Aston Martin Valkyrie targets Le Mans victory after 66 years

This is far from an ordinary Valkyrie, assuming such a version could exist. It is the Aston Martin Valkyrie heading to Le Mans in June as the marque pursues its first outright victory there in 66 years. No pressure, then.

Aston Martin Valkyrie enters WEC and IMSA

Discussed for years before being formally confirmed in October 2023, the programme will see Aston Martin field two cars in the World Endurance Championship in 2025. The season begins in Qatar at the end of the month, while a third Valkyrie will compete across the Atlantic in IMSA.

Ironically, this is the least powerful Valkyrie ever built. WEC regulations require its 6.5-litre V12 to be reduced from its usual 11,000rpm and 1,000bhp+ to a comparatively restrained 680bhp.

Yet, amid a grid populated by V6 and V8 engines, it will still be a V12. Aston Martin is using a modified lean-burn version of the Cosworth unit, for fuel-efficiency reasons. That has, in turn, allowed the team to alter the torque curve.

Although the Valkyrie will be the sole Hypercar at Le Mans based on a road-going car - how do you like them apples, Ferrari? - the softened engine is not its only change from the standard model. The Ricardo seven-speed gearbox has, for instance, been replaced by an Xtrac transmission. It also receives a single-point rapid-refuelling coupling, a high-speed pneumatic jacking system and a cockpit configured for a swift escape. Got to taste that champagne ASAP, right?

As required by the regulations, it will use the mandated Michelin Pilot Sport 18s rather than its usual Cup 2s.

Valkyrie revised for the Le Mans challenge

Naturally, the bodywork has progressed since Adrian Newey first put quill to parchment for the car's design all those years ago. Newey is, of course, now employed by Aston Martin - perhaps he still has that file labelled ‘Valkyrie - unfinished bits’?

Harry Tincknell and Tom Gamble will make up an all-British pairing for Aston Martin's full WEC effort, while Marco Sorensen and Alex Riberas will share the other car. Ross Gunn and Roman de Angelis, meanwhile, have been tasked with Aston Martin's single IMSA campaign. For Le Mans in June, they will be split between Aston's two WEC entries.

“This is a proud moment for Aston Martin,” says CEO Adrian Hallmark. “To be returning to the fight for overall honours at the 24 Hours of Le Mans exists at the very core of our values and marks a key milestone in our motor racing heritage.

“As the only hypercar born from the road to challenge at the top of sports car racing in both the WEC and IMSA, the Valkyrie is an embodiment of our enduring sporting ethos, one that has defined the brand for more than a century.”

Aston Martin's factory programme will be run by The Heart of Racing (THOR), which previously campaigned a Vantage in the GT3 class.

It will be a tougher undertaking. Much tougher. Aston Martin will come up against Ferrari, Toyota, Porsche, Cadillac, BMW, Alpine and Peugeot - and most of them have already done it. Aston Martin has not.

Adam Carter, Aston Martin's head of endurance motorsport, considers that an advantage. “Of course, we only do it because we want to win,” he explains. “However, we respect the challenge of the events and the competition. They are at a high level, and that’s why we want to compete against them. Fundamentally, it is only worth winning if it’s against strong competition.”

There are fewer than five months remaining. Better order those ear defenders quickly.