Hyundai's luxury arm, Genesis, is going racing in a big way. On Wednesday, it launched Genesis Magma Racing and showed off a vision for its first race car, the GMR-001. It's a top-flight prototype that Genesis aims to enter the World Endurance Championship (WEC) with in 2026, and the IMSA WeatherTech series here in North America in 2027. Yes, that means Genesis is going to Le Mans.
The GMR-001 is built to the LMDh ruleset, a joint creation of IMSA and the ACO, the governing body of Le mans. LMDh cars are built around a carbon chassis from one of four selected suppliers, and use common hybrid components—a battery from Williams, a motor from Bosch, and a transmission by X-Trac. Genesis will partner with French constructor Oreca for the chassis, and team IDEC Sport for its WEC entry.
Its first two factory drivers are three-time Le Mans winner André Lotterer and 2023 IMSA GTP champion Pipo Derrani. GMR's team principal will be familiar to many Formula 1 fans—Cyril Abiteboul, who ran the Renault program for years. More recently, he's helped bring Hyundai World Rally Championship titles. To prep for its debut season, GMR will field an LMP2 entry in the European Le Mans Series next year, with a team consisting of Logan Sargent, Jamie Chadwick, and Mathys Jaubert.
LMDh has provided a relatively low-cost solution for automakers to get into top-level sports-car racing. Cars built to this ruleset include the Acura ARX-06, Alpine A424, BMW M Hybrid V-8, Cadillac V-Series.R, Lamborghini SC63, and the Porsche 963. They compete against each other, of course, but also Le Mans Hypercars (LMH) like the Toyota GR-010, Peugeot 9X8, and Ferrari 499P. Oreca currently supplies chassis for Acura and Alpine.
As part of the regulations Genesis designs the car's bodywork and provides an engine of choice. While the Korean company hasn't revealed anything on its planned power unit, most modern prototypes use small, turbocharged V-6 or V-8s.
Genesis is looking to up its sporting credentials with its Magma project, a line of sporty road cars that aren't quite aiming at the likes of BMW M and Mercedes-AMG, but do sit above the standard Genesis line. Genesis Magma Racing is the brand's way of tying road to race. "This entry into motorsport is a natural evolution for Genesis," said Genesis chief creative officer Luc Donckerwolke in a statement. "As we look to push the boundaries of our brand, motorsport allows us to bring the spirit of hyperspeed—which drives how we create and innovate—in a way that aligns perfectly with our core values: Audacious, Progressive and Distinctly Korean."
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