Hyundai taking on Le Mans with Genesis GMR-001 Hypercar

Hyundai announced its intention to enter the 24 Hours of Le Mans under its luxury brand Genesis back in September. Just a little over three months later, they’ve revealed the hypercar that they intend to race.

Genesis Magma Racing has taken the wraps off the GMR-001, which will be the brand’s race car for both the IMSA WeatherTech series and the World Endurance Championship.

Built under the LMDh regulations, the Genesis GMR-001 uses a spec carbon chassis built by Oreca, transmission from Xtrac, and a mandated 50 kW hybrid system from suppliers Williams and Bosch. Oreca currently also supplies chassis for Acura and Alpine, which are both doing well so far in IMSA and WEC.

For the bodywork, Genesis had free reign to design it as part of the regulations, along with the choice of engine. However, the Korean luxury brand has yet to reveal anything about its power unit. Should it follow the trend that existing teams under the LMDh use, the Genesis GMR-001 could either have a mid-mounted turbocharged V6 or a V8 with a maximum output of 670 PS.

The Genesis GMR-001 will be driven by three-time Le Mans winner Andre Lotterer and 2023 IMSA GTP champion Pipo Derrani. Genesis Magma Racing will also be headed by Hyundai Motorsport President Cyril Abiteboul. The Frenchman has previously served as team principal of the Renault F1 Team and most recently, was the team boss of the Hyundai WRC team that won the 2024 driver’s title with Thierry Neuville.

To prepare for its debut season in 2026, GMR will field an LMP2 entry next year at the European Le Mans series with IDEC Sport. The drivers will consist of former Williams F1 driver Logan Sargeant, W Series champion Jamie Chadwick and Mathys Jaubert.