Aston Martin Valkyrie Debuts at the 2025 FIA World Endurance Championship
Aston Martin's thrilling new chapter begins next weekend. The British ultra-luxury performance brand will unveil the all-new Valkyrie hypercar at the first round of the 2025 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC), the Qatar 1812km at Lusail International Circuit.
Aston Martin introduced its first ‘Le Mans Hypercar’ (LMH), Valkyrie, marking it the sole entry in the WEC’s premier category from a road-legal hypercar. Spearheaded by the factory team Aston Martin THOR in Qatar, this debut launches a historic season for the British contender, which will uniquely compete in both the FIA WEC and North America’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
Directed by Aston Martin Performance Technologies and The Heart of Racing, the race version of Valkyrie merges a race-optimised carbon fibre chassis with a revised 6.5-litre, Cosworth-engineered V12 naturally aspirated engine. This power unit peaks at 11,000rpm and delivers over 1000bhp in its base form, yet it complies with the hypercar regulations’ stringent 500kw (680bhp) power cap.
This venture places Aston Martin, a continuous participant and one of the most successful manufacturers in the FIA WEC since its inception in 2012 with 11 championship titles, at the pinnacle of world championship sportscar racing for the first time since 1989’s AMR1 Group C challenger. Additionally, it opens the door for Aston Martin to vie for its first outright Le Mans victory since 1959.
The driver lineup for the two-car programme showcases an intriguing mix of seasoned expertise and emerging talent within the Aston Martin works driver ranks. The #007 Valkyrie features an all-British crew with Harry Tincknell, 2016 European Le Mans Series (ELMS) champion and 2020 Le Mans LMGT3 victor, joined by rising star Tom Gamble, 2020 ELMS LMP3 title-winner, for the entire eight-race season. Ross Gunn, a consistent winner in IMSA’s GTD and GTD Pro categories over the past four years, completes the team for the longer races, including the Qatar 1812km and Le Mans.
In the sister #009 Valkyrie, three-time FIA WEC GT class champion Marco Sørensen (DEN) teams up with long-time THOR racer Alex Riberas (ESP), an IMSA GTD Pro victor for the past three seasons and a member of last year's FIA WEC LMGT3-winning squad at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA). The 2022 IMSA GTD Champion Roman De Angelis reinforces the team for the longer races.
This highly anticipated debut of the Valkyrie marks a significant milestone for Aston Martin and the THOR team. It brings years of development into the spotlight of world championship racing. As the team prepares for the challenging season ahead, its ultimate goal is to compete and leave an indelible mark on the history of sports car racing.
