McLaren is to auction future Formula 1, IndyCar and World Endurance Championship cars ahead of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in December.

The British outfit is holding what it describes as a “first-of-its-kind” event with RM Sotheby’s on December 5 in the country, two days before the F1 curtain-closer at the Yas Marina Circuit.

McLaren says the event is “in line with [its] ambition to reclaim the prestigious motorsport Triple Crown” – the Monaco Grand Prix, the Indy500 and the Le Mans 24 Hours.

It is the only team in history to have won all three events, having first claimed victories in them in 1984, 1976 and 1995, respectively.

The quite literally unique selling point of the auction is the fact that all three cars have yet to take to a race track.

McLaren’s 2026 F1 and IndyCar machines will make up two-thirds of the purchase, along with the car that will contest its much-anticipated venture into WEC in 2027.

The eventual buyers will receive the cars once they have completed their respective series, giving them a two-year wait before they take possession.

McLaren’s CEO Zak Brown, who announced the auction at Monterey Car Week in California, said: “This auction is an extraordinary opportunity to own a piece of racing history and bid for a car that has competed on track before its official launch.

“The Triple Crown is a huge part of our heritage and we are determined to claim it once again as we prepare for our 2027 entry into the World Endurance Championship.

“Not only that, these incredible cars will come with unprecedented VIP access to the team and action on track.”

READ MORE – McLaren ‘open to reinventing’ to maintain F1 growth amid reverse grid proposal

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Formula E star Nick Cassidy is nearing confirmation of a drive with a Stellantis-powered team for next season after being announced for a World Endurance Championship outing with Peugeot.

The Kiwi’s exit from Jaguar TCS Racing was formally announced at the end of Season 11, which ended with Cassidy winning both races in the double-header finale in London.

Rumours have pointed towards the likelihood that Cassidy will join a Stellantis team, most likely the Maserati MSG Racing, which is thought to be being given a rebrand to another organisation owned by the multinational conglomerate.

These rumours are now bolstered after Peugeot’s – a Stellantis-backed brand – WEC squad teased Cassidy’s involvement at the Lone Star Le Mans event at COTA in September.

Formed as a mock Instagram direct message chat, the announcement saw Peugeot ‘message’ Cassidy, saying it has booked him a flight to Austin for September.

“Let’s chat 2025/2026 WEC plans. You in?” it concluded.

“I’ll be recharging this summer, but can’t wait to catch up in Austin. Let’s talk soon!” Cassidy ‘replied’.

It’s clear that if Cassidy will be handed a permanent drive for the French marque in WEC, it will dovetail with FE duties, reaffirming his commitment to the all-electric championship in London.

“I think I’ve been clear for many years that I really enjoy driving here,” he told Motorsport Week. “I really enjoy the technical challenge. And for me, it’s a massive focus to be here and successful for a very long time.”

Cassidy’s potentially imminent announcement would shake-up the organisation’s two driver line-ups, with further speculation pointing towards DS Penske’s Jean-Eric Vergne as his team-mate.

Further speculation has indicated that Taylor Barnard will take his place at the Franco-American squad, with Motorsport Week understanding that the young Brit’s confirmation is weeks away.

This leaves Britain’s Jake Hughes on the precipice, along with his current Maserati team-mate, Season 8 champion Stoffel Vandoorne.

The Belgian confirmed to Motorsport Week at the Berlin E-Prix last month that he has a Stellantis contract for next year [including a WEC seat with Peugeot], but was tight-lipped on the further details.

READ MORE – Porsche Formula E star reveals a ’50/50′ chance of staying next season

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The Iron Dames team felt conflicted when taking their season-best finish in the 6 Hours of Sao Paulo after narrowly missing out on a podium.

The FIA World Endurance Championship’s all-female driver squad of Celia Martin, Rahel Frey and Michelle Gatting finished fourth in the LMGT3 category.

It marked the Iron Dames’ best race finish since fourth place in the 2024 Le Mans 24 Hours; however, they lost out on their first LMGT3 podium finish by 1.461 seconds to Racing Spirit of LeMan (#10 Aston Martin Vantage AMR LMGT3 Evo).

“In the end, we got P4, which is our best result in WEC in 2025,” said Frey.

“It’s bittersweet because we definitely had potential for more.

“Since Le Mans, we’ve definitely gained momentum, and we had pace throughout the entire race, but unfortunately, we weren’t faultless (referencing Gatting’s drive-through penalty for overtaking under yellow from P2).

“We’ll keep on working hard and keep on pushing.

“I’m happy with the team’s performance, and we were so close to the podium.

