Genesis Magma Racing has finalised its drivers for Hypercar run in FIA WEC, as LEGO fields F1 Academy team and Sam Bird joins Nissan.
Genesis Magma Racing has completed its driver lineup for the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship, announcing experienced Hypercar class drivers Mathieu Jaminet and Paul-Loup Chatin. The pair join André Lotterer, Pipo Derani, Dani Juncadella and their fellow Frenchman Mathys Jaubert on the roster for the season.
Experience and Pedigree Complete Genesis Magma Racing Squad
Jaminet and Chatin bring considerable Hypercar and endurance racing experience to their new team, further strengthening Genesis Magma Racing’s stable of drivers ahead of their competitive debut. Genesis Magma Racing Sporting Director Gabriele Tarquini said: “The addition of Mathieu Jaminet and Paul-Loup Chatin completes a well-balanced lineup for our debut WEC season. They are the perfect point between the experience we have in André Lotterer and Pipo Derani, and the potential we see in Mathys Jaubert and Dani Juncadella.”
“We have an amazing lineup for Genesis Magma Racing’s first year in the FIA World Endurance Championship,” said Team Principal Cyril Abiteboul. “The combination of drivers that we have secured far exceeds any expectation we had when we began the project. It is a huge mark of the trust these race winners and champions have placed in our young team, Genesis and the broader Hyundai Motor Group. I am sure they will create huge motivation and a virtuous circle for the team that is coming together very nicely at our base in Signes.”
Jaminet has become a stalwart of worldwide endurance racing paddocks, first in the GT classes before graduating to the Hypercar and GTP class of WEC and IMSA respectively. He won the 2022 GTD Pro class title in the North America-based series and moved to the premier class the following season. Since then, he has collected five overall victories and a further eight podiums, including results in the series’ headline endurance races at Daytona, Sebring and Road Atlanta.
“I’m very happy to be joining Genesis Magma Racing,” said Jaminet. “This is the start of a new chapter, a new history for me. This team offers me that opportunity to go racing in the WEC and hopefully in the future also the IMSA series.” He added: “I wanted to have a fresh start with new people to try to step up but also bring my experience to a new team and work to build something incredible for the future. Obviously, the road will be long with a new team, but I’m really excited and looking forward to the challenge ahead.”
He has contested the 24 Hours of Le Mans four times — once in LMGTE Pro and three times in Hypercar — and has completed a partial schedule in the WEC this year, scoring a best finish of fourth in Japan.
WEC Race Winner Chatin Brings Important Development Knowledge to New Team
At the same event, Chatin joined the list of WEC race winners as part of the team that won the 6 Hours of Fuji. On top of 15 starts in the top class of the championship, he crucially brings more experience of the ORECA chassis which forms the basis of the GMR-001 Hypercar. His knowledge about previous development of the platform will add another important element to the final preparations of the car for its competitive debut and the further testing to be completed during the 2026 season.
Chatin said: “I am truly honored and proud to join the Genesis Magma Racing adventure in Hypercar. First and foremost, I would like to thank everyone who made this opportunity possible. After two enriching years with Alpine Endurance Team and the recent success in Fuji, I feel more ready than ever to take on this new challenge.”
“Genesis is still a young brand, but its values and ambitions immediately resonated with me,” he added. “I’m well aware of the challenges that await us, but I have full confidence in our team’s talent and determination to quickly move forward and fight for top positions.”
Chatin is also a familiar face to Juncadella and Jaubert, having been part of the driving squad for the sister IDEC Sport entry to the Genesis Magma Racing Trajectory drivers’ car in the European Le Mans Series throughout 2025.
Final Tests Give Team Opportunities to Assess Potential Driver Partnerships
The arrival of Jaminet and Chatin adds one more element to Genesis Magma Racing’s development. Jaminet was part of the team’s latest endurance test, which took place at the MotorLand Aragon circuit on Nov. 15-17. Joining previously announced drivers André Lotterer, Pipo Derani, Mathys Jaubert and Dani Juncadella, as well as recently announced Reserve Driver Jamie Chadwick, Jaminet completed stints throughout the test where the team was able to take a major step in confirming the reliability essential to its first steps in WEC competition.
“I had to adapt a little bit,” Jaminet said after his first laps in the GMR-001 Hypercar. “The car requires a different driving style compared to what I am used to. It seems to like nice big corners. It’s actually quite nice. At this stage every lap is really important for a driver. You need to understand all the systems, all the buttons on the steering wheel and all the procedures.”
He added: “I think I come in with different feedback on a few things. I’m one of the most experienced drivers with LMDh cars and obviously I was in a different car not long ago. I tried to not get too much feedback from the other drivers – I really wanted to make my opinion, also for the engineers. The idea was not to provide me with too much information to really start from a white sheet of paper to tell them what I think.”
The drivers’ performance and feedback, as well as the working dynamics with the team’s other drivers, will be assessed by Genesis Magma Racing team management, led by Tarquini and Team Principal Cyril Abiteboul, to decide the exact driving lineup for the team’s pair of FIA World Endurance Championship entries.
“The chemistry between drivers in the car is vital when it comes to success,” said Tarquini. “Through the tests we can see how the drivers work together, see how their driving styles and set-up preferences match, and how the relationships begin to form before deciding our lineups for the season. The key will be to make sure we have the best possible squad of drivers in both cars to help us create the strong foundations we need as a team.”
