Toyota locked up the 2026 FIA WEC manufacturers title with a one-two finish at the first-ever 6 Hours of Barcelona. The Japanese manufacturer controlled the race in changing weather, Ferrari’s Miguel Molina took a home podium, and Porsche won in LMGT3.
A new venue for WEC
The WEC arrived at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on 18 October 2026 for its inaugural six-hour race there. Barcelona was not on the original calendar. After the planned Qatar and Bahrain rounds were cancelled because of the situation in the Middle East, the series reshuffled its final events. Barcelona became round seven, with Monza still set as the season finale.
The race carried real weight. The manufacturers title was still open and the drivers’ championship was heading into its final phase. Rain added another layer. Practice and qualifying had been dry, but the track was wet before the start, leaving everyone guessing about tyres and the opening stints.
A messy start, then Toyota takes over
The race began behind the Safety Car. When the field was released, Genesis Magma Racing and Toyota fought for the lead.
André Lotterer had taken pole in the #17 Genesis, but Dani Juncadella made a strong start in the #19 and jumped ahead of his team-mate to challenge Sébastien Buemi’s #8 Toyota. Juncadella briefly led before running through the gravel at Turn 5. That handed the advantage to Buemi.
There was contact further back between the #12 Cadillac and the #35 Alpine. Meanwhile Toyota’s #7, driven by Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and Nyck de Vries, moved into second and the two Toyotas sat one-two at the front.
The #8 received a five-second penalty for a starting-procedure infringement, but it barely changed the picture. Toyota still looked strong in the wet and kept control.
In the second hour de Vries passed Ferrari’s Miguel Molina to put the #7 firmly in second. The two Toyota TR010 Hybrid then started to stretch the gap.
As the track dried, everyone switched to slicks. The race shifted from survival mode to pure pace, consistency and traffic management. Toyota handled the change cleanly and never really came under threat for the win.
A Toyota one-two and the manufacturers WEC title
After 198 laps the #8 Toyota of Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryō Hirakawa crossed the line first. The #7 of Conway, Kobayashi and de Vries finished just 0.583 seconds behind.
The margin was tiny, but Toyota’s performance across both wet and dry conditions was clear. Strong early pace and solid management once the track dried kept them at the front all afternoon.
The result gave Toyota its eighth manufacturers title in the WEC and its fifth Hypercar crown since the category began in 2021. It was a clear recovery after a tougher 2025. Consistency through 2026 had put them in a strong position, and Barcelona delivered the clincher.
The drivers’ championship is still open. Buemi, Hartley and Hirakawa left Spain with a 17-point lead over their team-mates in the #7. That sets up an all-Toyota fight at Monza. Team principal Kobayashi said the team will not impose orders, so both crews will be free to race for the title.
Molina home podium for Ferrari
The #50 Ferrari 499P of Miguel Molina, Antonio Fuoco and Nicklas Nielsen finished third. Molina got to celebrate a podium at his home race.
Ferrari could not match Toyota’s overall pace, but third was a solid result for the #50 crew and a good moment for the Spanish fans.
The #38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA of Earl Bamber, Sébastien Bourdais and Jack Aitken finished fourth. The #83 AF Corse Ferrari of Yifei Ye, Robert Kubica and Philip Hanson rounded out the top five.
Not everyone had a clean day. The #51 Ferrari, which had arrived defending the drivers’ title, finished 15th after a string of problems and is now out of the championship fight. BMW’s #15 ended seventh while the #20 scored nothing after a tyre-pressure infringement. Genesis started from pole but could not convert it. The #19 of Juncadella, Mathieu Jaminet and Paul-Loup Chatin recovered to 11th after the early gravel moment. The #17 finished 16th. Álex Riberas and the #009 Aston Martin Valkyrie came home ninth at their home circuit.
LMGT3: Manthey keeps the pressure on
While Toyota dominated overall, LMGT3 had its own fight. The #92 Porsche 911 GT3 R from The Bend Manthey, driven by Yasser Shahin, Riccardo Pera and Richard Lietz, took the class win. They built an early lead and managed the wet-to-dry switch well.
The #10 McLaren from Garage 59 finished second and the #69 BMW from Team WRT took third.
The result keeps Manthey in the hunt for a third straight LMGT3 drivers WEC title. It also continues the class’s run of seven different winners in seven races. The title is still open heading to Monza, with TF Sport needing to defend and Manthey applying the pressure.
Monza decides the rest
Barcelona settled the manufacturers championship but left the drivers’ title and the LMGT3 crown for Monza on 6–8 November.
Toyota heads to Italy with the manufacturers title already won and both of its cars fighting for the drivers’ crown. That internal battle is likely to be the main story of the finale. Ferrari will want a strong end to the season after Molina’s podium. The other manufacturers will be looking to finish on a high.
In LMGT3, Manthey’s win has kept the championship interesting after a year of shared results.
Barcelona’s first WEC race delivered changing weather, strategic calls and clear championship consequences. Toyota took the overall win and the manufacturers title. Ferrari got a home podium. The drivers’ championship and LMGT3 title now go down to the final WEC final race with the six hours of Monza
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