Spa Wednesday Notebook

Photo: Julien Delfosse/DPPI

***FIA World Endurance Championship teams were greeted to cold and rainy weather at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps on Wednesday as preparations continued for the start of on-track action on Thursday for the TotalEnergies 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, the second round of the season.

***Among the changes since last month’s season-opening 6 Hours of Imola include the first starts of the campaign for Sheldon van der Linde and Dries Vanthoor (both BMW Team WRT), Jack Aitken (Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA) and Eduardo Barrichello (Heart of Racing Team) after all four drivers prioritized the clashing IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race at Long Beach that weekend.

***Additionally, Louis Deletraz has been drafted into the No. 12 Cadillac, in place of Alex Lynn, in what marks the four-time European Le Mans Series LMP2 champion’s WEC Hypercar debut. Deletraz downplayed the possibility of taking part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, or potentially even completing the season in the car, amid rumors of Lynn’s imminent departure to McLaren.

***He told Sportscar365:  “I will do what I’m told to do. Of course, Le Mans in Hypercar is very nice but I have a great program with AO by TF as well in LMP2. Alex is supposed to be back for Le Mans. I wish him all the best and we’ll see what happens. There’s not been any talks about me being in Le Mans, so I’ll wait and see.”

***TF Sport team boss Tom Ferrier said he’s hopeful of having a strong showing this weekend with the team’s pair of Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs, especially considering the less available race time prior to next month’s 24 Hours of Le Mans when factoring in the postponed Qatar 1812km.

***Ferrier said: “Having Qatar moved means we only have two races in the season pre-Le Mans, so we have a lot of work to do on the team side in the background. Spa is a good circuit to race ahead of Le Mans, as you mention, because of the track nature. But we have to remember that it is the same for everyone… We had a strong test [here] back in March before it snowed! Let’s hope that carries forward… except the weather!”

***Sheldon van der Linde believes Team WRT’s involvement in the early season IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship races could play a benefit for the squad entering the French endurance classic, particularly in better understanding the updated aero package on the BMW M Hybrid V8 and the new-for-2026 range of Michelin Pilot Sport Endurance tires.

***The South African and Dries Vanthoor make their first WEC starts of the season after missing Imola due to racing on the streets of Long Beach. “Everyone has one race less but we have IMSA as a double program. We’re one of the only teams that still have a double program going,” van der Linde told Sportscar365. “I definitely see it as an even bigger advantage this year being one of two or three [manufacturers] that have that.”

***Van der Linde, now in his second dual series campaign, believes there’s an even larger data crossover between BMW’s GTP and Hypercar programs given that they’re now both run by the Vincent Vosse-led operation.

***He said: “I definitely think it’s more transparent. I think it always was in the past but obviously with the same team running it now, it’s natural that the crossover between some of the same guys running both programs is naturally just more open. I think that really helps us forward. It was always the goal to have it transparent but it was never as open as it is now and I think that’s a huge advantage for us.”

***This weekend’s BMW throwback livery on the No. 69 WRT BMW M4 GT3 EVO of Anthony McIntosh, Parker Thompson and Dan Harper holds a special memory within WRT, as it’s based on the BMW 635 CSi that won the 1986 Spa 24 Hours. Thierry Tassin, the WRT’s Hypercar sporting director, was part of the driver lineup alongside Dieter Quester and Altfrid Heger.

***Genesis Magma Racing driver Dani Juncadella is hoping the manufacturer can build upon its impressive Imola debut, where he felt “we surprised ourselves a bit with the actual performance” with another strong showing at Spa.

***Juncadella told Sportcar365: “I think the track will again suit nicely our car because I have a feeling that on all the high-speed areas we were fairly strong compared to the competition. It seems like the weather might be a bit up and down as well, so that’s going to again create a lot of new scenarios for us. I would love to see a wet race or wet conditions at some point to see also how we can adjust our systems based on that because we’ve seen in WEC last year, for example COTA, there was a massive delta between the slowest and the fastest one.”

***Juncadella added that one of the key areas Genesis is focusing on now is developing its systems. “There’s a lot you can do in terms of balance and then ultimately performance with your brake systems,” he said. “It’s obviously a short turnaround from Imola, so it’s not like we can change things up and down, but if we are able to understand better how we can improve the car with the systems and gain some performance with that, that’s going to be extremely positive.”

***Twenty-eight time WEC starter Lucas Di Grassi recently announced his retirement from racing following the conclusion of the 2026 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship season, While having spent 14 years in the all-electric series, the Brazilian competed with Audi Sport from 2013-2016, scoring two wins and 14 podiums in LMP1 competition.

***McLaren is expected to make its second driver announcement on Friday, joining Mikkel Jensen in the Hypercar squad’s lineup for the 2027 season. The car completed a successful rollout at Varano on Monday and Tuesday with Jensen and McLaren Driver Development Program member Gregoire Saucy at the wheel.

***Speculation of BYD joining the Hypercar class, potentially as early as 2028, has intensified in recent weeks, with leading German publication Motorsport Aktuell reporting that discussions have occurred on the possibility of the Chinese auto giant purchasing the assets of the Alpine A424 program, including its motorsports engineering facility Viry-Chatillon in France.

***BYD is one of at least four Chinese automakers that are either evaluating or plotting sports car racing programs, including Chery through its EXEED brand, Geely, with its Lynk & Co brand that has already created a home-grown TCR car, and Great Wall Motor having recently declared plans to build a GT3 car.

***The ACO, WEC, MissionH24 and its partners, the Automotive Skills Alliance, Green Skills for H2, and Hydrogen Europe Research, will organize the third annual forum on hydrogen technology at Spa-Francorchamps this weekend. In addition to theoretical and practical sessions with hydrogen experts, spectators will have the chance to visit the ‘Hydrogen Village’ located in the fan zone and watch demonstrations of hydrogen-powered vehicles on track on Friday and Saturday.

***Included will be the Toyota GR Yaris H2 Concept, which will conduct parade laps on Saturday afternoon prior to the race start with a “special driver” at the wheel.

***The FIAWEC+ app is now available via both the Apple App Store and Google Play. Launched for desktop users in March, it has become the new home of live streaming of the WEC, European Le Mans Series and Michelin Le Mans Cup, along with new docuseries, ‘WEC Insider’ and ‘WEC Originals’ along with an all-new timing and scoring platform.

***Apple and Android users can now purchase the all-access 365 Pass for €49.99, €10 less than FIAWEC+’s predecessor, FIA WEC TV. Race-by-Race Passes, meanwhile, are available at €9.99 for six, eight or ten-hour races or €19.99 for next month’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. All packages are available to U.S. and Canadian viewers, although races will continue to be available via HBO Max.

***Thursday’s track action will include a pair of Free Practice sessions, from 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. CEST and 3:40-5:10 p.m.

Finlay Ringer contributed to this report

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