McIntosh Aiming to “Absorb” WEC Debut Ahead of 2026 Effort

Photo: Julien Delfosse/DPPI

Anthony McIntosh said he’s aiming to “absorb everything” in his FIA World Endurance Championship debut, as the American Bronze-rated driver sets his sights on a full-time drive in the globe-trotting series next year.

McIntosh has joined Racing Spirit of Leman for this weekend’s 6 Hours of Sao Paulo, taking the place of regular driver Derek DeBoer in the team’s Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo alongside Valentin Hasse-Clot and Eduardo Barrichello.

For the 50-year-old Wisconsin native, who only started racing in 2021 after having a near-death brush with an aggressive form of Lyme disease, his step into the LMGT3 class marks the latest chapter in what’s been a meteoric rise through the sports car racing ranks.

McIntosh, who began in Mazda MX-5 Cup competition, has since taken on programs in series such as Lamborghini Super Trofeo, Pirelli GT4 America, Michelin Le Mans Cup, Italian GT Championship, among others, achieving considerable success along the way.

It was through his Super Trofeo Europe campaign, which ran on several WEC weekends last year, where he first discovered the world championship and the LMGT3 category, which enforces a Bronze-rated driver in each lineup.

“WEC was something I didn’t even know existed until last year,” McIntosh told Sportscar365. “When I started racing, I never had watched a race, never saw anything.

“As I was just doing championships, just aimlessly going through, I was in Lamborghini [Super Trofeo] at Imola [last year] and that was the first time I ever heard about WEC.

“Then it was on my radar, and I was like, ‘Ah this seems pretty wild. I don’t even understand the rules.’

“So I learned about that, I learned about Asian Le Mans Series, which I did with Parker Thompson and Ben [Barnicoat] and that was really cool. We got a win out there.”

While primarily competing in sprint racing up until his venture in Asian Le Mans, McIntosh said he’s found an “actual place” for him as a gentleman driver.

“There really isn’t a good place right in the U.S. for Bronze drivers,” he said. “In the U.S., I’m basically driving against Silvers.

“Even if I’m in SRO or Lamborghini in Pro-Am, they still keep dumping Silvers in the Am slot.

“I thought this is great, I can go to Europe and there’s an actual place for me.

“That’s how I kind of ended up here. My background is just sprint racing against Silver drivers, who are like 20-25 years old.

“For me, it’s like, ‘Take a step back, chill out.’ I don’t have to go toe-to-toe with these guys and bang doors non-stop.

“For me, it’s pretty cool. That’s what put me on this path.”

With his focus now on securing full-time drives in the WEC, as well as the European Le Mans Series next year, McIntosh said his shift to endurance racing will see him wind down his other current programs, including GT4 America with co-driver Parker Thompson, as well as Super Trofeo North America.

“Parker and I sat down and said, ‘Hey, what are we going to do?'” said McIntosh.

“Together as a group, we’re coming up to the idea that if I’m going to do WEC next year and do ELMS, why don’t I get in there [now] and learn some of these tracks, learn the rules now when I can make a mistake and it’s not going to be for a championship.

“The opportunity came up to drive with these guys and I jumped at it. It’s been an amazing thing.

“My goal for next year is to have a WEC plan, an ELMS plan and figure out if I’m going to do ALMS (Asian Le Mans Series) or if I’m going to do something like Bathurst, Dubai [24] or something like that.

“I probably will not race much in the U.S.

“We’re trying to figure out what that would look like for me next year. For example, I love driving with Parker. But Parker is probably not able to come with me to WEC.

“He’s probably not going to be able to go with me to ELMS because of the IMSA conflicts, so now I’m really kinda on my own trying to figure out who’s going to be my teammates, is there a world where I can have Parker in the car with me?

“I’m very loyal to the people I’ve driven with. I just need to vet these things out.”

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