In late August, Genesis Magma Racing began the extensive on-track testing program for the GMR-001 Hypercar, with five days of running at Circuit Paul Ricard. The testing starts the exhaustive development schedule to prepare for the team’s debut in the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) in 2026.
Testing began the first phase of the GMR-001 Hypercar’s development and focused on confirming software configurations for the car’s major mechanical and electrical systems. Tests took advantage of the circuit’s proximity to the Genesis Magma Racing and ORECA bases, as the team and chassis partner continue to work together closely. Drivers André Lotterer and Pipo Derani combined to complete more than 500 laps of the French circuit.
The drivers concentrated their feedback on the behaviour of the car when running different configurations of software controlling the power delivered by the car’s 3.2-litre twin-turbo V8. While the car’s systems remained the primary goal throughout the test, the team could also start to work on the handling balance of the car. After initial short runs, the team was able to begin completing longer runs as early as the first morning of the test. The testing and development work with the GMR-001 will continue over the coming months, with the next phases of work aiming to ensure the car’s reliability and performance over a race distance and confirm Genesis Magma Racing’s operational structure at the circuit.
“We’re getting to the point already where we are talking about the performance of the car, which I didn’t honestly expect to be doing,” admitted Genesis Magma Racing Chief Engineer Justin Taylor. “The drivers are giving us the feedback we need on all the systems and on the side, they’re already looking at how to make the GMR-001 Hypercar fast.”
“We had some driving on the smaller tracks, but you can’t really push there,” said Lotterer. “The GMR-001 Hypercar is obviously well born – the feedback is very natural, instinctive and it’s fun to drive, but we are still working on everything.”
“It’s always an unknown when you jump into a new car,” added Derani. “You have high expectations, but with the GMR-001 we have a good base to start working from.”
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