James: Heart of Racing ‘Hitting Milestones’ With Valkyrie Testing

Heart of Racing Team principal Ian James says the team is ‘hitting its milestones’ testing the new Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH, and that preparations for the 2025 seasons are “going to plan.”

The V12-powered prototype is in the midst of a simultaneous testing program in the Middle East and the U.S., having recently taken part in a FIA World Endurance Championship Michelin tire test at the Bahrain International Circuit, as well as testing at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta ahead of this weekend’s IMSA-sanctioned test at Daytona International Speedway.

“We were in Bahrain, [for a] Michelin test. It’s going to plan so far,” James told Sportscar365. “We’re hitting our milestones.

“We’ve just tested in Atlanta. We’re here. We’ll be at Sebring next week. Then we’ll have a regroup after that.

“I think with any new car, [there are] a few new car niggles, but other than that, it’s been a pretty good run.”

While Heart of Racing will run the Valkyrie in a single-car WeatherTech Championship effort and a two-car WEC campaign, it remains unclear when the car will make its race debut.

Although the WEC’s opening round in Qatar at the end of February appears to be the latest the car could compete for the first time, per regulations.

“We’re still working through the homologation of it,” said James. “We’ll know more in the coming weeks.

“We’ll just do whatever’s best for the program. We’ll see where we’re at and then we’ll make a definitive decision.”

While no drivers have been named for either the team’s IMSA or WEC efforts next year, Aston Martin factory pilot Ross Gunn will turn laps at this weekend’s Daytona test, alongside Alex Riberas and Roman De Angelis.

Sportscar365 understands that all three drivers have had previous seat time in the car prior to the Daytona test.

“[There are] no drivers to be announced at this time,” said James. “But everybody that’s driven it seems to be enjoying it, and I think they all want to be part of the program.”

James Hopes Valkyrie Will be a “Gateway” for Other LMH Cars in IMSA

The Valkyrie AMR-LMH will become the first car built to the Le Mans Hypercar (LMH) regulations to compete in the WeatherTech Championship, which has only fielded LMDh prototypes in the GTP class to date.

Currently, a mixture of both LMH and LMDh prototypes compete in the WEC.

James sais he hopes the Valkyrie’s presence on the WeatherTech Championship grid acts as “a gateway” for other LMH cars to come to the series.

“We see in WEC the parity of the cars and them racing head-to-head, so hopefully it’ll be the same here,” he said.

“It’s early days for the program, but it’s nice to be here in a pretty impressive lineup of GTP cars, and [we’re] excited to be part of it.”