The Heart of Racing World Endurance Championship Event Recap | 2026 24 Hours of Le Mans
No. 23 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage Information
Driver Lineup: Gray Newell, Dudu Barrichello, Jonny Adam
Class: LMGT3
Started: 8th (3:54.888-seconds - Adam)
Finished: 3rd
Laps: 335/336
Laps Led: 8
Pit Stops: 35
Chatting with the drivers…
Gray Newell: “The race really went as well as we could have expected. It was about keeping our nose clean and staying out of trouble, with no mistakes, and I think we executed on that really well. I’m really happy with how I drove. I feel like now I just need to chip away at my pace and keep getting faster. I felt like I made a lot of smart decisions keeping the car out of danger. I just feel so fortunate to have this team; these guys are the best. The culture that we have here is just phenomenal, and I just feel so fortunate.”
Dudu Barrichello: “It was such a great experience. I’m so grateful for Ian and The Heart of Racing for giving me the opportunity to be here. I drove my heart out and gave everything I had, every single inch. I’m sorry to the team that I couldn’t make it to the lead, but it was all that I had today. I’m sorry for No. 27; they deserved a good result. It was great to get a result like this and to share the podium with Jonny and Gray.”
Jonny Adam: “It was super special. It was so unlucky for the No. 27; they had the car. They looked so good throughout the race. We just kept a clean car. Dudu was a superstar; he just drove so well. I’m new to Heart of Racing, but what Ian has created here is a team atmosphere between the drivers, mechanics and personnel. It is such a close-knit team. The Vantage has always been good at Le Mans, and to prove that again today is super special as well.”
Season Standings
Race 3 of 10 : Circuit de la Sarthe
Highest Season Finish : 3rd (Circuit de la Sarthe)
Completed Laps : 668/669
Provisional Championship Standings : 6th
No. 007 Aston Martin THOR Team Valkyrie Information
Driver Lineup: Harry Tincknell, Tom Gamble, Ross Gunn
Class: Hypercar
Started: 11th (3:24.004-seconds - Gunn)
Finished: 8th
Laps: 379/381
Laps Led: 0
Pit Stops: 30
Chatting with the drivers…
Harry Tincknell: “I’m really happy to be honest. I feel like we got the maximum amount out of the package. P8 with double points for Le Mans, good result. Of course, we would have liked to be higher, but we didn’t have the straight-line speed to compete. I’m really proud of all the boys and girls at The Heart of Racing. Another Le Mans in the books, and satisfying when you feel like you’ve got the most out of it.”
Tom Gamble: ”Another step forward really. I think we knew it was going to be a bit of a tough race. So we went with a keep the nose clean, stick to our plan, and don’t get too silly, and we ended up cycling through to P8. I think that’s more than what we thought we could have achieved. This is actually my best ever finish at Le Mans. The mechanics, engineers, and the whole crew were flawless and made no mistakes. We’ll see how we get on in São Paulo.”
Ross Gunn: “Le Mans is always such a special event to be a part of. For us, it was a very testing race, but it was, in many ways, amazing as well. We managed to get both cars to the finish, and, in our case, a top-eight finish, which I feel like is all we could hope for. We executed a very clean race as a team with minimum mistakes and good strategy. It’s a clear sign of progress from where we were last year, and that was always the intention for this weekend. It’s such an honor to drive the Valkyrie on this track and to represent The Heart of Racing and Aston Martin; to me, it's something I’m truly very proud of.”
Season Standings
Race 3 of 10: Circuit de la Sarthe
Highest Season Finish: 4th (Spa-Francorchamps)
Completed Laps: 742/745
Provisional Championship Standings: 10th
No. 009 Aston Martin THOR Team Valkyrie Information
Driver Lineup: Marco Sorensen, Alex Riberas, Roman De Angelis
Class: Hypercar
Started: 7th (3:24.729-seconds - De Angelis)
Finished: 14th
Laps: 372/381
Laps Led: 0
Pit Stops: 34
Chatting with the drivers…
Marco Sorensen: “It wasn’t the Le Mans that we came for, but it’s the Le Mans that we got. The team did a great job getting both cars to the finish. We got a bit unlucky at the beginning of the race with a fueling issue, which cost us a lot of time. From that point, it just went downhill, but we still came here and improved on last year. Now we just have to continue. I think if we continue with the same progress we had last year, we are going to be in a way better place for next year.”
