Preview: 6 hours of Fuji

Text: Rick Kiewiet

Images: FIA WEC, Rick Kiewiet, Genesis

The FIA World Endurance Championship heads into its penultimate round of the 2025 season with the 6 Hours of Fuji, the 100th race in WEC history. The Japanese race returns with Ferrari in firm control of both championships after a dominant campaign, while rivals search for ways to halt the Prancing Horse’s run. With just Fuji and Bahrain remaining, every detail matters — from Balance of Performance adjustments to driver line-up changes — as the grid prepares for another weekend in the shadow of Mount Fuji.

Image courtesy of FIA WEC

Minor BoP Tweaks Shape the Balance

The Balance of Performance bulletin for Fuji confirmed only minor changes compared to the last round at the Circuit of The Americas. Alpine headlines the adjustments with a 6 kW power increase for its A424, bringing it up to 512 kW. BMW and Porsche have been handed modest gains of 2 kW, while Toyota and Cadillac lose just 1 kW each. Ferrari, Aston Martin and Peugeot remain unchanged, with minimum weights also static across the board.

The most notable tweak lies in the Power Gain values, where Peugeot has received an increase of 2.5 percent above the 250 km/h threshold, potentially giving the 9X8 a little more speed on Fuji’s long main straight. For the rest of the field, changes are minimal and unlikely to shift the established order.

In LMGT3, the BoP updates are more visible but still modest in scope. The Ford Mustang GT3, fresh from pole at COTA, takes on 15 kg of extra ballast, bringing it to 1349 kg. Ferrari’s 296 GT3 is up 4 kg to 1358, and both the BMW M4 GT3 Evo (+8 kg) and Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R (+3 kg) also gain weight. The Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo is the only car to lose mass, shedding 5 kg to 1339. Power tweaks are minimal, though the BMW gains a one percent bump below 200 km/h, while Aston Martin sees its second-stage power cut most significantly at -1.7 percent. In both categories, the governing bodies have resisted wholesale changes, aiming instead to maintain stability as the season reaches its climax.

Porsche Shuffles Line-Up for Fuji

The entry list for Fuji confirms a notable change at Porsche Penske Motorsport, where Mathieu Jaminet will step in for Michael Christensen in the #5 Porsche 963. Christensen misses his first WEC race since 2021 due to IMSA testing duties at Road Atlanta, ending an unbroken run of appearances for the Dane. Jaminet, who has already made four WEC starts this year including at Le Mans and COTA, will partner full-season driver Julien Andlauer.

With Kevin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor continuing in the sister #6 entry, Porsche runs two-driver crews for the final time this season before reinforcements return in Bahrain. Fuji thus marks a key weekend for Porsche as it looks to grab another win, on a circuit that traditionally suits its package.

Ferrari Looks Ahead to 2026

While its rivals prepare upgrades, Ferrari has confirmed it will not introduce major Evo Joker updates for its 499P heading into the 2026 season. The Maranello marque, which has swept four of the six races so far this year including a third straight Le Mans triumph, argues there is no need to risk upsetting a well-balanced package. Performance chief Mauro Barbieri has stressed that Ferrari is content with its current trajectory, working only on smaller areas of improvement that do not require spending a Joker.

It is a stance that contrasts sharply with Alpine, BMW and Cadillac, all of which are planning significant revisions for next year as part of the mandated Windshear wind tunnel re-homologation. For Ferrari, stability appears to be the winning formula, even as the rest of the field looks to reset in a bid to catch the benchmark 499P.

Genesis Magma Expands 2026 Line-Up

Looking beyond 2025, Genesis Magma Racing has announced that Mathys Jaubert and Dani Juncadella will join André Lotterer and Pipo Derani in its Hypercar roster for 2026. The Frenchman and Spaniard, both race winners in European Le Mans Series LMP2 competition this year, graduate through the team’s Trajectory Programme as the Korean marque builds momentum for its debut WEC campaign.

Image by Genesis

The additions give Genesis a balanced mix of youth and experience for the GMR-001’s maiden season, while underlining its ambition to compete at the sharp end from the outset. Both Jaubert and Juncadella will begin testing later this year alongside their senior teammates, marking the first steps toward the team’s highly anticipated debut at Qatar next March.