Akkodis ASP Team has unveiled a pair of distinctive one-off liveries for next month’s 24 Hours of Le Mans (10-14 June), where its twin Lexus RC F LMGT3 entries will bid to fulfil the promise and potential they have displayed in the opening two rounds of the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship campaign.
In the Imola curtain-raiser, both Akkodis cars retired from top five positions within a lap of each other, and they were similarly solidly in the hunt for silverware last weekend at Spa-Francorchamps, only for misfortune to strike once more.
After series rookie Hadrien David produced a stellar lap in Hyperpole to secure the top spot on the starting grid in the Ardennes, the #78 Lexus piloted by the Frenchman, Tom Van Rompuy and Esteban Masson led the race early on, but a drive-through penalty for a track limits transgression dropped them down the order. The trio had fought back to third when a technical issue cruelly sidelined them with barely an hour remaining.
“It’s been a painful start to the season,” mused Masson. “We optimised our race at Spa with a good strategy and strong pace, running in a net podium position until we were forced to stop in the last hour. My team-mates did a flawless job, and thank you to the whole Akkodis ASP Team for the hard work. We keep grinding and we will analyse, focus and regroup for next one.”
The sister #87 RC F also showed solid speed in Belgium, topping the timesheets in FP1 courtesy of former FIA World Endurance Champion, José María López, before going quickest again in the first part of qualifying in the hands of Petru Umbrărescu. Clemens Schmid then bagged a berth on the second row of the 18-strong LMGT3 grid in Hyperpole, while in the race, a consistent and combative performance earned the crew their first points of the season in sixth.
“What a rollercoaster ride!” reflected Schmid. “It was six intense hours full of ups-and-downs, and I’m proud of the entire team for fighting until the very end. Now, all focus shifts to the big one – the 24 Hours of Le Mans. We can’t wait to be back on-track for the most iconic race of the year!”
Indeed, Lexus has led the LMGT3 class at La Sarthe in both of its appearances in 2024 and 2025, but has yet to take the chequered flag higher than fifth. Hoping the forthcoming 94th edition of the legendary twice round-the-clock contest will prove the truth of the old adage, ‘third time’s a charm’, Akkodis ASP Team has unveiled two bold new looks for the event – one that is renowned as an international platform for innovation.
Replacing the traditional red-and-gunmetal grey, the #78 Lexus will sport a yellow-and-blue colour scheme inspired by the team’s long-time title partner – a global digital engineering consultancy that brings to the programme its expertise in the areas of data analysis, artificial intelligence and simulation, helping to connect cutting-edge technologies with human skills in the pursuit of peak performance.
With Masson moving to LMP2 for Le Mans, David and Van Rompuy will be joined in the line-up by 2023 IMSA GTD Pro category champion Jack Hawksworth, who has starred for Akkodis during stand-in outings at Le Mans over the past two years.
The #87 RC F, meanwhile, will take to the track in northern France in green, grey and silver, showcasing Akkodis’ long-standing relationship with high-performance lubricant specialist, Minerva Oil, which dates all the way back to the squad’s early years in the Porsche Carrera Cup France. This livery highlights the fact that in a discipline as demanding as endurance racing – where managing mechanical stresses is essential – the quality of lubricants plays a decisive role.
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