Alex Riberas: “What a roller coaster, so many emotions throughout the whole race. Some ups and downs, some moments of hope where we thought the car had a lot of potential. Especially at first, with Marco, we thought we had enough pace to compete for a top-ten finish. Here at Le Mans, when you go down a lap, it’s so unforgivable. Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough pace to come back from the loss at the beginning of the race. However, the team did an incredible job; all the pit stops were incredible, the strategy was great, and the car felt better as the race went on. I think we learned a lot and I’m already looking forward to next year.”
Roman De Angelis: “It’s an amazing experience, and I’m fortunate enough to get to race around here. It’s a blessing, but this was a tough one. We had a lot of stuff thrown our way, and in the last hour we had a mechanical failure. Both cars crossed the line, much better than last year. All in all, a tough weekend but a lot of progress from last year. The job for me was to keep the car clean and not do anything stupid to bring the car home in the last hour. I can’t thank everyone at The Heart of Racing and Aston Martin enough; it’s a pleasure to get to do this every weekend.”
Season Standings
Race 3 of 10: Circuit de la Sarthe
Highest Season Finish: 14th (Imola Circuit)
Completed Laps: 720/745
Provisional Championship Standings: 20th
No. 27 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage Information
Driver Lineup: Ian James, Zacharie Robichon, Mattia Drudi
Class: LMGT3
Started: 1st (3:52.433-seconds - Drudi)
Finished: DNF
Laps: 291/336
Laps Led: 56
Pit Stops: 29
Team Notes
After a strong first fourteen hours of the race, Drudi was behind the wheel when he noticed the gearbox was making an unusual sound. The team decided to continue through the gearbox issue, knowing it might hold until the end.
With just under three hours remaining in the 24-hour race, Robichon came down pit lane for four tires and fuel, but unfortunately the gearbox gave out on the Mulsanne Straight, forcing an early retirement for the No. 27 squad.
Chatting with the drivers…
Mattia Drudi: “Of course I enjoy being at Le Mans with The Heart of Racing. I feel like Ian, Zach and I all did a mega job. We were quick the entire race; we had been up towards the front. We had a good strategy and no mistakes. It is a shame to finish the race earlier, but we still had good memories. We were looking forward to the last couple of hours because we were in contention for a podium and possibly the win. It would have been good to be on track until the end.”
Zacharie Robichon: “First and foremost, we just have to be super happy for the No. 23 car. Dudu, Jonny, and Gray just did a fantastic job. Right now, I'm just happy for them. It was tough for us, but that’s racing. Around 5- 6 a.m., we started hearing a sound from the gearbox; generally, when that starts, the gearbox doesn’t last long. It lasted longer than we expected, and we started to believe it might last until the end, but unfortunately, when I was in the car, it just kept getting worse. It just is what it is, but we have a chip on our shoulder now heading into Sao Paulo.”
Ian James: “What a 24 hours. We got one car on the podium, which is great. The crew executed all week brilliantly. A bit disappointed; the No. 27 car was in contention for the win there and lost a gearbox. Then on the other side of the garage with the Hypercars. We got one in P8; it’s a big step forward from last year. A bit disappointed in some regards, but super happy to end up on the podium.”
Season Standings
Race 3 of 10 : Circuit de la Sarthe
Highest Season Finish : 2nd (Spa-Francorchamps)
Completed Laps : 576/669
Provisional Championship Standings : 10th
Upcoming Race
The Heart of Racing’s WEC program heads to Brazil July 10-12 for the 6 Hours of São Paulo. With four cars back in action, the team enters the weekend with plenty to chase—from LMGT3 redemption to continued Hypercar momentum.
