MOTORSPORT – BMW M Team WRT raced to an historic one-two last night in the Six Hours of Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium – earning them their first-ever victory in the top-tier Hypercar class of the FIA World Endurance Championship.
BMW’s #20 M Hybrid V8 – driven by Robin Frijns, Rene Rast, and Sheldon van der Linde – led their teammates Kevin Magnussen, Raffaele Marciello, and Dries Vanthoor in their #15 contender to the chequered flag, despite starting outside of the top 10.
The winners completed 151 laps en route to crossing the line 1.969 seconds ahead of their sister car to secure the stunning result.
Ferrari AF Corse’s #50 crew of Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina, and Nicklas Nielsen joined them on the podium. They were 2.622s adrift in their 499P Hypercar.
Meanwhile, the Garage 59 trio of Antares Au, Thomas Fleming, and Marvin Kirchhofer steered their #10 McLaren 720S Evo to victory in the LMGT3 category last night.
They finished 2.148s ahead of runners-up Ian James, Zacharie Robichon, and Mattia Drudi driving the #27 Aston Martin Vantage AMR of Heart of Racing Team. The Bend Manthey’s #92 crew of Yasser Shahin, Riccardo Pera, and Richard Lietz claimed third in their Porsche 911 GT3 R, completing the race 3.422s back.
With the second round of the WEC season complete, the stage is now set for the iconic 24 Hours of Le Mans, taking place June 13 and 14 in France.
Stops will then be made at Interlagos in Brazil on July 12, at Austin in the US on September 6, at Fuji in Japan on September 27, and at Doha in Qatar on October 24, before heading to the kingdom for the WEC’s 2026 finale, the Bapco Energies 8 Hours of Bahrain, scheduled for November 6 and 7 at Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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