Why Genesis’ new hypercar will not be on pace on WEC debut

It’s fair to assume that Genesis Magma Racing will not be setting the world on fire in terms of pace at either Imola or Spa-Francorchamps.

Although the Balance of Performance (BoP) is being kept secret in the World Endurance Championship this year, it is almost certain that Genesis must have received the least favourable BoP, given its status as a new entrant. Any evaluation of their outright pace in Imola is therefore out of place.

The reason is simple: there is no data from previous years for the Genesis GMR-001. Consequently, the performance of the best hypercar from previous races is used as the benchmark. In terms of pure pace, nothing is to be expected in these first few races.

But the team doesn’t want to be measured by its laptimes on its debut anyway. Getting both cars to the finish line without any issues could be considered a success for the first race.

And so far, there are many signs that Genesis can achieve this goal. In fact, things have been going very well—almost a bit too well.

“A racing team without racing is just a team”

This success doesn’t come by surprise; the preparation was highly professional. Plenty of high-profile personnel were recruited from competitors behind the scenes, and the LMDh car already has 25,000 testing kilometers under its belt.

Reliability seems to be holding up for the GMR-001 so far, as there hasn’t been a single significant problem during the entire Imola week. “I think we are topping the chart in terms of lap count since we arrived here,” said team boss Cyril Abiteboul.

“That’s exactly what we wanted: track familiarisation, track time, and working through our procedures. Honestly, we are not paying too much attention to the lap time at this point in time. It’s all about reliability and good execution. We just need to keep our heads down, stay very humble, and keep working.”

What testing cannot simulate

Now, the big moment of truth is approaching. No matter how well-prepared a team might be, only the first race is the moment that reveals what that preparation is truly worth.

Abiteboul emphasises that the mental aspect is nearly impossible to replicate in testing: “The pressure is really what you can’t really simulate. The stress, having to deal with the unknown, and also simply the longevity of endurance racing.”

In testing, a team can always be a little complacent, returning to the pits to change minor details. “We all know that in a race, you can’t do that. That’s why right now, what we’ve done so far is still the easy part”, he said.

Pipo Derani also views time pressure as the greatest challenge: “During development, you always have time to fix things. You give yourself the ability to focus on one issue and let the other one go for a few more days. I think the added pressure of a race weekend gives us the ability to prove to ourselves that we can get things done within the deadlines.”

Traffic on the track is another new variable. “How does our car work behind the GTs? How does it work in front of or behind other competitors? Those things are all new to us, but I think we’re learning fast,” the Brazilian explained.

A “healthy” car as a foundation

Genesis also places importance on being approachable. As a South Korean ‘chaebol’, there is always the risk of being perceived as an impersonal giant.

To counter this, the team organised a small quiz with journalists on Wednesday evening, with the drivers themselves participating, ensuring a lighthearted atmosphere.

This positive mood is reflected throughout the team; the spirit of optimism to finally get going can be felt everywhere.

Dani Juncadella is pleased with the foundation of the GMR-001: “I was quite surprised, actually, in terms of pace. It is better than I expected it to be. The initial feeling in the car is competitive.”

He highlights that both driver crews are working in the same direction: “We all have very similar feedback. We have similar strengths and similar weaknesses. That’s a really big positive sign because it means everything is logical and there is nothing fundamentally wrong with the car.”

Abiteboul is also convinced that performance will follow: “The car is a good race car, a good baseline. It’s a very healthy car; the drivers feel very good about it. They get what they want, and the car reacts to set-up changes exactly how they expect.”

However, Derani warns that the Imola track will push the car to its limits: “The track is extremely bumpy and full of kerbs. Most of our development was on smoother tracks than this. Imola is an even bigger test for us as a team.”

Nevertheless, the team has already managed to make set-up improvements between the Prologue and the first practice sessions.

The verdict ahead of the first competitive outing remains one of cautious optimism. Or, as Abiteboul puts it: “If people are happy to be here and to be working together, I’m very sure that the lap time will follow. Not tomorrow. But it will come.”

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– The Motorsport.com Team

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