News Summary
- Antonio Giovinazzi took Hypercar pole for the Lone Star Le Mans with Ferrari #51 after tying Jack Aitken’s 1:52.445 but winning the tiebreak by setting his lap first.
- Charles Milesi put the Alpine #35 third, while Harry Tincknell and Nicklas Nielsen completed the Hypercar top five with Aston Martin #007 and Ferrari #50.
- Dudu Barrichello claimed LMGT3 pole for Aston Martin #23, leading a 1-2 for the British marque alongside Zacharie Robichon.
Ferrari #51 came out on top in one of the closest and most exciting qualifying sessions of recent times in the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC). In qualifying for the Lone Star Le Mans, Antonio Giovinazzi set a 1:52.445, exactly the same time Jack Aitken posted shortly afterwards in the Cadillac #38. Giovinazzi took pole because he completed his lap first.
Charles Milesi, driving Alpine #35, completed the Hypercar top three in Austin, Texas.
Harry Tincknell, who had led two free practice sessions with Aston Martin #007, qualified fourth, ahead of Ferrari #50 driver Nicklas Nielsen. Brazilian Pipo Derani qualified eighth in the Hypercar class with Genesis #17 alongside André Lotterer and Mathys Jaubert.
The qualifying result continues an encouraging weekend for Ferrari after the #51 opened Friday’s running at the top of the timesheets in FP1.
In LMGT3, Dudu Barrichello claimed pole position with a 2:05.103 aboard Aston Martin #23. The Brazilian had his best lap deleted for track limits but recovered to put the car at the front. The sister Aston Martin #27, with Zacharie Robichon, completed the front row, 0.181s behind.
Timur Boguslavskiy put the Porsche #91 third on the LMGT3 grid.
Augusto Farfus qualified seventh with BMW #32 alongside Darren Leung and Sean Gelael, earning a place in LMGT3 Hyperpole.
The WEC now returns to the Circuit of The Americas for the 6-hour Lone Star Le Mans on Sunday (6) at 13:00 local time in Austin. GRANDE PRÊMIO will provide full coverage of the event.
How qualifying unfolded at the Lone Star Le Mans
LMGT3 was the first class to take to the track.
During the opening part of qualifying, Stefano Gattuso moved to the top after two laps with Ford #88, setting a 2:06.331. Gray Newell also impressed, moving into the provisional top three with Aston Martin #23.
With the track continuing to improve, however, there was still plenty of time for the order to change.
With just over five minutes remaining in the opening phase, François Hériau in Ferrari #21 tangled with Alexander West’s McLaren #58. Both cars spun and ended up sideways on the circuit, but they were able to continue without major problems.
Eric Powell then moved into second, briefly creating a Ford 1-2 before Martin Berry, Alexander West, James Cottingham, Ian James and François Hériau all moved ahead.
With 1m30s remaining, numerous drivers were still improving their times, leaving virtually every position up for grabs.
When the clock expired, however, none of the drivers outside the top 10 managed to break into the qualification zone. Ferrari #54, Corvette #34, Porsche #92, McLaren #10, Lexus #78, BMW #69, Corvette #33 and Mercedes #79 were therefore eliminated and failed to advance to LMGT3 Hyperpole.
The Brazilian drivers moved through, with BMW #32 of Farfus eighth and Aston Martin #23 of Barrichello tenth at that stage.
Barrichello takes LMGT3 pole
In Hyperpole, Barrichello immediately set the provisional benchmark with a 2:05.160 on his first attempt.
The Brazilian then improved to 2:05.103 with Aston Martin #23, establishing a 1-2 for the British manufacturer as Zacharie Robichon followed in Aston Martin #27.
Giammarco Levorato, meanwhile, ran wide and went through the grass, ending Ford #88’s hopes of fighting for pole.
Finn Gehrsitz was the final driver with a realistic chance of taking the top spot away from Barrichello, but he could manage only fifth.
As a result, Aston Martin #23 secured its second pole position of the 2026 season, while Barrichello will start from the front of the WEC grid for the first time this year.
After a slight delay in Austin, it was finally time for the Hypercars.
Ryō Hirakawa initially set the pace with Toyota #8, posting a 1:57.820. That benchmark, however, was quickly beaten as the session developed.
Genesis then produced a surprise 1-2, with Mathieu Jaminet moving to the top ahead of Mathys Jaubert. Victor Martins ended the run shortly afterwards by setting a 1:52.436 in Alpine #36.
The times continued to tumble during the closing stages of the opening phase. Nicklas Nielsen eventually moved Ferrari #50 to the top, with Martins and Antonio Giovinazzi completing the top three when the clock expired.
Aston Martin #009, Peugeot #93, Cadillac #12, AF Corse #83, BMW #20, Peugeot #94 and BMW #15 were eliminated and failed to advance to Hyperpole.
Giovinazzi and Aitken produce a qualifying thriller
In the final battle for the Hypercar grid, Hirakawa again set the early benchmark after the first lap, but the times quickly dropped just as they had in the opening phase.
With 3m30s remaining, Jack Aitken set a 1:52.564 to put Cadillac #38 provisionally on pole.
Giovinazzi responded almost immediately, putting Ferrari #51 at the top with a 1:52.445.
Then came the extraordinary finish: Aitken matched Giovinazzi’s 1:52.445 exactly.
Because Giovinazzi had completed the identical lap first, the Ferrari #51 was awarded pole position, leaving Aitken second.
Ferrari therefore starts the Lone Star Le Mans from the front of the Hypercar field, while Cadillac #38 joins it on the front row.
