Alpine and Iron Lynx top the averages.
Hypercar
The average lap times
Toyota topped the averages in fp1, but Alpine came to the fore by the end of the two sessions. The main story is just how tightly packed the Hypercar field is. Alpine’s #36 heads the meaningful lap-average measures, with the #35 also right at the sharp end despite apparently not being able to be bothered with quite as much practice. Ferrari is similarly strong across both the works #50/#51 cars and the #83 AF Corse entry, while Toyota’s #8 is firmly in the leading group.
Aston Martin’s #007 produced the headline fastest lap, but over repeated laps it drops back into that very congested leading pack. Genesis is already right in the mix too, particularly the #19, while Cadillac sits a little further back. Peugeot has flashes of pace but less convincing averages, and BMW brings up the rear of the ranking despite doing plenty of lappage.
Note: these include deleted laps for track limits and pitlane violations.
And yes, before the usual BoP excitement reaches DEFCON 1: they are extremely close. Different manufacturers are leading different measures and tiny gaps separate most of the field. It is almost as though declaring the championship fixed after looking at one practice lap might be a touch premature. This is just practice. Quick to facebook comments!
Fastest laps set during some qualifying practice runs early in fp2.
#8 Toyota was the fastest of the average in fp1, Alpine #36 after fp2. #51 Ferrari had the fastest lap in fp1, #007 Aston in fp2.
All four found their best laps early in fp2, not during their longest runs. Alpine’s pace looks the most strongly supported by the surrounding laps, Ferrari looks the most experimental, Aston mixed an early push with later race work, and Toyota concentrated heavily on structured long-run practice.
#36 Alpine: A fairly methodical programme with all three drivers getting useful running. Martins set the fastest lap early in FP2, and it was backed up by several other quick laps rather than being a one-off. Later running looked more like sustained race preparation.
#51 Ferrari: The most stop-start of the four, with lots of pit visits and obvious changes in pace. Giovinazzi set the fastest early in FP2 after slower preparation laps, suggesting a deliberate push-lap run. Much of the rest looks more experimental than outright pace-focused.
#007 Aston Martin: Tincknell set the overall Hypercar fastest lap early in FP2, again after preparation laps rather than in the middle of a long run. Later running, especially from Gamble, looks more like race-pace work. A clear case of performance work first, lappage later.
#8 Toyota: Probably the most straightforward endurance-style programme, with clear driver blocks and decent-length runs. Hirakawa set the fastest early in FP2, after a build-up rather than straight away, before Toyota moved back into longer race-style running.
Speed Trap
Aston Martin #007 is the standout in the speed traps, with Genesis #19 also consistently strong rather than just producing a single big number. Peugeot #94 is another car that looks slippery in a straight line, while Ferrari sits a little further back but still firmly in the competitive group.
The more interesting bit is how poorly the speed-trap order maps onto the overall lap-time ranking. Alpine #36 is one of the quickest cars over a lap despite being relatively modest through the trap, while BMW is near the bottom for sustained straight-line speed and also near the back on lap averages. Toyota is especially variable, capable of a very high peak without showing anything like the same strength across the broader speed samples.
Lappery
We often see BMW up at or near the top of the lappery charts. Toyota are another team that often do a lot of laps in practice. Genesis up there with a car too. Aston revert to type and don’t do that many laps. BMW’s #15 wins the completely unofficial Lappery Championship, with the #20 also accumulating plenty of mileage. Toyota #8 and Genesis #19 were similarly enthusiastic, while Ferrari, Alpine and Cadillac generally collected solid amounts of useful lappage.
At the other end, Alpine #35 completed the fewest laps yet remains one of the quickest cars on the averages, which is rather efficient. Peugeot #93 and Aston revert to type and are light on running.
Sectors
There is no single-car domination here either. Peugeot #94 heads Sector 1, Alpine #36 Sector 2 and Ferrari #50 Sector 3. Behind them, Aston Martin, Toyota, Genesis and the other Ferraris and Alpines are scattered throughout the leading positions.
