Ferrari has taken victory after a dramatic ending at the 2026 Lone Star Le Mans.
After playing second fiddle to the No.51 car in Hyperpole, the No.50 car driven by Nicklas Nielsen, Miguel Molina and Antonio Fuoco found its form in the race.
Starting fifth, the No.50 car made its way into third with Antonio Fuoco at the helm; the team opted for an offset strategy and chose not to change tyres at the first pit stop.
This, combined with solid pace, initially worked in the No.50’s favour as it inherited the lead after the No.51 car’s first stop. Molina came under stern pressure from the No.8 Toyota during the second hour before suffering a slow stop that dropped the No.50 car to the lower end of the top ten at the four-hour mark.
A late race safety car appeared to benefit the likes of Toyota and Cadillac; however, a commendable drive from Nielsen put him back in contention.
In the closing stages it looked like the leading No.7 Toyota was on for a certain victory, but then disaster struck with just 15 minutes from the end as the hydraulics failed on the car, handing the lead to Nielsen, who secured his and the No.51 Ferrari’s first win of 2026 by just 1.1 seconds.
After missing out on Hyperpole despite setting the same time as the pole-sitter, No.51 Ferrari, the No.38 Cadillac was one of Ferrari’s main challengers during the opening stint and was later elevated to the lead following a slow pit stop for the No.51 Ferrari.
Bamber later fended off the No.7 Toyota and No.35 Alpine for much of the fourth hour despite older tyres; however, the No.38 Cadillac later dropped down the order as it underwent a full service.
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After benefiting from a safety car in the final hour as well as the No.7 Toyota’s woes, the No.38 Cadillac was able to take second.
Behind them, Alpine will have plenty to celebrate. The No.35 car secured third in Hyperpole and displayed solid pace in the race. The A424’s went some way to make up for a five-second penalty for a pit stop infringement. A relatively clean run, as well as the misfortune of others, allowed the No.35 car to claim Alpine's first podium of the season.
Aston Martin’s strong qualifying pace carried over into the race as the No.007 car of Tom Gamble, Harry Tincknell and Ross Gunn finished the race where it started in P4.
The No.36 Alpine took fifth ahead of the No.8 Toyota, which has helped the team draw away from BMW in the manufacturers' race. The No.17 Genesis completed an impressive recovery to seventh after Andre Lotterer made contact with the No.50 Ferrari in the opening hour.
BMW struggled for pace throughout; the No.15 car came off worse after a late race scrap with the No.36 Alpine and had to settle for ninth ahead of the No.12 Cadillac and No.94 Peugeot.
After prevailing in yesterday’s Hyperpole dead heat, the No.51 Ferrari was initially in contention for the win. However, after losing time with a slow stop and failing to capitalise on the late safety car, the pole sitters slipped out of the points and finished 11th ahead of the No.20 BMW.
The No.83 AF Corse Ferrari looked set to retain its starting position of 14th before gaining a place thanks to Toyota’s issues. It was followed by the No.009 Aston Martin, the No.19 Genesis and the No.93 Peugeot.
After capitalising on the late-race safety car and looking set for victory, the No.7 Toyota failed to finish due to hydraulic issues.
In LMGT3, the No.27 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin was able to go one better than its second place in Hyperpole, avoid trouble and take victory by just over five seconds from the No.91 Manthey DK Engineering Porsche.
The pole-sitter No.23 Aston Martin was able to close out the podium in third. In contrast, the No.77 Proton Competition Mustang’s lively run to fifth made it the highest-placed American manufacturer.
By contrast, Akkodis ASP had a race to forget. The No.78 car stopped on track with an open bonnet and triggered the final safety car with less than an hour to go, while the No.87 car suffered a spin with less than two minutes remaining. A mistake by Jose Maria Lopez dropped him out of the points to 13th.
The next round of the 2026 World Endurance Championship will be the 6 Hours of Fuji, which will commence on the 25th of September.