WEC 2026: Lone Star Le Mans qualifying results — Hypercar
| Pos. | No. | Drivers | Team | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 51 | A. PIER GUIDI / J. CALADO / A. GIOVINAZZI | Ferrari | 1:52.445 | — |
| 2 | 38 | E. BAMBER / S. BOURDAIS / J. AITKEN | Cadillac JOTA | 1:52.445 | +0.000 |
| 3 | 35 | A. F. DA COSTA / F. HABSBURG / C. MILESI | Alpine | 1:52.474 | +0.029 |
| 4 | 007 | H. TINCKNELL / T. GAMBLE | Aston Martin | 1:52.495 | +0.050 |
| 5 | 50 | A. FUOCO / M. MOLINA / N. NIELSEN | Ferrari | 1:52.873 | +0.428 |
| 6 | 36 | F. MAKOWIECKI / V. MARTINS / J. GOUNON | Alpine | 1:52.886 | +0.441 |
| 7 | 8 | S. BUEMI / B. HARTLEY / RYŌ HIRAKAWA | Toyota | 1:52.985 | +0.540 |
| 8 | 17 | A. LOTTERER / P. DERANI / M. JAUBERT | Genesis | 1:53.006 | +0.561 |
| 9 | 7 | M. CONWAY / K. KOBAYASHI / N. DE VRIES | Toyota | 1:53.293 | +0.848 |
| 10 | 19 | M. JAMINET / P. L. CHATIN / D. JUNCADELLA | Genesis | 1:53.495 | +1.050 |
| 11 | 15 | K. MAGNUSSEN / R. MARCIELLO / D. VANTHOOR | BMW | 1:52.841 | +0.396 |
| 12 | 94 | L. DUVAL / M. JAKOBSEN / T. POURCHAIRE | Peugeot | 1:52.947 | +0.502 |
| 13 | 20 | R. FRIJNS / R. RAST / S. VAN DER LINDE | BMW | 1:52.998 | +0.553 |
| 14 | 83 | R. KUBICA / P. HANSON / Y. YE | AF Corse | 1:53.043 | +0.598 |
| 15 | 12 | W. STEVENS / N. NATO / R. TAYLOR | Cadillac JOTA | 1:53.080 | +0.635 |
| 16 | 93 | N. CASSIDY / P. DI RESTA / S. VANDOORNE | Peugeot | 1:53.220 | +0.775 |
| 17 | 009 | A. RIBERAS / M. SØRENSEN | Aston Martin | 1:53.507 | +1.062 |
WEC 2026: Lone Star Le Mans qualifying results — LMGT3
| Pos. | No. | Drivers | Team | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 23 | G. NEWELL / D. BARRICHELLO / J. ADAM | Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin | 2:05.103 | — |
| 2 | 27 | I. JAMES / Z. ROBICHON / M. DRUDI | Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin | 2:05.284 | +0.181 |
| 3 | 91 | J. COTTINGHAM / T. BOGUSLAVSKIY / A. GÜVEN | Manthey DK Engineering Porsche | 2:05.483 | +0.380 |
| 4 | 77 | E. POWELL / B. TUCK / S. PRIAULX | Proton Competition Ford | 2:05.483 | +0.380 |
| 5 | 58 | A. WEST / F. GEHRSITZ / B. GOETHE | Garage 59 McLaren | 2:05.654 | +0.551 |
| 6 | 21 | F. HÉRIAU / S. MANN / A. ROVERA | Vista AF Corse Ferrari | 2:05.765 | +0.662 |
| 7 | 32 | D. LEUNG / S. GELAEL / A. FARFUS | Team WRT BMW | 2:05.888 | +0.785 |
| 8 | 61 | M. BERRY / R. ANDRADE / M. MARTIN | Iron Lynx Mercedes | 2:05.969 | +0.866 |
| 9 | 87 | R. UMBRĂRESCU / C. SCHMID / J. M. LÓPEZ | Akkodis ASP Team Lexus | 2:06.265 | +1.162 |
| 10 | 88 | S. GATTUSO / G. LEVORATO / L. SARGEANT | Proton Competition Ford | 2:09.196 | +4.093 |
| 11 | 54 | T. FLOHR / F. CASTELLACCI / D. RIGON | Vista AF Corse Ferrari | 2:07.262 | +2.159 |
| 12 | 34 | P. DEMPSEY / S. YOLUÇ / C. EASTWOOD | Racing Team Turkey Corvette | 2:07.443 | +2.340 |
| 13 | 92 | Y. SHAHIN / R. PERA / R. LIETZ | Manthey Porsche | 2:07.479 | +2.376 |
| 14 | 10 | A. AU / T. FLEMING / M. KIRCHHÖFER | Garage 59 McLaren | 2:07.559 | +2.456 |
| 15 | 78 | T. VAN ROMPUY / H. DAVID / E. MASSON | Akkodis ASP Team Lexus | 2:07.622 | +2.519 |
| 16 | 69 | A. MCINTOSH / P. THOMPSON / D. HARPER | Team WRT BMW | 2:08.128 | +3.025 |
| 17 | 33 | B. KEATING / J. EDGAR / N. CATSBURG | TF Sport Corvette | 2:08.864 | +3.761 |
| 18 | 79 | J. ZELGER / M. CRESSONI / L. HODENIUS | Iron Lynx Mercedes | 2:08.968 | +3.865 |
FAQ
Who took pole position for the 2026 Lone Star Le Mans?
Antonio Giovinazzi took Hypercar pole for Ferrari #51 with a 1:52.445. Jack Aitken matched the exact same time in Cadillac #38 but qualified second because he completed his lap later.
Who is on pole in LMGT3 at the Lone Star Le Mans?
Dudu Barrichello claimed LMGT3 pole with Aston Martin #23 after setting a 2:05.103.
When is the 2026 Lone Star Le Mans race?
The six-hour Lone Star Le Mans takes place on Sunday, September 6, at 13:00 local time in Austin, at Circuit of The Americas.
