Ian James has hailed the fine health of the FIA World Endurance Championship ahead of next month’s 24 Hours of Le Mans (10-14 June) – a race that Aston Martin THOR Team will approach brimming with confidence following a stellar showing at Spa-Francorchamps that yielded its best result to-date.
After shining throughout free practice in Belgium – with one of the two works Valkyrie Hypercars lapping inside the top five in each session, highlighted by the second-fastest time for Alex Riberas in FP1 – Aston Martin lined up sixth and seventh on the grid for the six-hour contest around the legendary ‘Ardennes rollercoaster’.
Behind the wheel of the #007, Harry Tincknell initially conceded ground as he slipped down the order to 13th, but he soon set about fighting back, with a succession of incisive overtakes allied to a smart strategy hauling the car into contention entering the race’s final two hours.
A timely safety car intervention allowed the team to top up on fuel and get in-sync with its rivals, before Tom Gamble narrowly avoided being collected by António Félix da Costa’s spinning Alpine at the top of Raidillon.
Following the final re-start, the Briton set about hunting down Kevin Magnussen (BMW), Antonio Fuoco (Ferrari) and Kamui Kobayashi (Toyota) in a four-way fight for the runner-up spoils, boldly displacing the latter along the Kemmel Straight in a breathless dash to the chequered flag in front of a record-breaking Spa crowd of 101,606 trackside fans.
Fourth place was the finest yet for the Valkyrie in only its tenth appearance in the series, continuing Gamble and Tincknell’s encouraging start to the 2026 campaign and extending the road-derived prototype’s recent points-scoring run to four consecutive events.
“It was an unbelievable race!” reflected Tincknell. “I said to myself in the first stint, just stay calm and save fuel, because it will come back to us. This championship and this racing create amazing things at Spa – it was epic!
“I couldn’t be prouder of the boys and girls in this team who have worked so hard and improved the car so much from this time last year to now. We weren’t always super-fast, but at other points we were lightning and we will learn a lot from this to take into Le Mans. The main thing is we were strong in the sectors that most resemble Le Mans, so it’s exciting.”
“I didn’t really expect that,” mulled Gamble. “With two hours to go we were P11, and I thought it was probably going to be a bit of an annoying race, given the strong pace we had – but then it all changed! Things panned out for us with the safety cars at the end and we were able to move forward.
“I think my life flashed before my eyes when the Alpine went off in front of me – that was a close call! I was ten inches away from a monumental crash, and then my heart was racing for a bit. We managed to get past the Toyota with a nice clean move, and there was some fantastic racing at the end for second place. I’m so proud of the team; to have finished in the points twice in a row, and so strongly, is a great morale boost going to Le Mans.”
In the #009 Valkyrie, Riberas and Marco Sørensen were actually running ahead of the sister car until disaster struck late on. The Spaniard pulled off gutsy passes on Ferrari’s Nicklas Nielsen and Cadillac’s Louis Delétraz, but an attempt to relieve da Costa of fifth along the high-speed Kemmel Straight saw him take to the grass, sending him spearing into the barriers on the opposite side of the track, with the consequent damage obliging an early bath.
That disappointment notwithstanding, Aston Martin can travel to Le Mans – the season’s undisputable flagship event – in positive mood. Occupying fourth spot in the Manufacturers’ standings, the famous British brand has established a solid foundation from which to challenge for success in a race it won outright with the Roy Salvadori and Carroll Shelby-crewed DBR1 back in 1959.
“Finishing fourth in such a fiercely-contested race was a good achievement and a great way for Aston Martin THOR Team to begin its preparations for the 24 Hours of Le Mans,” acknowledged Adam Carter, the marque’s Head of Endurance Motorsport.
“The Valkyrie was competitive all weekend at Spa, and we are very pleased for Harry and Tom, who have worked hard and waited a long time to be rewarded with a strong finish. To be just five seconds behind the winner at the end is a clear indication of how competitive the sport is now, and gives us plenty to be optimistic about ahead of a critical month in June.”
“The team did an amazing job, the Valkyries were duking it out inside the top ten throughout and my heart rate was going up-and-down all day long!” added Team Principal, Ian James, who placed second in the LMGT3 category in the same race in Heart of Racing Team’s #27 Aston Martin Vantage that he pilots alongside Mattia Drudi and Zacharie Robichon.
“To finish fourth was fantastic; it was obviously a bit bittersweet with what happened to Alex, but P4 for the #007 was just reward for all the hard work that’s gone into this. Tom’s been on fire all year, and I think he proved what a star he is and that he belongs in this class – going around the outside of the Toyota into Les Combes was a big move, and he pulled it off well.
“From a fan’s perspective, there isn’t a better form of racing on the planet right now – to have so many manufacturers inside the top six is testament to the quality of sportscar racing and how exciting it is.”
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