“Next time, we’re going to make it.”

“We got P4, just missing the podium, which is a shame, but that’s part of racing,” added Martin.

“Once again, we demonstrated what we can do.

“We fought hard, that’s what matters. I’m already looking forward to the next race.”

Martin qualified the #85 Porsche 911 GT3.R into Hyperpole before Frey put the car seventh on the grid.

Martin was initially pushed wide at Turn 1, though she beat the #61 Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG LMGT3 Evo during their opening stint jostle.

In the final hour, after a swift final pit stop, Gatting continued her impressive fight for the podium, defending to the finish before Eduardo Barrichello overtook her.

READ MORE – Celia Martin saw Le Mans ‘for what it really was’ in her event debut

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Genesis has completed the build and engine start-up of the first GMR-001 Hypercar on the roadmap to debut in the 2026 FIA WEC season.

The next manufacturer to join the FIA World Endurance Championship and the Hypercar category successfully conducted its first build and start-up on target with their programme timeline.

They conducted the first engine start-up in February and unveiled their orange and red ‘magma’ livery adorning their two Genesis GMR-001 Hypercars next year.

“In a project like this, you have certain dates circled and this was one of them,” said team principal Cyril Abiteboul.

“The car fire-up was the GMR-001 coming to life — a huge step in the story of Genesis Magma Racing.

“To reach this point on schedule is already a huge achievement and a perfect way to start the next stage of the development process.”

Since the February start-up, the engine has undergone months of work on the dyno testing performance and efficiency.

Work began on this build immediately after the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which Genesis entered in LMP2 in their ongoing partnership with IDEC Sport.

Testing development stage next for Genesis Hypercar

It took place at Oreca’s workshop, their chassis partner, close to the location of Genesis Magma Racing’s Race Base and Circuit Paul Ricard. Oreca’s experienced technicians worked with mechanics and engineers from Genesis Magma Racing during the process.

The WRC-derived 3.2L twin-turbo V8 engine ran through a rev range in each of the seven gears during the fire-up.

Engineers also tested the car’s Bosch LMDh specification hybrid system, charging the batteries from the engine and then directing the energy to the rear driveshafts.

Genesis Magma Racing’s Technical Director, FX Demaison, said: “The car build has been about bringing everything together – all the expertise we have within Genesis Magma Racing and at Oreca.”

“It’s now when we can start physically connecting all the different strands of development work that we’ve been following for the last year with our Powertrain and Design teams.

“The successful GMR-001 fire-up is confirmation of our work so far, but also the start of the next stage of the development that comes with testing.”

The first on-track running is on schedule to take place at the end of next month, August, as Genesis refines the development before the homologation stage in anticipation of 2026.

READ MORE – Hyundai targets Genesis Hypercar effort for 2026 WEC

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Iron Lynx reflected on the key positives from one of their most promising race meetings in Sao Paulo, despite their poor race results.

“We have to look at the positives,” said Iron Lynx team principal and CEO Andrea Piccini.

“This weekend we had a much better pace and we made good use of it in qualifying, where we achieved a valuable P4.

“Despite still being a bit off in terms of pure performance compared to Aston Martin and Lexus, we were very consistent, and we had superior tyre management.

“All drivers were making positive steps, despite the fact that most of them were driving for the first time at Interlagos, which is a very technical circuit.

“Today, the pace and strategy could have brought us to the podium.

“We are getting there, and we will continue working ahead of the three final rounds of the season.”

Iron Lynx finished in 18th, last in the LMGT3 category, along with a retirement during the fifth FIA World Endurance Championship round.

Despite achieving similar results as the Qatar 1812 km season-opener, the finishing results told only half the story.

The team showcased competitive form by matching their best qualifying effort for the #61, since they also qualified fourth for the previous round, the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Iron Lynx misses out after ‘promising weekend’

During the race, both the #60 and #61 Mercedes-AMG LMGT3 Evos achieved satisfactory tyre management.

Iron Lynx opted for an aggressive strategy with the #61 Mercedes-AMG, which started in fourth place, early in the race.

Bronze-graded Martin Berry kept the car within the top five before switching to Mercedes-AMG factory driver Maxime Martin, who put the car up to second position whilst others opted to eat into the Bronze-graded driving time of 1 hour 45 minutes.

Lin Hodenius continued in the middle of the race after serving penalties for Full Course Yellow infringements as Martin was keen to secure at least a points finish.

An untimely technical issue retired the #61 Mercedes-AMG in the sixth and final hour, whilst the #60 machine finished last with its relatively new driver line-up.

“It was definitely a promising weekend,” added Martin.

