After an eight-week summer break, the FIA WEC kicks off the final phase of the season at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA). Following their double victory in Brazil, the local heroes from Cadillac will be doing everything they can to triumph on home turf.
In São Paulo, the tide turned in the World Endurance Championship. After four races dominated by Ferrari, Cadillac suddenly took the lead. Behind them, the Porsche works team was delighted with third and fourth place – BMW, Peugeot and Alpine also collected important championship points recently. Ferrari, on the other hand, failed to finish in the top 10 with either of its works cars.
However, the cards will be reshuffled for the upcoming 6-hour race at COTA, also known as Lone Star Le Mans. The expected temperatures will play a major role, as Urs Kuratle, LMDh manager at Porsche, explains. ‘At the beginning of September, temperatures in Austin are often well above 30 degrees Celsius. The asphalt heats up enormously and poses major challenges for all teams in terms of tyre usage.’
New drivers in the hypercar
Due to the weather forecast, the Porsche team has decided to support the driver duos Julien Andlauer and Michael Christensen #5 as well as Kévin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor #6 with an additional driver each. This means that Australian Matt Campbell and Frenchman Mathieu Jaminet will return to the WEC for the race in Texas.
There are also changes in the cockpit for the other teams for the guest appearance at COTA. Toyota welcomes José María López back to the GR010 HYBRID #7. The Argentine, who regularly drives the Lexus RC F LMGT3, replaces Mike Conway this weekend, who injured his collarbone a few days ago. In addition, regular driver Sébastien Buemi returns to his teammates Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa, who last competed as a duo in Brazil.
In addition to Buemi, the two Peugeot factory drivers Jean-Eric Vergne and Stoffel Vandoorne were also absent from the WEC race in Interlagos. The reason for this was a clash with their activities in the Formula E championship. In Austin, they will be back in the WEC and will be bringing the newly crowned Formula E vice-world champion Nick Cassidy to the track. As announced by the French team, Cassidy will be a regular driver in the Peugeot 9X8 from 2026 and will drive his first test kilometres at COTA.
‘I’m very proud to be joining Peugeot for the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship. Racing for such an iconic brand in endurance racing — especially at the 24 Hours of Le Mans — is a dream opportunity,’ said the 31-year-old after signing as a Peugeot works driver.
Title battle for the manufacturers’ championship
After a strong start to the season, Ferrari currently leads the manufacturers’ standings with 175 points. Despite its comfortable lead, however, the Maranello-based team cannot afford to make any mistakes in the upcoming races. Both Cadillac and Porsche are within striking distance and will continue to heat up the World Championship battle in Austin.
“Last time out in São Paulo, we wanted to score as many points as possible and close the gap to the leaders in the manufacturers’ championship. In fact, we had a flawless, fast race with both cars and finished in third and fourth place – our team couldn’t have achieved any more,” explains Jonathan Diuguid, Managing Director of Porsche Penske Motorsport. ‘We are competing in Austin with the same goal. We have complete confidence in our performance and operational processes and want to further reduce the gap in the manufacturers’ standings.’
The action kicks off on Friday, 5 September, with FP1. Qualifying for the 6 Hours of COTA starts on Saturday at 10 p.m. British Summer Time. The race starts on Sunday, 7 September, at 8:00 p.m. The full schedule for the Lone Star Le Mans can be found in the race overview. Broadcasts are available on the TV & Livestream page.
Cover image: Toyota Gazoo Racing, image 2: Stellantis Media, image 3: Porsche Newsroom