GMR-001 Hypercar testing reaches new phase with first performance and wet weather running

Testing of the Genesis Magma Racing GMR-001 Hypercar entered a new phase last week, with three days (October 28-30) of running at Circuit Magny-Cours in France. The running was dominated by wet conditions, giving the team the opportunity to gain information on the car’s handling balance in all conditions.

Previous progress allows focus to turn to performance for the first time

The test added another strand to the already busy development plan. Following the initial running to calibrate systems and the first endurance test to begin to work on component reliability, the three days at Magny-Cours broadened the focus to include maximising performance for the first time.

Genesis Magma Racing Sporting Director Gabriele Tarquini said: “We are continuing to develop the GMR-001 Hypercar, but we are also working on a different area and starting to think about performance. We need to build a sort of ‘tool box’ for the set-up in all conditions making sure the drivers are able to adjust the car to always be able to be push in any condition.”

“From our previous tests, I think we have made big progress on the system side.” said Pipo Derani. “As we get to the part of the development where things have been stabilized, we can switch focus to getting the maximum from the package we have in the GMR-001 Hypercar and begin to look at performance a bit more.”

The test featured all four drivers who are currently confirmed as part of the Genesis Magma Racing line-up for the FIA World Endurance Championship, with Derani joined by André Lotterer, Mathys Jaubert and Dani Juncadella.

“It was a good test for me personally to get more mileage in the car,” said Juncadella, “But it was also a very good test because it's the first time where we have had a range of conditions at the same circuit to try things with the mechanical setup. We were always moving in the right direction.”

Wet weather plays perfectly into testing plans 

The team intended to deliberately wet the track to gather data on the GMR-001 Hypercar’s behaviour in wet conditions. However, Mother Nature played along with the testing plan, delivering rain to circuit, particularly during the middle day of the test.

“Wet weather testing is always important with any new car,” said Tarquini. “We know we will face wet conditions in race circumstances at some track, and it could easily be the biggest race of the year, so the team and drivers need to know how the car reacts in difficult conditions.”“It was perfect timing,” said Tarquini. “It was planned to test in the wet on the third day, but fortunately, the second day was completely wet, so we didn't have to wet the track artificially. It actually helped us a little, because we got to run on a very wet track, but also while the circuit was drying as well.”

Jaubert said: “The car was really nice in the wet conditions. We did some running in damp conditions, but also when it was really wet during the night. Overall, we made a lot of systems improvements in the traction control. It's difficult to compare because we are the only ones on track, but the car balance feels great.”

The relatively low air and track temperatures, both peaking at 17-18°C on the coldest day, also gave the chance to gain experience with the tyres in starkly different weather to what the team have seen in previous tests.

“We got a chance to play a little bit outside the box in terms of what you would need to do warming up a tyre to have it ready to race,” said Genesis Magma Racing Chief Engineer Justin Taylor. “We can learn things which we wouldn't get a chance to do during a race weekend and start to build strategies to get heat into the tyres.”

“We ran a near 2026-spec tyre for the first time, so we got some experience of how the wet tyres behave with our car,” said Lotterer. “We worked on our systems for first time in the wet, which was very important. We learned about our traction control and all the up- and downshifts to make sure everything works correctly in the wet.”

Tarquini said: “We still want to do a lot more kilometres, but this was a very positive three days. Everybody is happy about the car behaviour in the wet, and the drivers were able to give good feedback. We had some small problems which we were fast to solve, and we know the direction to go for the next tests which will be very important.”

With only a handful of days on track remaining before the GMR-001 Hypercar begins the homologation process, there remains a lot of work to complete. The remaining tests will combine the dual targets of reliability and performance but also act as the first dress rehearsals for the team’s race weekend procedures in preparation for their FIA WEC debut.