — 19 pts
WEC Hypercar — Teams
Toyota Gazoo Racing — championship leader
BMW M Motorsport — 2nd
Ferrari AF Corse — 3rd
Cadillac Hertz / Action Express — 4th
Aston Martin Aramco — 5th
IMSA GTP — Drivers (through Rd 5 / Detroit)
1. Jack Aitken — 1,760 pts
2. Laurin Heinrich — 1,616 pts
3. Julien Andlauer / Felipe Nasr — 1,606 pts
4. Renger van der Zande / Nick Yelloly — 1,552 pts
5. Kevin Estre / Laurens Vanthoor — 1,501 pts
6. Earl Bamber — 1,412 pts
7. Tom Blomqvist / Colin Braun — 1,391 pts
8. S. van der Linde / D. Vanthoor — 1,385 pts
9. Philipp Eng / Marco Wittmann — 1,383 pts
10. Tijmen van der Helm — 1,379 pts
IMSA GTP — Teams (approximate)
#31 Cadillac Whelen Racing — leads
#5 Porsche Pfaff Motorsports — 2nd
#93 Acura Meyer Shank — 3rd
#10 Konica Minolta Acura — 4th
#91 Porsche Manthey PTP — 5th
Curated by JD · samwise.agency