Aston Martin’s revolutionary Valkyrie hypercar secured its strongest result to date with an eighth-place finish at the Grand Prix of Long Beach, the latest round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. This marks the car’s best race finish and qualifying position in its short but promising competition history.
Following a solid ninth-place showing at the 12 Hours of Sebring—where Valkyrie became the first hypercar to score points in IMSA—the Aston Martin THOR team advanced further at Long Beach. Drivers Ross Gunn (GBR), a past IMSA GTD Pro winner at this circuit, and Roman De Angelis (CDN), the 2022 IMSA GTD champion, guided Valkyrie to 11th in qualifying, just a tenth of a second outside the top 10. They followed up with a flawless drive in the 100-minute sprint, delivering an eighth-place finish in only the car’s third-ever race.
Developed in partnership with Aston Martin and THOR, the Valkyrie GTP is the first Le Mans Hypercar (LMH) derived from a road-legal model to compete in IMSA. It is also the only LMH entry contesting both IMSA and the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) this season.
Powered by a modified 6.5-litre V12 engine, Valkyrie features a carbon fibre chassis and conforms to the hypercar class’s 500 kW (680 bhp) output limit. Its current campaign has already delivered two top-10 finishes on demanding circuits, signaling promising development progress for the programme.
Driver Quotes
Ross Gunn: “I’m really pleased with our result at Long Beach. We faced some issues early in the weekend, but the team overcame them well. We’ve made noticeable progress since Sebring and learned a lot more about the car.”
Roman De Angelis: “Despite limited seat time before the race, I’m happy with how we performed. The car stayed clean, and that’s key at this stage in development.”
Management Commentary
Ian James, Team Principal, Aston Martin THOR Team: “This was a very encouraging result. Competing closely with other manufacturers shows the strength of the programme and the potential ahead.”
Adam Carter, Head of Endurance Motorsport, Aston Martin: “Long Beach provided a unique challenge for Valkyrie. The progress we’re making with every race is significant and keeps the momentum strong heading into Laguna Seca.”
