Genesis’ Daniel Juncadella needed just one day to get up to speed in WEC hypercar

Genesis signing Daniel Juncadella insists a professional GT driver like him only needs one day to get up to speed in a hypercar in the World Endurance Championship, playing down the difficulty of the switch.

The Spaniard will join the WEC's top class in 2026, sharing a Genesis GMR-001 with Mathieu Jaminet and Paul-Loup Chatin as Hyundai’s luxury marque enters Hypercar.

Juncadella has built a broad resume across sportscars and tin-tops since leaving single-seaters after his 2012 European Formula 3 title. With a title in GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup, an outright victory in the Spa 24 Hours, plus class wins in the IMSA SportsCar Championship and the WEC, he is one of the most accomplished drivers in present-day GT racing.

However, his prototype experience is extremely limited, having only ventured into LMP2 racing this year after signing up for the European Le Mans Series in anticipation of a Hypercar programme in 2026.

But after several winter tests in the Oreca-based GMR-001, Juncadella does not see his GT background as a problem, arguing that LMH and LMDh cars are not as difficult to adapt to as many believe.

“I'm fully ready. I don't need more than one day of testing to be on pace because it's a big GT,” he told Motorsport.com.

“Some manufacturers, some people and some top bosses probably think otherwise, that you need prototype experience - and that was the reason why in the last couple of years I felt I never got the chance - but it's not true [that you need prototype experience].

“It’s a big GT - it's a GT with power. It has a similar speed in low-speed corners to a GT. Of course, it has some downforce, but it's not like an LMP2. An LMP2 has a lot more downforce compared to a hypercar, so that's why we're up to speed.”

The Hypercar class was designed around a very different philosophy from the LMP1 class, a shift reflected in the lap times.

When LMP2 cars were still eligible in the WEC, rulemakers deliberately slowed them to maintain a gap between the two prototype classes.

Even now, Hypercar drivers often find it complicated to pass through LMGT3 traffic, particularly in tighter sections around a track.

While this has reduced the spectacle compared to previous eras, the smaller speed differential has also made it easier for drivers to make the step up to Hypercar. Porsche and Ferrari, in particular, have found success after recruiting much of their driver line-ups from the GT ranks.

Juncadella, who raced in LMGT3 with TF Sport Corvette for the past two seasons, said he was enjoying his move into Hypercar as he ramps up preparation for 2026.

“[Testing has been] very good. It's been a dream because I've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time, to race a hypercar,” he said.

“So every lap that I'm driving that car just feels amazing, even though there's a lot of development still happening behind in terms of systems, drivability.

“We need to make a lot of steps of course, which is part of the development, but I love every lap I'm doing, so if you ask me, it's great.”

Daniel Juncadella, Genesis Magma Racing

Photo by: Genesis

Genesis will become a relatively late arrival to Hypercar in 2026, five seasons after the inception of the class and three years after the new breed of LMDh prototypes became eligible to race in the WEC.

While the South Korean brand is pouring a lot of resources into its first sportscar programme, Juncadella was keen to downplay any expectations for the 2026 season.

“I think the number one programme now for Hyundai and Genesis is clearly Hypercar in WEC, and that's pretty cool to see. It's still early days.

“There's still a lot of people that need to be hired and new people coming every week, every test, learning new things, so it's pretty nice to be part of that from the beginning.

“I think we need to be careful assessing [our chances]. When you look at most of the brands, the first year is always going to be difficult.

“But anyway, we are not setting our goals on results straight away. This is a long-term project. I don't believe this is a one-year project, so we need to look at the long game and go step by step.”

Read Also:

WECNick Cassidy: WEC hypercar systems “like a holiday” after Formula E complexity

WECVanwall plotting WEC comeback with upgraded hypercar

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