Aston Martin THOR Team and Valkyrie Hypercar set to make their debut at Italy’s Monza – the ‘Temple of Speed’ – as 14 th WEC season concludes
British hypercar pursuing tenth consecutive WEC points finish
Alex Riberas and Marco Sørensen building momentum after consecutive points finishes with #009 Aston Martin Valkyrie
British duo Tom Gamble and Harry Tincknell looking to rekindle points form in last race of 2026 with the #007 Aston Martin Valkyrie
Valkyrie the only road-derived hypercar to contest world’s two premier sportscar series, the FIA World Endurance Championship and IMSA
4 November 2026, Monza, Italy: The spectacular Aston Martin Valkyrie hypercar concludes its second season of competition at the final round of the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship [WEC], when it contests the 6 Hours of Monza this Sunday.
Operated and raced by the works Aston Martin THOR Team, Valkyrie has finished in the points in every WEC race this season and is on a run of nine consecutive points finishes. That includes the previous round at Barcelona (ESP) three weeks ago, where the #009 Valkyrie, driven by Alex Riberas (ESP) and Marco Sørensen (DEN), finished ninth for the second race in a row.
Both they and their British teammates Tom Gamble and Harry Tincknell, in the sister #007 car, had been in podium contention at Fuji in Round 6. The positive momentum has been growing all season. That race in Japan was the first occasion when both Valkyries started in the top six and the #007 also led the race, while its sister was in the podium hunt until the final Safety Car.
The team’s best results of 2026 so far include two fourth places in the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps (BEL) and the Lone Star Le Mans at the Circuit of the Americas [COTA] in Austin (USA). This consistency puts the British ultra-luxury performance brand in sixth position in the FIA Hypercar World Endurance Manufacturers’ Championship with 58 points, 34 ahead of seventh place with a maximum of 44 points available from Monza.
The competition variant of Valkyrie – the pure racing expression of the world’s ultimate road-going hypercar – is developed from its production sibling by Aston Martin and The Heart of Racing [THOR] and blends a race-optimised carbon fibre chassis with a modified 6.5-litre V12 powerplant that revs to 11,000rpm and produces over 1000bhp in standard form, but adheres to a strict 500kW (671bhp) power limit as per the WEC’s hypercar rulebook and IMSA’s GTP regulations.
Harry Tincknell, driver #007 Aston Martin Valkyrie (WEC): “Monza is one of the tracks we have tested at this year and that went well. It’s one of those legendary motorsport venues and it should be good for Valkyrie: it’s super high-speed and has big braking zones. We are all keen to end the year on a high. We’ve had a couple of non-scores recently and we want to reverse that trend and end the season well. I think we can do it. Despite Barcelona not being a circuit that suited us, the car was still nearly in Hyperpole and still scored some points, so there are positives to take away from that.”
Tom Gamble, driver #007 Aston Martin Valkyrie (WEC): “We’ve had a tough couple of races recently so I’m more determined than ever to get back near the front of the pack. We were on amazing form in the first half of the season, so I really hope we can round the season off with a maiden WEC podium.”
Alex Riberas, driver #009 Aston Martin Valkyrie (WEC): “Very much looking forward to Monza as the season finale. I think for us it is a very exciting weekend. We are coming off back-to-back points finishes, so we are gaining momentum. We are getting the car into a better place and as the year has gone by, I think we have done a great job developing our understanding of it and improving as a team. The team has done a tremendous job to prepare for the end of the season and if we can finally get on the podium in this last race that would be the dream, so we are going to do everything in our power to achieve that.”
Marco Sørensen, driver #009 Aston Martin Valkyrie (WEC): “I’m looking forward to Monza. It’s the last race of the season and I think it’s a track that can suit us, and I think it’s time that we achieved that podium that we have been waiting so long for. We have been building up to it slowly for the last few races, but smaller mistakes have cost us. It’s time to put it all together as drivers, work together as a team and get that podium. That is our main focus.”
Ian James, Team Principal, Aston Martin THOR Team: “This second season with Valkyrie has seen us show much more consistently that we are not only capable of scoring points, but also able to fight near the front in FIA World Endurance Championship races when the conditions are right. We have learned a great deal in our sophomore year, but that doesn’t mean we don’t still have an awful lot to learn. We need to keep working to find ways to be competitive on Sunday, and to make the most of those opportunities when they come our way. That means eliminating and not repeating mistakes and always maximising our execution. If we keep doing that, eventually the results we all hope for will come. Monza is a great place to end the season, even if it might be a bit colder than Bahrain would have been. We will look to finish the season on a high.”