“We have been quite competitive for the whole weekend, and it’s again a good step from race-to-race.

“We are happy with that; we had a good qualifying and a good beginning of the race – we were in the top positions.

“Unfortunately, a technical issue forced us to retire. It’s a good lesson, it’s promising, we’re getting better, so we look forward to the next race.”

READ MORE – #12 Cadillac takes first Cadillac WEC victory at Interlagos

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Alessio Rovera has extended his Ferrari factory drive with a multi-year contract since officially joining the Maranello manufacturer in 2022.

The Italian driver will continue, having undertaken GT racing duties as an official driver over the past three years.

He most recently claimed victory with AF Corse’s #21 Ferrari 296 LMGT3 crew at Spa-Francorchamps with his teammates Francois Heriau and Simon Mann, their second in the LMGT3 era since the Bahrain season-finale in 2024.

Rovera piloted the 488 GT3 and GT3 cars before the 296 GT3 successor. After the LMGTE era came to a close, the 296 LMGT3 continued the baton in the FIA World Endurance Championship from 2024 and will run in evolution specification from 2026.

“I am truly happy and proud to be able to continue my journey with Ferrari,” said the two-time WEC champion (GTE Am and LMP2 Pro/Am categories).

“Wearing these colours and representing such a prestigious name in international competitions is both an honour and a great responsibility.

“Over the years, we have achieved significant milestones together, and I am motivated to give my all to keep improving and chasing new victories.

“I want to thank Ferrari for their trust and support.

“I look forward to taking on the next challenges together.”

His GT racing efforts expand to the GT World Challenge Europe series in addition to assistance in the development of the triple Le Mans-winning 499P LMH.

Rovera first drove in the FIA WEC in 2021 for AF Corse, winning the GTE Am championship during which he took class victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Last month’s running of Le Mans marked his fifth consecutive start at the iconic endurance event, and he finished runner-up in LMGT3.

READ MORE – Antonio Giovinazzi renews Ferrari Hypercar seat with multi-year contract

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Peugeot took a double-points finish at the 6 Hours of Sao Paulo as tyre degradation made it difficult to convert their impressive qualifying.

The French Hypercar team turned heads when they secured their place in the Hyperpole qualifying session in second and third positions, before finalising grid spots of fourth and sixth.

They converted their best qualifying performance of the 2025 FIA World Endurance Championship season into their season-best race finishes in sixth and seventh, though Peugeot accepted what hindered them from an even stronger race result.

Seven of the 18 Hypercar line-ups used two drivers across both cars, but a selection was due to the clash with the FIA Formula E event in Berlin – concerning Sebastien Buemi’s absence in the #8 Toyota GR010 Hybrid, Jean-Eric Vergne in the #93 Peugeot 9X8 and Stoffel Vandoorne in the #94 Peugeot.

“Our race pace was as expected,” said Olivier Jansonnie, Peugeot Sport Technical Director, “but we may have underestimated the speed of our three direct competitors, who were very fast.

“We could have finished P5 and P6 – it’s a shame, but we lost time under FCY.

“We’ll need to analyse why. The gaps are getting tighter, and there will be more opportunities to perform well before the end of the season.”

Tyre degradation pushes first pit stop forward

“A pretty calm start for me and a good first stint,” added Loic Duval, who co-drove the #94 Peugeot with Malthe Jakobsen.

“I struggled more in my second stint due to heavy rear tyre degradation, which forced us to bring our pit stop forward,” having run both cars in third and fourth before the first pit stop on the 40th lap.

“As a result, our final stint was a bit longer than that of our competitors, and on top of that, we were unlucky with the FCY, which cost us around fifteen seconds.”

Mikkel Jensen, co-driver of the #93 Peugeot with Paul di Resta, said:

“The advantage of a two-driver line-up is that you learn a lot from the first double stint and can adjust accordingly at the end of the race.

“In this race, tyre degradation management was crucial, and I did a better job of that during my final stint.

“Overall, it was a good weekend for the team, with strong performances in qualifying and a solid final result.

“Now we need to focus on tyre degradation.”

READ MORE – #12 Cadillac takes first Cadillac WEC victory at Interlagos

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Norman Nato, Alex Lynn and Will Stevens have won the FIA World Endurance Championship 6 Hours of Sao Paulo in the #12 Cadillac, giving Cadillac their first ever WEC win.

As well as that, it’s the first win for the Cadillac/JOTA factory partnership between the two, and JOTA’s second overall win in WEC competition, after winning at Spa last year when they ran customer a customer Porsche.

