He Aston Martin LMH Hypercar It has already been tested on the track. The development programme to fine-tune it has already begun and the aim is for it to debut in early 2025 at the 24 Hours of Daytona.
It will be the first Hypercar to compete simultaneously in the WEC and the IMSA and will also be the only non-electrified car in the category. It is based on the production Aston Martin Valkyrie and uses a naturally aspirated V12 engine developed by Cosworth.
Aston Martin goes against the grain with the Valkyrie LMH
Aston Martin is not beating around the bush: in 2025 it wants to fight for victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the first time since it achieved victory in 1959. It will do so with the Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH Hypercar And, if that challenge were not enough, the Valkyrie racing car will also be the first Hypercar to compete simultaneously in the WEC (FIA World Endurance Championship) and the American IMSA (WeatherTech SportsCar Championship).
Aston Martin’s return to the top category of endurance racing is no surprise, as the Gaydon-based company announced the move a few months ago, but it is only now that the racing version of the Aston Martin Valkyrie has been revealed.
It is the first hypercar to be created from a production model, although it is true that the production Vakyrie is one of the most extreme cars ever created. From the beginning of its development it was conceived to offer maximum performance on the track and now it has become an official racing model.
The Aston Martin Performance Technologies department and the factory team The Heart of Racing have been tasked with developing it. After completing initial evaluation testing in the UK this week, a comprehensive multi-circuit preparation programme begins to fine-tune it.
The goal is to obtain FIA homologation this fall and make its racing debut in early 2025, in the 24 Hours of Daytona. So far, it has been tested by Aston Martin High Performance development driver Daren Turner and The Heart of Racing team drivers who won the LMGTE class at the 2020 Le Mans 24 Hours, Mario Fambacher and Harry Tincknell.
The Valkyrie LMH uses the same carbon fiber chassis as the production Vakyrie, but optimized for competition, like the 6.5-liter naturally aspirated Cosworth V12 enginewhich develops more than 1,000 hp in its standard version and is capable of turning at 11,000 rpm.
The Valkyrie LMH’s special feature, or at least one of them, is that it will be the only non-hybrid Hypercar. This has several advantages, such as greater lightness, lower development costs and less complexity which should translate into greater reliability. The Glykenhaus 007C already participated in the category in 2023 without a hybrid unit, but it was not a fast car. The regulations allow it and Aston Martin is going to take advantage of the regulations in this way.
According to Aston Martin, “The power unit has been enhanced and tailored to meet the performance requirements of the Hypercar category and has been developed to withstand the rigours of top-level endurance competition.”
“We are at the very top of motorsport, the competitors are extraordinary and have been at this for a long time. Some have infinite resources. We know we are up against the best, so our intention is to represent Aston Martin at the same level. I believe that, from what we have seen so far, and with the DNA of our car, we have the right tools to do this successfully,” he said. Ian Jamesteam manager of The Heart Of Racing.
According to the team’s top manager, Aston Martin is going all out with this challenge, although they are also aware of how difficult it is to return to the top of the podium in the racing race, especially devoting a good part of their resources to Formula 1 and more than six decades after their last triumph, with Carroll Shelby and Roy Salvadori at the wheel of an Aston Martin DBR1 from the official team in 1959. That was the only time Aston Martin won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the premier class.
Source: www.motorpasion.com
