Samwise Sportscar & Endurance Newsletter
Wednesday, April 29, 2026
WEC Spa Entry Confirmed: Delétraz Replaces Injured Lynn, Genesis Makes Season Debut
The FIA World Endurance Championship has confirmed its entry list for the TotalEnergies 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps on May 7–9, featuring a record 17 Hypercar entrants. The biggest news is Louis Delétraz replacing injured Alex Lynn in the No. 12 JOTA Cadillac V-Series.R. Lynn continues his recovery from a neck procedure that also caused him to miss the Imola opener. Delétraz joins Norman Nato and Will Stevens for the Belgian round. Genesis Magma Racing meanwhile makes its first competitive appearance of the 2026 season, fielding both GMR-001 LMDh cars. The South Korean manufacturer missed Imola, making Spa their long-awaited championship debut.
Sources: FIA WEC
Vanthoor Faces First Le Mans Absence Since 2017 After Porsche WEC Exit
Laurens Vanthoor confirmed during media commitments ahead of the StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship that he will not race at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2026 — the first time since 2017 he will be absent from the Circuit de la Sarthe. Following Porsche’s withdrawal from the FIA World Endurance Championship, Vanthoor said he saw no value in a one-off LMP2 appearance. The Belgian driver, who has spent nearly a decade as a Porsche factory driver, confirmed his priority remains the IMSA championship with Porsche Penske Motorsport. He did acknowledge an overall Le Mans victory remains a long-term career goal.
Sources: Daily Sportscar
IMSA BoP: Every GTP Manufacturer Gains Laguna Seca Weight Break Except Aston Martin Valkyrie
IMSA has issued the Balance of Performance bulletin for the StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, and every GTP manufacturer except Aston Martin will benefit from a more favourable power-to-weight ratio. BMW receives the largest weight reduction at 17 kg, with Cadillac dropping 15 kg and the two Porsche 963 specifications losing 16 kg and 8 kg respectively. The Acura ARX-06 picks up a 1.5 percent power increase at lower speeds. The Aston Martin Valkyrie, however, sees no adjustment, as IMSA concluded the car is already at the optimum limit of its current specification. Porsche’s factory entries remain the heaviest cars in the field at 1,084 kg.
Sources: Motorsport.com
Aston Martin Valkyrie Returns to IMSA at Laguna Seca with De Angelis and Gunn
The Heart of Racing Aston Martin THOR Team will return the Valkyrie GTP hypercar to IMSA competition this weekend at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, with Roman De Angelis of Canada and Ross Gunn of Great Britain sharing the No. 23 machine. The Valkyrie achieved its tenth top-ten IMSA finish from eleven starts at Long Beach two weeks ago, and the team believes the higher-downforce configuration required at Laguna Seca suits the car’s characteristics better than the street circuit. Separately, THOR’s GTD entry with Dudu Barrichello and Tom Gamble continues to lead the GTD class standings by 54 points following two podium finishes.
Sources: Aston Martin
IMSA Throwback Weekend: Corvette C5-R Leads Multi-Team Retro Livery Tribute at Laguna Seca
Multiple IMSA teams have revealed throwback liveries for this weekend’s StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship at Laguna Seca, the series’ designated “Throw-Back Weekend.” The most anticipated reveal is Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports, whose Nos. 3 and 4 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs will wear yellow-and-white liveries inspired by the original C5-R campaigned in the 2000 American Le Mans Series. The team worked with GM Motorsports and GM Design to match the original colours as closely as possible. Other competitors across GTP, GTD Pro, and GTD classes are presenting period-correct designs and team apparel as part of the series-wide nostalgic theme.
Sources: GT Report
Cadillac Hunts First 2026 GTP Win at Laguna Seca as Porsche Leads Championship
Cadillac Whelen Racing’s No. 31 V-Series.R driven by Jack Aitken and Frederik Vesti enters the Laguna Seca sprint race as the only car across all four IMSA classes with three podiums from three starts in 2026. The Cadillac team has come close to breaking through but has not yet won a GTP race this season. Porsche Penske Motorsport leads the championship with the No. 7 Porsche of Felipe Nasr and Julien Andlauer on 1,061 points, 35 points ahead of the No. 4 Porsche of Laurin Heinrich. Earl Bamber returns to the No. 31 Cadillac after missing Long Beach due to WEC commitments at Imola.
Sources: Speed Sport
WEC: Toyota Tops Manufacturers’ Standings After Imola Win as Spa’s Historic Ground Beckons
Toyota Racing leads the FIA WEC Manufacturers’ Championship with 40 points following its victory at the 6 Hours of Imola, with Ferrari second on 27 and BMW third on 16. In the Drivers’ Championship, the winning No. 8 Toyota crew of Brendon Hartley, Ryō Hirakawa, and Sébastien Buemi tops the table with 25 points, six clear of Alessandro Pier Guidi, Antonio Giovinazzi, and James Calado. Toyota now targets the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps on May 7–9, where it has won eight of its 13 starts in the modern WEC era, including seven consecutive victories from 2017.
Sources: FIA WEC
Lamborghini Super Trofeo Heads West for Laguna Seca Debut in IMSA Double-Bill
The Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America series will compete alongside the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca this weekend, May 1–3, in a double-header support programme. The Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo Evo2 field heads to the iconic California circuit for the third round of its 2026 season, with championship contenders from both the Pro and Am classes appearing at one of North American motorsport’s most storied venues. The race weekend also coincides with the IMSA throwback theme, giving fans the rare opportunity to see both historic-inspired and modern Lamborghini GT machinery competing on the same weekend.
Sources: IMSA
WEC Hypercar — Drivers
1. Hartley / Hirakawa / Buemi — 25 pts
2. Pier Guidi / Giovinazzi / Calado — 19 pts
3. Kobayashi / Conway / De Vries — 15 pts
4. Félix da Costa / Milesi / Habsburg — 12 pts
5. Rast / Frijns — 10 pts
6. Fuoco / Molina / Nielsen — 8 pts
7. Magnussen / Marciello — 6 pts
8. Bamber / Bourdais — 4 pts
9. Tincknell / Gamble — 2 pts
10. Hanson / Kubica / Ye — 1 pt
WEC Hypercar — Teams
1. Toyota — 40 pts
2. Ferrari — 27 pts
3. BMW — 16 pts
4. Alpine — 13 pts
5. Cadillac — 4 pts
6. Aston Martin — 2 pts
7. Peugeot — 0 pts
8. Genesis — 0 pts
IMSA GTP — Drivers
1. Andlauer / Nasr — 1,061 pts
2. Heinrich — 1,026 pts
3. Aitken / Vesti — 1,023 pts
4. Estre / L. Vanthoor — 977 pts
5. Van der Zande / Yelloly — 952 pts
6. S. Van der Linde / D. Vanthoor — 891 pts
7. Blomqvist / Braun — 820 pts
8. Delétraz / Taylor — 808 pts
9. Van der Helm — 789 pts
10. De Angelis / Gunn — 716 pts
IMSA GTP — Teams
1. Porsche Penske Motorsport — leaders
2. Cadillac Whelen Racing
3. Acura Meyer Shank Racing
4. BMW M Team WRT
Curated by JD · samwise.agency