F1 Academy, LEGO –
Today, in the pitlane of the Las Vegas Strip Circuit at the FORMULA 1 LAS VEGAS GRAND PRIX 2025, the LEGO Group and F1 ACADEMY have announced an exciting multi-year partnership to inspire young fans, especially girls, through creative play and representation. As part of this collaboration, the LEGO Group will be represented on the F1 ACADEMY grid starting with the 2026 F1 ACADEMY season, with LEGO Racing, piloted by driver Esmee Kosterman at the wheel. Additionally, the LEGO Group and F1 ACADEMY revealed their first LEGO set together, now available for pre-order.
In 2026, Kosterman will serve as the premiere driver for LEGO Racing during her first full season in F1 ACADEMY. The 20-year-old Dutch driver has a rich history in the kart racing circuit and became the first woman to win in the Ford Fiesta Sprint Cup series in 2023, before going on to finish second in the Junior Cup and third in the overall standings. In 2024, Kosterman moved into single seaters with Indian F4 and made her F1 ACADEMY debut as the Wild Card entry at Round 5 of the season in Zandvoort, her home race.
Kosterman’s car features a one-of-a-kind LEGO Racing livery, infusing the high-performance world of F1 ACADEMY with elements of LEGO play. The livery, created by the LEGO Design team, represents both entities through colours and patterns, merged in a playful way bringing the thrill of brick building and racing to life, with a unique checkered pattern. The stunning, merged livery of the car, the driver and the first product from the partnership were revealed at the Las Vegas event by Susie Wolff, Managing Director at F1 ACADEMY, Julia Goldin, Chief Product & Marketing Officer at the LEGO Group, LEGO designers Beatrice Amoretti and Maria Jędryszek and hosted by Ariana Bravo.
This comes at a time where F1 is attracting new and younger audiences, with 42% of the Formula 1’s fanbase now consisting of women. Recent research by the LEGO Group shows that 87% of girls surveyed would like to see more opportunities for girls in motorsport, 75% think racing sounds exciting, while 52% could see themselves as an F1 ACADEMY™ or race car driver one day. At the same time, 82% of parents surveyed think it’s important for girls to see women represented in motorsport, but 76% think motorsport is often perceived as “more for boys”.
With this new partnership, the LEGO Group and F1 Academy hope to inspire young fans, especially girls to explore their motor racing passions, both on and off the track. Julia Goldin, Chief Product & Marketing Officer of the LEGO Group, said: “F1 ACADEMY is levelling the playing field in motorsport, giving young female athletes a clear pathway to achieve their dreams in the top tiers of the sport. We can’t wait to see LEGO Racing join the F1 ACADEMY grid and are so excited to have Esmee as our driver. For the first time, fans can hold their favourite F1 ACADEMY LEGO car in their hands, and I’m thrilled that we’re securing female representation in racing toys for young girls. We hope the infusion of LEGO play and creativity to this exciting sport inspires the next generation of young women in motorsport, as well as the female builders of tomorrow, that anything is possible.”
Susie Wolff, Managing Director of F1 ACADEMY, said: “We’re so proud to welcome the LEGO Group as an Official Partner of F1 ACADEMY. This collaboration isn’t just about the possibility of building an F1 Academy LEGO car, it’s about building belief in what’s possible. With our first partnership product, fans will be able to create something that stands for opportunity and representation. We hope every young girl who picks up these bricks sees more than just a model, she sees herself, her potential, and her place in the world of motorsport whether as a fan, engineer, driver or leader. Together, we’re challenging outdated perceptions of who belongs in motorsport and empowering the next generation of young women to build their own paths.”
Esmee Kosterman, Driver for LEGO Racing, said: “To be the first driver for LEGO Racing is such an exciting opportunity, and I can’t wait to continue my racing journey with F1 ACADEMY. I’ve long been a fan of the LEGO brand, its creativity and what it stands for and to bring it to the track from the 2026 season onwards is incredible. I hope this inspires future generations of female drivers, that with hard work and determination, anything is possible!”
The LEGO Group also unveiled the LEGO Speed Champions F1 ACADEMY LEGO Race Car, the 201-piece set allows fans of LEGO Racing to hold their favourite car in their hands, and features intricate aerodynamic details, with the unique colourway and the #32 racing number, as featured on Esmee’s real on-track counterpart. Additionally, the set is accompanied by a minifigure printed in a LEGO Racing colourway. The set brings F1 ACADEMY to life like never before, bringing the excitement from the track to the living room, reflecting the two brands commitment to championing female talent on and off the track.
As part of the first ever F1 ACADEMY weekend at the FORMULA 1 LAS VEGAS GRAND PRIX, the LEGO Group will be presenting the podium finishers of both Race 1 and Race 2, with custom LEGO Botanicals Bouquets in a moment that celebrates what is possible when talent is given the opportunity and platform to thrive. Each bouquet is built out of close to 2,000 LEGO elements and weighs close to 1 kg. The LEGO Speed Champions F1 ACADEMY LEGO Race Car available for pre-order now from LEGO.com and select global retailers, with the set hitting shelves starting 1st March 2026 in LEGO Stores worldwide.
Other news –
Sam Bird joins Nissan as Formula E reserve: https://global.nissannews.com/en/releases/nissan-formula-e-team-confirms-sam-bird-as-reserve-and-development-driver
[The story is as per press release]
