Genesis GMR‑001 spotted at Imola
Genesis’ GMR‑001 hypercar was spotted at Imola ahead of its WEC debut — the sighting called out the V8 ‘scream’ and arrival timing as Genesis joins the 2026 Hypercar grid as the newest manufacturer spotting context. That twin web/social note confirms Genesis is stepping into top‑level endurance racing this season.
Genesis’ new 3.2‑litre twin‑turbo V8 completed its first bench fire‑up at Hyundai Motorsport’s Frankfurt workshops on April 17, 2025, and Genesis says the engine’s basic architecture shares roughly 60% of parts with Hyundai’s 1.6‑litre WRC inline‑four. (newsroom.genesis.com) ORECA built the first of three GMR‑001 development chassis and handed it to Genesis at Le Castellet in mid‑2025, with the car’s first on‑car engine installation and fire‑up recorded on July 9, 2025 as part of the chassis‑completion programme. (newsroom.genesis.com) Genesis Magma Racing will campaign two GMR‑001s in the FIA WEC, nominating André Lotterer/Pipo Derani/Mathys Jaubert for one car and Mathieu Jaminet/Paul‑Loup Chatin/Daniel Juncadella for the other, while Jamie Chadwick has been named official reserve and development driver after multi‑day tests at Magny‑Cours. (fiawec.com) The 2025 development programme logged roughly 3,000 km in its first wave of on‑track testing and included more than 500 laps during focused Paul Ricard sessions, while Genesis accelerated race readiness by placing Trajectory Programme drivers in the ELMS with partner IDEC Sport. (autosport.com)
