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Sebastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa cemented their status in sportscar racing history by securing the 2026 World Endurance Championship Hypercar title. Driving the #8 TR010 Hybrid, the Toyota trio clinched the championship by 18 points at the Monza 6 Hours finale following three victories out of eight rounds.
Historic Milestones for Buemi and Hartley
The result elevates Buemi and Hartley to five-time Hypercar/LMP1 champions, making them the most successful drivers in WEC history. Their achievement places them into an exclusive club of drivers with five or more titles in FIA-sanctioned championships, joining Sebastien Loeb and Sebastien Ogier with nine titles each, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton with seven each, and Juan Manuel Fangio and Jose Maria Lopez with five.
As the longest-serving driver at Toyota since joining the LMP1 project in 2013, Buemi also holds the record for WEC overall race wins at 29. Reflecting on the campaign, Buemi told Motorsport.com that losing Le Mans was difficult, but winning the championship helped make up for it, highlighting crucial wins at Fuji and Barcelona. He noted that while the car lacked pace at Monza, the team executed a strong season with their new car.
Hartley secured his third title with Toyota, having previously won championships in 2015 and 2017 with Porsche before returning to Toyota in 2019. Buemi joked that Hartley is the youngest-ever five-time world champion at age 37, compared to Buemi at 38.
Overcoming Le Mans Heartbreak
Hartley admitted that missing out on victory at the Le Mans 24 Hours earlier in the year weighed heavily on him. During the race at Circuit de la Sarthe, both Toyota entries fought closely after overtaking the #12 Cadillac V-Series.R driven by Norman Nato, before a full-course yellow disrupted their strategy and the sister #7 car ultimately took the victory.
Hartley told Motorsport.com that he took the defeat personally because a delay in his stint passing the Cadillac allowed the sister car to leapfrog them during pit stops. Despite the bitter disappointment, he expressed pride in how he, Buemi, and Hirakawa bounced back during the final stretch of the season.
Hirakawa’s Rapid Rise and Future Outlook
Hirakawa secured his third WEC title in five years, boasting a 60% championship strike rate. His title triumph followed a surprise Formula 1 debut at the Mexico Grand Prix with Haas, where he scored a point. Having transitioned from Toyota’s Super GT and Super Formula roster in 2022, Hirakawa has consistently matched his veteran team-mates.
Hirakawa told Motorsport.com that capturing both the drivers’ and manufacturers’ titles alongside a Le Mans victory represents a massive achievement for Toyota Motorsport following a difficult previous season. He added that the team is already eager to return stronger for the following year.
