News Summary
- Three titles remain open at Monza: the Hypercar drivers’ championship and the LMGT3 drivers’ and teams’ trophies.
- The #8 Toyota leads the #7 by 17 points and can clinch from sixth on countback. Both crews start on the eighth row.
- Sixth place guarantees the LMGT3 titles for Jonny Edgar and the #33 Corvette. The #92 Porsche and #34 Corvette can still overturn the lead, while the #69 BMW is out of contention.
The two Toyotas fighting for the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship drivers’ title will start side by side on the eighth row at Monza. The #8 has a 17-point lead and can afford to finish sixth even if the #7 wins. The #7 starts one place behind its sister car, with the same 14 Hypercars in front of both crews.
There is a separate championship fight further back in the field. The #33 TF Sport Corvette starts second in LMGT3, nine class positions ahead of its closest challenger, the #92 Porsche. Both LMGT3 trophies remain open, but the identity of the two pole-sitters has simplified the calculation for Sunday.
Hypercar: What do the two Toyotas need?
Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryō Hirakawa lead on 114 points, with Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and Nyck de Vries on 97. Neither Toyota reached Hyperpole. Antonio Fuoco took the pole point for the #50 Ferrari, leaving the gap between the Toyotas unchanged and 25 race points available to either crew.
| Car | Crew | Points before the race | Starting position |
|---|---|---|---|
| #8 Toyota | S BUEMI B HARTLEY R HIRAKAWA | 114 | 15th |
| #7 Toyota | M CONWAY K KOBAYASHI N DE VRIES | 97 | 16th |
The key position is sixth. It pays eight points, so the #8 would reach 122. A win would take the #7 to 122 as well, but the #8 would still have more race wins. It enters Monza with three, against one for the #7.
| #7 Toyota result | #7 final points | #8 result that gives the #7 the title |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | 122 | 7th or lower, or no points |
| 2nd | 115 | No points |
| 3rd or lower | 112 or fewer | None. The #8 wins the title regardless of its result |
The #8 can therefore finish 10th and still win a tie if the #7 is second. The #7 needs to win or finish second to have any chance. Toyota has ruled out team orders and already secured the Hypercar manufacturers’ championship in Barcelona. Sunday is also Conway’s final professional race.
LMGT3: What does the #33 Corvette need to clinch?
The #33 leads the teams’ standings on 92 points, against 74 for the #92 Porsche and 70 for the #34 Corvette. Jonny Edgar also has 92 in the drivers’ standings. His teammates are on different totals: Nicky Catsburg has 88 and Ben Keating 70. A title for the #33 entry would therefore make Edgar the drivers’ champion under normal scoring for the crew, with Catsburg and Keating retaining their separate totals.
| Car | Monza crew | Team points | Class starting position |
|---|---|---|---|
| #33 TF Sport Corvette | B KEATING J EDGAR N CATSBURG | 92 | 2nd |
| #92 The Bend Manthey Porsche | Y SHAHIN R PERA R LIETZ | 74 | 11th |
| #34 Racing Team Turkey by TF Corvette | P DEMPSEY S YOLUÇ C EASTWOOD | 70 | 10th |
| #69 Team WRT BMW | A MCINTOSH P THOMPSON D HARPER | 66 | 16th |
Hadrien David beat Edgar to class pole by 0.014s in the #78 Lexus. That puts the pole point outside the title fight. A sixth-place finish takes the #33 to 100, while the most the #92 can reach is 99 and the #34 can reach 95. The #69 can only reach 91, so its title chance ended in qualifying.
| #33 Corvette result | What can take the LMGT3 titles away from the #33 and Edgar? |
|---|---|
| 6th or higher | Nothing. The #33 and Edgar clinch. |
| 7th or 8th | The #92 Porsche wins the race. |
| 9th or 10th | The #92 Porsche or the #34 Corvette wins the race. |
| No points | The #92 wins, the #34 wins, or the #92 finishes second with the #34 failing to win. |
The last line is the one to watch if the #33 runs into trouble. Second place for the #92 would tie the #33 on 92 points. The Porsche and Corvette would have one win and one second place each, so the Porsche’s greater number of third places would decide the tie. If the #34 wins in that scenario, its 95 points put it ahead of both. A third place for the #92 or a second place for the #34 cannot overturn Edgar’s 92.
For the #92 Porsche, a win is enough if the #33 finishes seventh or lower. For the #34 Corvette, a win is enough only if the #33 finishes ninth or lower. The difference is four points: eighth place leaves the #33 on 96, one more than the #34 can score even by winning.
What else is at stake at Monza?
Toyota already has the Hypercar manufacturers’ crown. BMW, Ferrari and Cadillac are still fighting for second in that standings table. BMW came into the weekend on 154 points, ahead of Ferrari on 130 and Cadillac on 118, and Fuoco’s pole added a point to Ferrari’s total. That gives the #50 another target even though the Hypercar drivers’ title is a Toyota contest.
The 6 Hours of Monza starts at 11:00 CET on Sunday, November 8, which is 10:00 GMT, 05:00 ET and 15:30 IST. The full race is available on FIAWEC+.
GRANDE PRÊMIO is following the 6 Hours of Monza in its WEC coverage.