Second was the sister Cadillac, the #38, driven by Sebastien Bourdais, Jenson Button, and Earl Bamber, just over a minute off the leading car, which in the final stint had Nato at the wheel.

Third was the #5 Porsche of Julien Andlauer and Michael Christensen, a second off Bourdais in the #38 Cadillac at the line. The two fought for second in the last 15 minutes at the end of the race, but Bourdais fended off his countryman in the Porsche.

The race began with Stevens starting from pole in the #12 Cadillac. However, Andlauer passed him in the second sector of the lap, and led for the most part of his initial two hour stint.

Stevens, now in second, was handed a drivethrough for low tyre pressures midway through the first hour, dropping him to fourth behind the #93 Peugeot of Malthe Jakobsen. 

This put Bamber in second onboard the #38 Cadillac. The Kiwi duly set about catching Andlauer, and by the end of the first third of the race, he’d caught him.

Bamber made a small mistake at turn 4 and locked up, but Stevens had caught him and Andlauer and passed his teammate for second. The Briton then pitted at the end of the lap, to be replaced by pole man Alex Lynn.

After the pit stop cycle had shaken out, Lynn led from Michael Christensen, now in the #5 Porsche, replacing Andlauer. Jenson Button, meanwhile, was third in the #38 Cadillac, having replaced Bamber.

Button soon passed Christensen, giving Cadillac a 1-2 at the front of the field.

From then on, for the next almost four hours, the two Cadillacs led the race line of stern, pulling away from the #5 Porsche.

Lynn led trouble-free for his stint, before handing the car over to Norman Nato for the final stint. The Frenchman continued to pull away from his teammate, with the gap standing at 57 seconds at the end of the race.

Bourdais came home second in the sister #38 Cadillac. The car never quite had the pace of the #12 machine, but they were still able to come home second, beating their biggest challengers on the day, Porsche.

Speaking of the German manufacturer, they were the best of the rest in Brazil. Andlauer led early on for the first two hours, but the Cadillacs were able to haul him in and take the lead, despite the penalty for the #12 car.

Once the Cadillacs had solidified the 1-2, it looked as though Porsche would have to settle for third. But, in the final hour, Andlauer, back in the car for the final couple of hours after Christensen’s double stint, was able to catch Bourdais.

The two battled for second in the last hour, but the Porsche driver wasn’t able to find his way around the veteran Frenchman. In the end, he came home third, just under two seconds behind Bourdais.

The sister #6 Porsche finished fourth, with Laurens Vanthoor crossing the line in the car, partnered by Kevin Estre. L. Vanthoor started the car seventh and they were able to make their way through the field through the race to finish fourth, a lap down on the winning #12 Cadillac, overtaking the #20 BMW and both Peugeots through the race to do so.

The #20 BMW of Sheldon van der Linde and Rene Rast finished fifth, 54 seconds off L. Vanthoor in the #6 Porsche. BMW lacked the pace of the cars ahead, but battled both Peugeots and beat both in order to take a top 5 for the German manufacturer.

The two Peugeots were sixth and seventh, with Loic Duval in the #94 car ahead of his teammate in the #93, Mikkel Jensen. While they qualified fourth and fifth, the aforementioned #20 BMW and #6 Porsche were able to overhaul them. But Peugeot will likely take this result, coming off the back of a disastrous Le Mans.

Eighth was the #83 AF Corse Ferrari, the only car from the Italian manufacturer in the top 10. Ferrari lacked pace, the first time this year neither factory car has scored points, but the #83 was able to limit the damage and score points for the drivers’ championship.

Akkodis ASP Lexus take first WEC win

Jose Maria Lopez drove the #87 ASP Lexus to victory in the LMGT3 class, dominating the 6 hour race alongside his teammates Petru Umbrarescu and Clemens Schmid.

Umbrarescu started the car second, behind the polesitting #10 Racing Spirit of Leman Aston Martin. He was passed on the first lap by Darren Leung in the #95 United Autosports McLaren, but got this position back a lap later and set about hunting down McIntosh in the lead.

He soon got passed Anthony McIntosh in the Aston, on lap 13, and from that moment on, dominated the race. The ASP Lexus team held a 1-2 for a significant portion of the race, but in the end the sister #78 car finished fifth, in the hands of Finn Gehrsitz, Arnold Robin, and Yuichi Nakayama.

Second at the flag was the #81 TF Sport Corvette of Charlie Eastwood. Eastwood stormed through the field in the final couple of hours, passing the #78 Lexus, #85 Iron Dames Porsche of Michelle Gatting, and the #10 Racing Spirit of Leman Aston Martin of Valentin Hasse Clot to finish second. Teammate Tom van Rompuy started the car seventh in class, and they and their teammate Rui Andrade were consistent and methodical in their journey to second.

