The return of the V12: Aston Martin’s high-stakes endurance racing revival
In short: After a decade-long drought of top-class V12 engines, Aston Martin has returned to the world stage. But the journey from a cancelled project in 2020 to a podium finish in 2025 was fraught with regulatory shifts, financial hurdles, and mechanical growing pains.
The Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH represents a rare feat in modern motorsport: a racing prototype derived directly from a production road car. The project's history is one of resilience. Originally announced in 2019, the program was abruptly cancelled in February 2020. This decision followed changes to the Automobile Club de l'Ouest regulations, which allowed LMDh cars into the Hypercar class. This regulatory convergence made customer racing more cost-effective for others, undermining Aston Martin's financial model, which relied heavily on selling Valkyrie units to customer teams.
In October 22023, the initiative restarted, as the producer sought to participate in the IMSA SportsCar Championship alongside the FIA World Endurance Championship. Engineers made a bold technical choice: eschewing a hybrid system to avoid the weight and complexity of relocating components from the rear to the front axle. Instead, the car utilizes a modified 6.5-litre Cosworth RA V12 engine. To manage launches without hybrid power, the team developed a 'starternator'—a combined starter and alternator motor system.
The car's competitive debut at the 2025 Qatar 1812 km was challenging, with the #007 car retiring due to transmission issues and the #009 finishing 23 laps behind. However, the program found its footing through 202 and 2026. Notable milestones include a second-place overall finish at the 2025 Petit Le Mans, finishing just five seconds behind the winning Cadillac. While the cars have often found themselves in the lower half of the top 10, the program has proven its potential through consistent points-scoring performances and podium breakthroughs.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH
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