Samwise Sportscar & Endurance Newsletter
SUNDAY, JULY 5, 2026
Up2Race Holds Overnight Lead as Inaugural 12H Nürburgring Reaches Red-Flag Halt
The No. 88 Up2Race Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo of Tim Heinemann, Oleksiy Kikireshko and Fabio Grosse leads the 12 Hours of Nürburgring into Sunday's second phase after a race-stopping crash halted proceedings overnight. The 24H Series debutants took the lead when a Code 60 caution for the race-ending accident of the No. 921 Mühlner Motorsport Porsche — whose Joshua Bednarski was able to exit unassisted — forced Proton Competition into the pits while Up2Race stayed out. Proton's Porsche, which led for much of the opening six hours, sits second ahead of Viper Niza Racing. All cars are under parc fermé conditions and may not be refuelled before Sunday's restart.
Sources: Sportscar365 Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Masson Claims ELMS Imola LMP2 Pole in Nerve-Shredding Qualifying
Esteban Masson claimed LMP2 pole for the European Le Mans Series' 4 Hours of Imola in a fiercely contested session. The reigning ELMS champion, driving the No. 29 Forestier Racing by Panis Oreca 07, set a 1:30.866 to edge Ian Aguilera's CLX Motorsport entry by just 0.032 seconds after having led both free practice sessions. Masson endured a tense finish after failing to improve on his final two laps. Grégoire Saucy's championship-leading No. 22 United Autosports Oreca qualified third, with the top six covered by 0.362 seconds. In LMGT3, Blake McDonald's TF Sport Corvette Z06 took last-gasp pole. The 4 Hours of Imola starts at noon CEST Sunday.
Sources: Sportscar365 Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Toyota GR GT3 Runs Undisguised at Nürburgring Ahead of 2027 Debut
Toyota's next-generation GT3 contender ran in undisguised form at the Nürburgring Nordschleife this week, completing a two-day test at the Destination Nürburgring trackday. The new GR GT3, set to replace the outgoing Lexus RC F GT3, ran with full technical support from Toyota Gazoo Racing's Cologne base. Currently presumed to debut in competition during 2027, the car's planned programme spans NLS and N24 races on the Nordschleife, plus LMGT3 entries in the FIA WEC and GTD and GTD Pro competition in IMSA's WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Toyota Racing team principal Kamui Kobayashi and several emerging Japanese talents are currently completing NLS outings with KCMG.
Sources: DailySportscar Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Jaubert Leads ELMS LMGT3 Standings as Kessel Ferrari Heads to Imola Under Ballast
Mathys Jaubert arrives at the ELMS 4 Hours of Imola leading the LMGT3 standings after winning the class at last weekend's Spa 24 Hours, with the 21-year-old French Genesis factory driver combining his Hypercar role with a secondary campaign for Kessel Racing. The No. 57 Ferrari 296 GT3, shared with Daniel Serra and Bronze-rated Takeshi Kimura, carries 35 kilograms of success ballast into Imola — the heaviest in the class — though Jaubert insists the championship position does not change his approach at the wheel. After Imola, his focus shifts immediately to the Genesis GMR-001 and the Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo, the programme's first flyaway WEC round.
Sources: DailySportscar Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
WEC Hypercar — Drivers
1. Kobayashi / Conway / de Vries (Toyota #7) — 75 pts
2. Rast / Frijns (BMW #20) — 71 pts
3. van der Linde (BMW #20) — 61 pts
4. Hartley / Hirakawa / Buemi (Toyota #8) — 56 pts
5. Pier Guidi / Giovinazzi / Calado (Ferrari #51) — 39 pts
6. da Costa / Milesi / Habsburg (Alpine #35) — 28 pts
7. Delétraz / Nato / Stevens (Cadillac #12) — 26 pts
8. Magnussen / Marciello (BMW #15) — 25 pts
9. Fuoco / Molina / Nielsen (Ferrari #50) — 23 pts
10. Tincknell / Gamble (Aston Martin #007) — 22 pts
11. Hanson / Kubica / Ye (Ferrari #83) — 21 pts
12. Vanthoor D. (BMW #15) — 19 pts
13. Gunn R. (Aston Martin #007) — 8 pts
14. Cassidy / di Resta / Vandoorne (Peugeot #93) — 6 pts
15. Lotterer / Derani / Jaubert (Genesis #17) — 4 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
After Round 3 (24 Hours of Le Mans) — Source: Pit Debrief
IMSA GTP — Drivers
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. Sheldon van der Linde / Dries Vanthoor — 1,385 pts
9. Philipp Eng / Marco Wittmann — 1,383 pts
10. Tijmen van der Helm — 1,379 pts
11. Louis Deletraz / Jordan Taylor — 1,335 pts
12. Filipe Albuquerque / Ricky Taylor — 1,235 pts
13. Roman de Angelis / Ross Gunn — 1,203 pts
Through Round 5 (Detroit) — Source: imsa.com — Team standings: N/A
Curated by JD · samwise.agency
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