Third was the polesitting car, the #10 Aston Martin, which Eduardo Barrichello brilliantly took to pole position the previous day. Unfortunately their race pace did not quite stack up to their qualifying pace, but Barrichello was still able to take a podium position at home in Brazil by passing Michelle Gatting in the #85 Iron Dames Porsche late on, to the cheers and jubilation of the crowd.

With Gatting fourth in the #85 Iron Dames Porsche, alongside her teammates Rahel Frey and Celia Martin, fifth went to the sister #78 Lexus of Gehrsitz, Robin, and Nakayama.

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Button, in the #38 Cadillac, is roughly 20 seconds ahead of Norman Nato in the #12 Cadillac. Third is Michael Christensen in the #5 Porsche, 44 seconds off the lead.

Button got into the car at the two hour mark, and sat second in the race behind the #12 Cadillac, with Alex Lynn at the wheel, for most of his stint. Button got in at the same time as Lynn, and while he initially lost second in the pit cycle over Christensen, he quickly retook the position and has stayed there ever since. Button is, however, expected to stop imminently, relinquishing the lead to Nato.

The #5 Porsche led earlier in the race with Christensen’s teammate Julien Andlauer at the wheel, but the Cadillacs caught and passed him. Ever since Christensen has fallen further and further back, with his teammate Kevin Estre in the #6 Porsche now behind him.

Estre started the race seventh and has climbed through the field, passing the two Peugeots and making it a Porsche 3-4.

Paul Di Resta is fifth in the #93 Peugeot, with a surprising run for the French manufacturer after a very disappointing run for the team at Le Mans.

Sixth is the #20 BMW of Marco Wittmann. The car has had a trouble-free run but does not have the pace of the leaders.

The two Ferraris and two Toyotas are struggling for pace, with both the #7 and #8 Toyota out of the points in a race they won at a canter last year. The Ferraris are doing a little better, with the #51 car, Antonio Giovinazzi at the wheel, is seventh. The sister #50 car is 12th with Nicklas Nielsen at the wheel.

In LMGT3, the two Akkodis ASP Lexus cars are dominating proceedings. Clemens Schmid leads in the #87 Lexus, with his teammate Yuichi Nakayama second in the #78 sister car. They started second and third and have solidified a lead, albeit with a small gap to Michelle Gatting in the #85 Iron Dames Porsche.

Polesitter in LMGT3, the #10 Racing Spirit of Leman Aston Martin, is fourth. While they took pole yesterday with Eduardo Barrichello at the wheel, the car doesn’t have the race pace of the Lexus cars, and is around six seconds off Gatting, with Valentin Hasse Clot at the wheel.

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Alex Lynn leads for Cadillac at Interlagos with two hours gone, as Porsche and Cadillac battle for the lead in Brazil, the fifth round of the 2025 FIA World Endurance Championship.

Second is Jenson Button in the #38 Cadillac, who moments ago overtook Michael Christensen in the #5 Porsche for the position.

Lynn’s teammate Stevens, alongside the other Cadillac, the #8 which had Earl Bamber at the wheel for the first two hours, were some 20 seconds or so back at the start of the second hour, but they caught and passed the Christensen’s teammate Julien Andlauer, who was in the car at the start, by the end of the second hour.

Fourth is Malthe Jakobsen in the #94 Peugeot, almost a minute adrift of Lynn in the lead.

Fifth is Andlauer’s Porsche teammate Laurens Vanthoor, onboard the #6 machine. However, the #12 Cadillac, which had Stevens at the wheel for the first third of the race, is slightly out of sequence and has pitted early, relinquishing the position.

The other Peugeot, the #93 of Paul Di Resta, is fifth.

Stevens started from the lead in the #12 Cadillac. He was passed by Andlauer in the second sector of the Interlagos track, with Bamber behind Stevens making a Cadillac 2-3.

The order stayed this way for most of the first hour, until Stevens got a drivethrough penalty for low tyre pressure. He then pitted soon after to lose the tyres, and set about catching Andlauer and Bamber.

Bamber, too, was on a charge and closed the gap to Andlauer, taking the lead at turn 1 shortly before the second round of pitstops.

They all then pitted, putting Lynn in the lead from Button and Christensen.

It’s a Lexus 1-2 in LMGT3, with Jose Maria Lopez in the #87 Akkodis ASP Lexus leading Arnold Robin in the sister #78 car. Third is Martin Berry in the #61 Iron Lynx Mercedes AMG-GT3.

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