Porsche 963 completely absent as WEC publishes 35-car entry...

The World Endurance Championship has released a 35-car entry list for the 2026 season, confirming that Porsche will have no presence in the Hypercar class.

The German manufacturer will not battle for outright glory in the 2026 WEC following the withdrawal of its Porsche Penske Motorsport factory team and its customer squad Proton Competition.

Porsche’s future in the category had looked uncertain since October, when it announced the closure of its works programme in Hypercar amid declining road car sales.

Proton made it clear at last month’s Bahrain WEC finale that it lacked the funding to expand its operations to two cars in order to meet the championship’s eligibility criteria for manufacturers.

Although a late push was made to keep the Porsche 963 on the grid in privateer hands, with Penske reportedly involved, Proton confirmed last week that it will not continue its Hypercar programme into 2026.

Porsche Penske Motorsport still holds an automatic entry to the Le Mans 24 Hours as a reward for winning the IMSA GTP title this year, but it cannot take up the invite unless it maintains a presence across the full eight-round world championship.

The departure of both PPM and Proton means there will be 17 cars competing in Hypercar next season, down from 18 this year.

Porsche’s exit has been partially offset by the arrival of Hyundai’s luxury arm Genesis, which will field a pair of Oreca-based GMR-001 LMDh prototypes following an extensive testing programme over the year.

Andre Lotterer, Pipo Derani and Mathys Jaubert will drive Genesis’ #17 entry, while Daniel Juncadella, Mathieu Jaminet and Paul-Loup Chatin will share the #19 car.

There are no major changes elsewhere, with reigning champion Ferrari, Toyota, Aston Martin, Cadillac, Alpine and Peugeot all continuing their presence in Hypercar next year. Among those, Toyota, BMW, Cadillac and Alpine are all introducing major upgrades to their LMH or LMDh prototypes next season. In total, eight brands will vie for top honours in the WEC in 2026.

There will be just one entry in the FIA World Cup for Hypercar, a sub-category reserved for privateer or customer teams. AF Corse’s satellite #83 Ferrari 499P will be the only non-factory entry in the top class following Proton’s exit.

2026 LMGT3 grid

Start action, LMGT3

Photo by: FIAWEC - DPPI

The LMGT3 category will continue to attract 18 entries in 2026, split equally among nine manufacturers - Aston Martin, Ferrari, BMW, Corvette, McLaren, Mercedes, Ford, Lexus and Porsche.

However, there will be several team changes in what will only be the third season for the LMGT3 class following its introduction in 2024.

Firstly, the all-female Iron Dames will leave the LMGT3 class entirely, as announced last month, with both Porsche 911 GT3 Rs therefore running under the Manthey banner in 2026. While the German squad is yet to announce its full line-up - regulations require teams to name just one driver at this stage - it has revealed that reigning DTM champion Ayhancan Guven will spearhead the second entry that previously raced under the Iron Dames moniker.

Elsewhere, Garage59 will take over the running of McLaren’s LMGT3 programme, as United Autosports shifts focus to the development of the British manufacturer’s LMDh programme for 2027.

Another change concerns Aston Martin, with Racing Spirit of Leman departing the LMGT3 class after just one season. The Heart of Racing team will now run both Vantage GT3s under its own name.

Finally, the Lexus RC F GT3 will remain on the grid with ASP for another season, with its successor - the Toyota GR GT3 that was revealed last week - now set to debut in 2027.