Ferrari has taken victory after a dramatic ending at the 2026 Lone Star Le Mans.
After playing second fiddle to the No.51 car in Hyperpole, the No.50 car driven by Nicklas Nielsen, Miguel Molina and Antonio Fuoco found its form in the race.
Starting fifth, the No.50 car made its way into third with Antonio Fuoco at the helm; the team opted for an offset strategy and chose not to change tyres at the first pit stop.
This, combined with solid pace, initially worked in the No.50’s favour as it inherited the lead after the No.51 car’s first stop. Molina came under stern pressure from the No.8 Toyota during the second hour before suffering a slow stop that dropped the No.50 car to the lower end of the top ten at the four-hour mark.
A late race safety car appeared to benefit the likes of Toyota and Cadillac; however, a commendable drive from Nielsen put him back in contention.
In the closing stages it looked like the leading No.7 Toyota was on for a certain victory, but then disaster struck with just 15 minutes from the end as the hydraulics failed on the car, handing the lead to Nielsen, who secured his and the No.51 Ferrari’s first win of 2026 by just 1.1 seconds.
After missing out on Hyperpole despite setting the same time as the pole-sitter, No.51 Ferrari, the No.38 Cadillac was one of Ferrari’s main challengers during the opening stint and was later elevated to the lead following a slow pit stop for the No.51 Ferrari.
Bamber later fended off the No.7 Toyota and No.35 Alpine for much of the fourth hour despite older tyres; however, the No.38 Cadillac later dropped down the order as it underwent a full service.
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After benefiting from a safety car in the final hour as well as the No.7 Toyota’s woes, the No.38 Cadillac was able to take second.
Behind them, Alpine will have plenty to celebrate. The No.35 car secured third in Hyperpole and displayed solid pace in the race. The A424’s went some way to make up for a five-second penalty for a pit stop infringement. A relatively clean run, as well as the misfortune of others, allowed the No.35 car to claim Alpine's first podium of the season.
Aston Martin’s strong qualifying pace carried over into the race as the No.007 car of Tom Gamble, Harry Tincknell and Ross Gunn finished the race where it started in P4.
The No.36 Alpine took fifth ahead of the No.8 Toyota, which has helped the team draw away from BMW in the manufacturers' race. The No.17 Genesis completed an impressive recovery to seventh after Andre Lotterer made contact with the No.50 Ferrari in the opening hour.
BMW struggled for pace throughout; the No.15 car came off worse after a late race scrap with the No.36 Alpine and had to settle for ninth ahead of the No.12 Cadillac and No.94 Peugeot.
After prevailing in yesterday’s Hyperpole dead heat, the No.51 Ferrari was initially in contention for the win. However, after losing time with a slow stop and failing to capitalise on the late safety car, the pole sitters slipped out of the points and finished 11th ahead of the No.20 BMW.
The No.83 AF Corse Ferrari looked set to retain its starting position of 14th before gaining a place thanks to Toyota’s issues. It was followed by the No.009 Aston Martin, the No.19 Genesis and the No.93 Peugeot.
After capitalising on the late-race safety car and looking set for victory, the No.7 Toyota failed to finish due to hydraulic issues.
In LMGT3, the No.27 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin was able to go one better than its second place in Hyperpole, avoid trouble and take victory by just over five seconds from the No.91 Manthey DK Engineering Porsche.
The pole-sitter No.23 Aston Martin was able to close out the podium in third. In contrast, the No.77 Proton Competition Mustang’s lively run to fifth made it the highest-placed American manufacturer.
By contrast, Akkodis ASP had a race to forget. The No.78 car stopped on track with an open bonnet and triggered the final safety car with less than an hour to go, while the No.87 car suffered a spin with less than two minutes remaining. A mistake by Jose Maria Lopez dropped him out of the points to 13th.
The next round of the 2026 World Endurance Championship will be the 6 Hours of Fuji, which will commence on the 25th of September.
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