The #36 Alpine is perhaps the most complete package, appearing very near the front across all three sectors, while Aston Martin #007 combines particularly strong first and second sectors. Ferrari looks especially effective in Sector 3. Peugeot’s Sector 1 performance is another useful reminder that one impressive piece of a lap does not automatically turn into the best overall average.
Drivers
Charles Milesi stands out on the repeated-lap measures, backed up by strong performances from Victor Martins, Antonio Giovinazzi and Robert Kubica. Mathieu Jaminet looks particularly good when the sample is stretched further, suggesting very solid sustained pace from the #19 Genesis.
Mathys Jaubert also deserves attention: the Silver-rated Genesis driver produced one of the outright quickest laps while completing plenty of running. Marco Sørensen takes the driver lappery prize with the most laps of anyone, giving Aston Martin a very substantial dataset to work with.
Overall, there are encouraging signs for Alpine, Ferrari, Aston Martin and Genesis, but nowhere near enough separation to justify an afternoon of furious BoP spreadsheeting. Give them a chance to actually race first.
LMGT3
Mercedes-AMG #61 looks strongest on the repeated-lap measures, leading both the shorter and medium-length averages, while the #27 Aston Martin has the outright fastest lap and comes back to the top when the sample is stretched to 25 laps. Garage 59’s two McLarens are also consistently near the front, with the Fords and Ferraris forming the next group.
There is an extra complication in LMGT3: these car averages contain very different mixtures of Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum drivers. A car that spent more of its useful lappage in the hands of its Bronze driver can look worse than one whose professional drivers did more running, so the overall averages are useful but certainly not a pure ranking of the machinery.
Some set their fastest time in fp1 due to the nature of the class and when the different drivers take to the track.
Speed Trap
Ford #88 is the standout when repeated speed-trap runs are considered, with the #77 also very strong. Aston Martin #27 records the biggest single number, while McLaren, Lexus and Mercedes all appear towards the sharper end of the straight-line rankings.
Porsche is conspicuously near the bottom, particularly the #91, with BMW also less impressive over the broader samples. But the sector performance demonstrates why the speed trap should not be treated as a horsepower leaderboard: Porsche can be competitive elsewhere on the lap despite giving away speed at the trap.
Lappery
The #92 Porsche takes the LMGT3 lappery championship which is normal, followed closely by the #77 Ford and #91 Porsche. Ferrari #21 and Aston Martin #27 also put together plenty of lappage, while most of the field sits in a fairly narrow band.
Corvette #34 apparently decided 58 laps was quite enough practice, thank you very much, with McLaren #58 and Lexus #78 also towards the lighter end of the running.
Sectors
Mercedes #61 provides the clearest statement of the whole analysis: it heads all three sector rankings. That is a much stronger indication of genuine underlying pace than simply producing one spectacular lap.
Aston Martin #27 is also extremely convincing, particularly through S2 and S3, while McLaren is prominent across the sectors with both cars. Ford looks especially good in S1, Ferrari is competitive throughout, and Porsche shows much better in S2 and S3 than its straight-line figures might initially suggest.
The sector table therefore reinforces the impression that Mercedes, Aston Martin and McLaren have started the weekend particularly well rather than revealing some enormous performance gulf.
Drivers
The driver table is particularly useful in LMGT3 because it helps separate car performance from who happened to be driving it.
Zacharie Robichon put the #27 Aston Martin at the top on outright pace, while Thomas Fleming, Rui Andrade and Finn Gehrsitz are particularly impressive over repeated laps. Fleming leads the longer short-run average, Andrade is extremely strong over his best handful of laps, and Gehrsitz gives the second McLaren another very competitive benchmark.
Sebastian Priaulx stands out when the sample gets longer, while drivers such as Riccardo Pera, Timur Boguslavskiy and Ian James also show useful sustained pace. Several of the quickest performers are Silver or Gold-rated rather than simply the expected Platinum professionals, which is worth filing away.
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