James: Valkyrie AMR-LMH Race Debut a “Moving Target”

Photo: Drew Gibson/AMR

The race debut for the Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH car is a “moving target” according to Heart of Racing team principal Ian James, who stressed that the car’s development program is still “going to plan.”

The V12-powered prototype, which broke cover in July, has continued testing in Europe and is set to expand to parallel programs in the U.S. and the Middle East by November, in preparation for a planned dual-series campaign in the FIA World Endurance Championship and IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship next year.

“We’ve gone through the initial phase of reliability and longevity stuff and now we’re digging into the performance side a little bit more,” James told Sportscar365.

“We’ve flipped to that a little bit. Obviously still car longevity and endurance is important but now we’re looking at a little bit more of the actual performance of the car.

“It’s definitely a tick in the box, which feels good. But there’s a long road ahead.”

James revealed the LMH car has not yet run at any circuits that the WEC currently races at, meaning it has yet to establish a proper benchmark.

This will come, however, following the current WEC and WeatherTech Championship seasons once the development program branches out of European testing.

“We’re looking to go to tracks that we’re going to be racing at,” said James. “At least we’ll have some idea. When you’re on your own, you’re always [don’t] feel ok until you get a reality check.

“The first time it will be in the U.S. will be after Petit [Le Mans] and then after Bahrain. It will be the first time we can see it around where other cars have driven.”

Tests at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, Sebring International Raceway and Daytona International Speedway are planned, as well as Qatar’s Lusail International Circuit and a WEC post-season Michelin tire test at Bahrain International Circuit in November.

James said having the car present in November’s IMSA-sanctioned test at Daytona is “still the goal” although unlike previous years, is not mandatory for homologation purposes in the series.

Whether the car will make its race debut in the Rolex 24, however, remains unclear.

“It’s still a moving target so we can’t commit to anything right now,” said James.

“It’s going to plan. But we haven’t gotten to the homologation stage or the wind tunnel stage. Now we’ll also have to do Sauber wind tunnel and Windshear.

“There was a thought that it wouldn’t go [to Sauber] and that everything was going to move to Windshear. Now we have to parallel programs.”

It’s understood a debut at the WEC season-opening Qatar 1812km on Feb. 28 would be the latest possible option, with James acknowledging that it’s “in the rules” for Hypercar manufacturers to contest a full season, unlike the WeatherTech Championship GTP class.

All Valkyrie AMR-LMH Drivers to Become Aston Martin Factory Pilots

James revealed that its entire squad will be Aston Martin factory drivers, with the program utilizing either current works pilots or external drivers that will gain factory status.

It’s understood several current Heart of Racing-contracted drivers will likely be part of the lineup, with others also under consideration.

Darren Turner, Mario Farnbacher and Harry Tincknell were part of the initial shakedowns, with Ross Gunn, Alex Riberas and Roman De Angelis all understood to have seat time in the car since.

“They’ll all be factory drivers wherever they come from,” said James.

When pressed on the number of pilots they’ll need for the two-car Hypercar, single-car GTP operation, James indicated they would like to use as few as possible.

“We’ll work them hard,” he said. “I’m not going to say I won’t have eight drivers but I’m going to do it with as few as I can to give them the most track time as possible.

“The more they’re driving, the better they’re going to do.

“It’s not decided yet but that would be my preference.”

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John