The 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps will see the World Endurance Championship's Hypercar field return to a recognised line-up of 18 cars after Imola's opener, but a series of driver changes through the entry list confirm the season is already throwing curveballs into multi-car programmes. BMW M Team WRT goes back to its full pre-season strength, Cadillac JOTA shuffles its driver line-up around an injury, and a new full-time face joins the grid for the May 7-9 race.
BMW's two M Hybrid V8s arrive in Belgium with their full-strength roster restored. Dries Vanthoor, who missed Imola due to a separate factory commitment, rejoins the #15 entry, while Sheldon van der Linde returns to the #20. Their absence in Italy contributed to the German manufacturer's quieter season opener; the form line at Spa will offer the first read on whether the line-up upgrade can translate to leaderboard pace.
Cadillac JOTA's #12 Hypercar, meanwhile, has reorganised after Alex Lynn confirmed he will undergo a planned neck procedure that rules him out of Spa. Swiss driver Louis Deletraz, the 2023 ELMS LMP2 champion and a four-time prototype titleholder, has been promoted from his IMSA assignment to deputise alongside Will Stevens and Norman Nato. Deletraz's prototype experience is well-aligned with the Cadillac V-Series.R, and his promotion gives the team continuity at a circuit notorious for punishing changes to driver rotation.
The bigger debut sits with Cadillac's second car. Jack Aitken, the British-Korean former F1 reserve and recent IMSA factory driver for Whelen Cadillac, will make his full-time WEC debut in the #38, a long-anticipated step for a driver who has been pulled in and out of WEC programmes for years. Aitken's Spa CV is solid; he has raced the circuit in multiple disciplines, and the team has tipped the season to be a transformative one for his career trajectory.
In LMGT3, where the action has been arguably the most competitive of the championship's two classes, two further changes are confirmed. Aston Martin's #23 entry adds Dudu Barrichello, son of former F1 driver Rubens, into the line-up, replacing Kobe Pauwels who handled the Imola opener. The Brazilian's prototype background makes him a useful addition to the all-Aston Martin programme. The Corvette #33 of TF Sport keeps Blake McDonald in for an extended cameo, deputising once more for the injured Ben Keating, who continues to recover from the off-season setback that has sidelined him through the start of 2026.
The reigning manufacturer champion remains Ferrari, but the title leader after Imola is Toyota: the Japanese manufacturer narrowly defeating the Italians at the season opener and entering Belgium with a small but real momentum advantage. Alpine, the third member of what has become 2026's leading triumvirate, returns to Spa with both A424s and an upbeat assessment of its pace heading into a circuit that suits the chassis.
Manufacturer support cars in the LMP2 and LMGT3 grids round out a busy combined entry. Spa traditionally rewards aerodynamic efficiency through Eau Rouge and Blanchimont, the kind of profile Toyota has found favourable in recent seasons; whether Ferrari can claw back its Imola deficit will set the tone for the long six weeks before Le Mans.
Practice at Spa-Francorchamps begins on Wednesday, with qualifying scheduled for Thursday and the race itself rolling off at 12:30 local time on Saturday afternoon. The season's most committed fans will look at this weekend as the first true read on the championship's pecking order, and at the front of the grid, the BMW driver line-up reset is the change that may matter most.
---