Adam Carter, Aston Martin Head of Endurance Motorsport: “Monza is a high-speed circuit, as we all know, and hopefully this will give Valkyrie a chance to shine as we close out its second season of competition. As we look back on the year, there is much to be proud of. Two fourth places so far speak to a reliable platform that has been competitive and predictable enough for the team to reach for those higher points positions, and an exceptional points run that demonstrates how far we’ve come in understanding Valkyrie since those early days of 2025. That said, we know how much ground we still must cover before we are where we want to be, just as we know how tough the world-class competition is. It’s just as important for them as it is for us to finish well at the end of the season, so we’re in for a tough battle this weekend, and we relish the challenge.”
Aston Martin Vantage chasing second WEC victory of 2026
The Heart of Racing Team set to make Monza debut for FIA WEC finale
Vantage has strong momentum in the FIA World Endurance Championship after a win and three podiums from Le Mans onwards
Vantage aiming for fourth LMGT3 class pole position of the season
COTA race winners Ian James, Zach Robichon and Mattia Drudi chasing second win of LMGT3 season
Double-pole winner Gray Newell makes Monza debut, alongside teammates Jonny Adam and Dudu Barrichello
Four Aston Martin Racing partner teams to race for glory in opening Asian Le Mans Series race at Paul Ricard from 13-15 November
Vantage returns to world-famous Macau street circuit for FIA GT World Cup with Comtoyou Racing, Marco Sørensen and Jamie Day
Aston Martin’s most successful racing car, Vantage, aims to end the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship [WEC] with a victory as the series concludes with the 6 Hours of Monza (Italy), on Sunday (8 November).
Vantage has proved to be a standout performer in this year’s LMGT3 class, claiming more pole positions than any other manufacturer this season, with three consecutive poles at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the 6 Hours of São Paulo (Brazil) and the Lone Star Le Mans at the Circuit of the Americas [COTA] in Austin (USA.
Aston Martin Racing [AMR] partner the Heart of Racing Team [THOR], which also claimed victory at COTA with the #27 THOR Vantage GT3 driven by team principal Ian James (GBR), Mattia Drudi (ITA) and Zach Robichon (CAN), now heads to the ‘Temple of Speed’ for the first time, seeking its second win of the season.
The #27 entry and its drivers, who also finished second in Round 6, the 6 Hours of Fuji, after a magnificent final-hour fightback, are eighth in the FIA Endurance Trophies for LMGT3 Drivers and Teams, with 62 points. But they go into Monza only 12 points behind third place with 26 points still available (including one for pole position).
Their teammates, Gray Newell (USA), Jonny Adam (GBR) and Dudu Barrichello (BRA), who race the sister #23 THOR Vantage, can also mathematically reach third place, being 23 points behind. But having finished twice on the podium already this season, their main target is to claim a maiden WEC victory for Newell and Barrichello.
VANTAGE SET FOR A WINTER OF TOP-CLASS RACING AROUND THE GLOBE The end of the WEC season does not mark the end of Vantage’s racing year however, as THOR is joined by three more AMR partner teams for the opening round of the 2026/27 Asian Le Mans Series [ALMS], which takes place at Paul Ricard (FRA) because of the current conflict in the Middle East.
THOR takes five of its regular WEC drivers, with James, Drudi and Robichon occupying their #27 Vantage GT3, while Newell and Barrichello will be joined in a #26 Vantage GT3 by THOR’s 2022 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar GTD class champion and Valkyrie racer Roman De Angelis (CAN).
Another AMR IMSA partner YRB Racing, which recorded an extraordinary victory in the GTD Pro class at Petit Le Mans and has already claimed two further podium appearances from six IMSA starts, will venture outside of the USA for the first time to compete in the ALMS. Its Car Blanche by RSL entry will be formed through a technical partnership with Michelin Le Mans Cup champions and AMR partner team Racing Spirit of Léman [RSL]. Works driver Valentin Hasse Clot (FRA) will be joined by Arnold Robin (FRA) and WEC LMGT3 class points leader Jonny Edgar (GBR).
AMR partner Ecurie Ecosse Blackthorn also returns to the ALMS with works driver Jonny Adam (GBR) and regular teammate Giacomo Petrobelli (ITA), joined again by Kobe Pauwels (BEL), who claimed pole on his São Paulo debut in WEC, back in July.
Meanwhile, later in the month, AMR partner Comtoyou Racing will take Vantage back to the legendary Guia Circuit at Macau for the FIA GT World Cup with drivers Marco Sørensen (DEN) and 2024 AMR Driver Academy winner Jamie Day (GBR).
The Vantage GT3 shares the mechanical architecture of the ultra-luxury Vantage road car and is built around Aston Martin’s proven bonded aluminium chassis and powered by its fearsome twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 engine.
How to follow The 6 Hours of Monza will begin at 1100 local time (1000 GMT) on Sunday, 8 November. Final practice, qualifying and the race will be broadcast live on FIAWEC + online with a choice of English or French-language commentary and via selected broadcasters at a national level.
