“The first ‘Le Mans Hypercar’ (LMH) to be produced by Aston Martin, Valkyrie is the only car in the WEC’s premier category derived from a road-legal hypercar. Its global debut, masterminded by the works Aston Martin THOR team in at the Qatar 1812km of Qatar in February, began an historic season for the British machine. Valkyrie is the only LMH to compete in both the FIA WEC and in North America’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and scored a top-10 finish on its US debut at the 12 Hours of Sebring – renowned as North America’s toughest endurance race – in March,” Aston Martin claimed. (It was an all Ferrari at Qatar in February with the Italians Placing One, Two and Three after the 1812km race. Moreover Imola is Ferrari’s home circuit. – AutoCrat)

Developed by Aston Martin and THOR from the Valkyrie production model, the LMH version blends a race-optimized carbon fiber chassis with a modified 6.5-liter V12 powerplant with an 11,000 rpm limit. It makes more than 1000 horsepower in standard form, but adheres to a strict 500kw (680 bhp) regulation power limit.

Valkyrie positions in Aston Martin’s view, as an entrant in the FIA WEC every year since the series’ inception in 2012 and one of its most successful manufacturers with 11 championship titles, a contender to challenge for its first outright victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, since Carroll Shelby (USA) and Roy Salvadori (GBR) won in the Aston Martin DBR1 in 1959.

As Imola’s race lasts six hours, the traditional length for an FIA WEC event, rather than the 10 ours of the Qatar event, both the #007 and #009 Valkyries will have two-driver line-ups rather than the trios that competed at the disappointing opener.