Aston Martin Vantage ended the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship with second place in LMGT3 at the 6 Hours of Monza on November 8. Gray Newell, Dudu Barrichello and Jonny Adam recovered from an early incident to bring the number 23 Heart of Racing Team car home on the podium, giving Vantage its sixth WEC podium of the season.
The result put the number 23 crew fifth in the final FIA Endurance Trophy for LMGT3 Teams. For American driver Newell, it completed a debut WEC season that included three podium finishes, among them third place at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
From the gravel to a fight for victory
Newell’s race was disrupted after 40 minutes when contact from a rival sent the Vantage off the road. He recovered from the back of the field and handed the car to Barrichello in ninth. The Brazilian then worked his way to third before Adam kept the car in the leading group through a succession of Full Course Yellow periods.
Barrichello returned for the closing stages, passed the second-placed BMW and chased the leading Porsche while managing the car’s remaining energy. After his final energy stop, the pursuit continued to the flag, with the Vantage running in the Porsche’s slipstream over the last two laps.
I tried my best and the car was super-fast. I wish we could have got the win to close off the year, but this isn’t a bad way to end it! I am so happy with this team, and Aston Martin, and the Heart of Racing has given me such a golden opportunity, hopefully I did enough to make the team proud.
Dudu Barrichello
Six podiums and a win in Texas
The sister number 27 Vantage GT3, driven by Ian James, Mattia Drudi and Zacharie Robichon, finished tenth at Monza after also suffering contact. That crew ended the year seventh in the LMGT3 teams’ standings.
The number 27 car had delivered Vantage’s LMGT3 victory at the Lone Star Le Mans round at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, where the number 23 car also finished third. Second places at Spa-Francorchamps and Fuji added to the number 27 crew’s season, while the number 23’s Le Mans and Monza results completed the marque’s six-podium total.
Newell and Adam finished seventh in the drivers’ points. The Monza recovery was a strong final result for a season Aston Martin and the team had treated as a development year for their WEC rookie.
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Source: Aston Martin Racing. Photography: Javier Jimenez / Drew Gibson Photography and Drew Gibson, courtesy of Aston Martin Racing. Images supplied for editorial use.
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