Aston Martin aiming to finish on a continued high at eluding round of the WEC this weekend
Monday, November 03, 2025
Valkyrie is the first Le Mans Hypercar (LMH) to be produced by Aston Martin. Raced by the works Aston Martin The Heart Of Racing Team, it is the only car in WEC’s premier category derived from a road-legal hypercar and made its global debut in the Qatar 1812km in February. This unique, ambitious and trail-blazing programme has grown in competitiveness at every turn through a gruelling season that has already covered nearly 22,000 racing miles, and seven WEC rounds (including the 24 Hours of Le Mans) for the two stunning, green Aston Martins.
“Aston Martin entered Hypercar in 2025 to compete on the world stage in endurance racing and at the highest level of competition,’ said Adam Carter, Aston Martin Head of Endurance Motorsport. “In WEC, and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in North America, we have found that level of competition to be extremely high, full of great talent with some well-established and deservedly respected programmes to race against.
“This is a worthy testament to the sanctioning bodies, the ACO, FIA and IMSA, who jointly created a set of regulations to allow cars of different architectures to compete against each other on the world stage. They took on a noble challenge and it is one they should be complimented on achieving.”
Valkyrie’s sporting momentum continues to grow after a highly promising September in which it fought for a podium position in the 6 Hours of Fuji (JPN) before recording its best WEC finish with fifth position overall. This, after the unique 6.5 litre V12-powered British hypercar ran as high as fourth position in the rain-affected race in Austin, earlier in the same month. Then in the IMSA finale – the 10-hour Motul Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta – in mid-October, Valkyrie clinched its first podium in global competition, coming home within five seconds of a famous maiden victory.
This all follows an encouraging 24 Hours of Le Mans (in June) where both Valkyrie hypercars completed their maiden twice-around-the-clock event without issue to finish 12th and 14th, and the Aston Martin THOR Team registered the cars’ – and Aston Martin’s – first Manufacturers’ World Championship points in the Hypercar class.
The three works drivers responsible for the podium in Atlanta, Roman De Angelis, Ross Gunn and Alex Riberas, all return to action in Bahrain as the eight-hour race length requires that each car is shared by three racers.
Gunn will re-join his British compatriots Harry Tincknell and Tom Gamble in the #007 Valkyrie, having shared the car with them in Qatar and again at Le Mans. The same goes for De Angelis, who will drive the #009 entry alongside Riberas and three-time WEC GT champion Marco Sørensen.
After the event, the 2024 Spa 24 Hours winner and Aston Martin works driver Mattia Drudi will get his first chance to sample WEC-specification Hypercar class machinery when he drives the Aston Martin THOR Team Valkyrie in the official Rookie Test in Bahrain on Sunday 9 November – the day after the 2025 season concludes.
Drudi, who shares the #27 Aston Martin Vantage GT3 with The Heart of Racing Team Principal Ian James and Zacharie Robichon, has been given the opportunity after consistently delivering world-class performances in LMGT3; notably his breathtaking class pole position for this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.
“Of course, I’m super excited to drive a car that is already iconic in the Hypercar Class, even though it is only its first season racing in WEC,” said Drudi. “I’ve been closely following the progress of Valkyrie throughout the championship and it was fantastic to see it record a strong result at Fuji.
“It will be interesting for me to drive straight after a race weekend so I can compare my data with what’s been collected during the event. It will also be a challenge to get used to a car that will be completely new for me. I must thank The Heart of Racing team for giving me the chance to drive the Valkyrie in the Rookie Test. It will be the perfect way to end my first WEC season with Aston Martin.”
James added: “Mattia thoroughly deserves this opportunity. Having raced alongside him all season, I’ve been able to witness his exceptional talent and I’m really interested to see what he makes of Valkyrie.”
Meanwhile, Aston Martin’s most successful sportscar of all time, Vantage, also heads into the final round of the FIA World Endurance Championship – the Bapco Energies 8 Hours of Bahrain – hunting for a victorious conclusion to an exciting season within its LMGT3 class.
Through five iterations spanning 13 seasons Vantage has claimed 53 GT class victories – the second highest of any manufacturer. Responsible for 11 world championship titles, and five 24 Hours of Le Mans class wins in the WEC era, Vantage has also claimed 68 class pole positions. The most successful GTE Am (2012-2022) car of all-time, Vantage recorded 33 wins and 29 pole positions before the class was retired to make way for the current LMGT3 category, which embarks on its 16th race this weekend.
Vantage’s record at Bahrain is also exceptional with seven class victories derived from 13 podium appearances as well as nine class pole positions.
Again, Aston Martin partner team The Heart of Racing heads into the Bahrain finale fighting for a place in the top three of the FIA Endurance Trophy for LMGT3 Drivers’ and Teams’ standings; building on fifth place in its first full WEC season in 2024. Currently fifth in the championship again this season, THOR has amassed 63 points - 18 behind third place with 38 points available for victory and another one for pole position. Team principal Ian James will race the #27 Vantage alongside Zach Robichon and AMR works driver Mattia Drudi.
Racing Spirit of Léman once again calls upon Anthony McIntosh, who starred on his WEC debut at July’s 6 Hours of Sao Paulo. With the American driving alongside Eduardo Barrichello and Aston Martin works driver Valentin Hasse Clot in the #10 Vantage GT3, the trio achieved the team’s first WEC podium finish in LMGT3.
The Heart of Racing’s GT World Challenge America podium finisher Gray Newell will be given the chance to experience WEC’s LMGT3 class for the first time when he makes his series debut in the Rookie Test, on Sunday, following the season finale in Bahrain.
The 28-year-old American has earned the opportunity after an impressive debut season in the Aston Martin Vantage GT3, where he finished on the GT World Challenge America Pro-Am podium three times alongside works driver Darren Turner in 2025.
“After a successful first year with the Vantage GT3 it’s a massive honour for me to be selected for the Rookie Test in Bahrain,” said Newell. “The Heart of Racing has done an incredible job of creating a vertical pipeline for its drivers, moving everyone forward and upwards as a team. I look forward to getting a feel for the Vantage GT3 in WEC trim as well as my first time on track with hypercar traffic. I could not ask for a more exciting way to end the 2025 season.”
Team Principal Ian James added: “Gray’s performances in 2025 have been outstanding. Since he joined THOR in 2021, he’s improved every season and is now blossoming into a driver that can look to achieve a great deal in endurance racing in the future. Giving him the chance to drive in the WEC team, in an LMGT3-spec Vantage, will be a hugely valuable experience for his continued development and is a just reward for a very strong season.”
Source material and photo credits – Aston Martin
