The Heart of Racing Team delivered Aston Martin’s first 2026 WEC victory with the Vantage GT3, while the Valkyrie finished fourth in the Hypercar class.

Aston Martin enjoyed a huge weekend at the Circuit of the Americas, with the Vantage GT3 claiming its first FIA World Endurance Championship victory of 2026 and the Valkyrie scoring its best Hypercar result of the season.

The Heart of Racing Team took the LMGT3 victory with Ian James, Mattia Drudi, and Zach Robichon, while its sister Vantage finished third.

Vantage Finally Takes Its First WEC Win

The #27 Vantage GT3 started second and remained near the front through the opening stages.

Robichon moved into the class lead during the second hour before handing the car to Drudi.

The sister #23 Vantage GT3, driven by Gray Newell, Dudu Barrichello, and Jonny Adam, completed the podium.

The car remained inside the top six for much of the race before Barrichello fought for third place after the final Safety Car period.

The #23 Heart of Racing Vantage GT3 finished third for Aston Martin’s first WEC double podium.

The result gives Heart of Racing its first WEC double podium.

It also moves both crews closer to the LMGT3 championship leaders with three rounds still remaining.

Valkyrie Comes Within Three Seconds of a Podium

Aston Martin’s Hypercar program also delivered a strong result.

The #007 Valkyrie, driven by Tom Gamble and Harry Tincknell, finished fourth at COTA, less than three seconds behind the final podium position.

The Aston Martin Valkyrie finished fourth at COTA, its best WEC result of the 2026 season.

The result extended Valkyrie’s points-scoring streak to eight consecutive WEC races.

The car has now scored points in every WEC round of 2026, showing significant progress only 18 months into the program.

Aston Martin remains in a close battle with Alpine for fifth in the Hypercar manufacturers’ championship, with Fuji, Barcelona, and Monza still to come.

More Success for Vantage in British GT4

The Vantage also secured another championship elsewhere.

Grange Racing by FSR’s Daniel Lavery and Darren Turner clinched the British GT4 Pro-Am title with one race remaining after taking their fifth consecutive class victory.

Turner collected his third GT4 Pro-Am championship, while Lavery completed an impressive debut season.

For Aston Martin Vantage WEC, the COTA weekend represented a major breakthrough: the Vantage finally delivered its first 2026 WEC victory, the sister car joined it on the podium, and the Valkyrie came within seconds of another top-three finish.

Lando Norris admitted his radio complaint about Oscar Piastri during the Italian Grand Prix was made in the heat of the moment, calling their late-race battle fair.

Lando Norris has played down his heated radio comments about Oscar Piastri during the Italian Grand Prix.

The McLaren teammates fought for fourth place late in the race, with Norris even putting two wheels on the grass during one attempted pass.

Norris Admits It Was “In the Moment”

The battle began when Norris overtook Piastri on lap 48.

Piastri immediately regained fourth place, setting up another fight between the two McLaren drivers with just a few laps remaining.

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri battled intensely for position during the closing laps at Monza.

At the second chicane, Piastri defended the inside while Norris attempted to squeeze through the narrowing gap.

With no room remaining, Norris ran two wheels onto the grass and complained over the radio that his teammate had pushed him off.

After the race, however, Norris quickly softened his criticism.

He admitted that Piastri had raced fairly and suggested his perception was influenced by the speed and intensity of the moment.

McLaren Ordered a Clean Fight

The battle continued until the final lap, with McLaren instructing both drivers to have a “clean race.”

Norris eventually waited for the right opportunity before making his decisive move.

Norris eventually completed the winning pass on Piastri at the Variante Ascari.

By following Piastri, Norris was able to preserve more battery energy before making the move at Ascari.

Piastri attempted to respond on the run to the finish, but a significant slide out of the Parabolica prevented him from retaking the position.

Piastri Calls It a Good Battle

Piastri also considered the fight fair.

The Australian said the pair used different energy strategies and that he believed he had a chance to reclaim the position after losing it to Norris.

Oscar Piastri finished fifth after a final-lap battle with his McLaren teammate.

Ultimately, Norris finished fourth and Piastri fifth, with both McLarens crossing the line close together.

For Lando Norris Oscar Piastri, the Monza fight showed the intensity of McLaren’s internal battle, but Norris’ post-race comments made clear that his earlier radio complaint was largely an emotional reaction to a high-speed situation rather than a lasting accusation against his teammate.

Toto Wolff says Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s rapid progress in Formula 1 has exceeded expectations, comparing the Mercedes driver to an AI that continuously learns and improves.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s rise through Formula 1 has impressed even Toto Wolff.

After Antonelli’s spectacular victory at Monza, the Mercedes team principal compared the young Italian to an AI system that continually learns and improves.

Antonelli Has Taken a Huge Step Forward

Antonelli’s first season in Formula 1 was inconsistent, with difficult stretches and more than nine races without scoring points.

Wolff says those struggles were part of the learning process.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli has made a dramatic step forward during the 2026 F1 season.

According to Wolff, Antonelli absorbed the pressure, media attention, and experience from his rookie campaign before returning much stronger after the winter.

The results have been remarkable.

Antonelli now leads his Mercedes teammate George Russell by 66 points in the championship.

Wolff: “Like an AI That Improves Itself”

Wolff admitted that even he did not expect Antonelli to progress so quickly.

He believes the Italian has effectively absorbed everything he experienced during his first season and transformed it into improved performance.

Toto Wolff says Antonelli’s ability to learn from every experience has accelerated his development.

Wolff described Antonelli as being like “an artificial intelligence that improves itself and continuously learns.”

The Mercedes boss believes Antonelli’s young age also gives him an advantage when it comes to cognitive development and processing new information.

Monza Showed His Progress

Antonelli’s victory at Monza provided perhaps the clearest demonstration of that development.

Starting 19th because of an engine-related grid penalty, the 20-year-old worked his way through the field before completing a remarkable comeback victory.

Antonelli won at Monza after starting from 19th on the grid.

Despite now holding a substantial championship lead, Antonelli says he is refusing to look too far ahead.

He prefers to approach the season race by race, with the next challenge coming at the new Madrid circuit.

The approach reflects the same measured attitude that has accompanied his improved performances throughout 2026.

For Andrea Kimi Antonelli, the Monza victory was another major step in a development curve that even Wolff admits has been extraordinary.