Malthe Jakobsen recovered from a spin to deliver Peugeot maiden World Endurance Championship pole position for the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps as Ferrari and Toyota struggled in qualifying.
Jakobsen, steering the No. 94 Peugeot 9X8, overcame a spin on his out-lap in Q1 and proceeded to set a blistering lap time of 2:00.653 in the Hyperpole shootout, beating the No. 12 Cadillac Hertz Team Jota of Will Stevens by just 0.043 seconds.
The landmark achievement marked the end of a four-year drought for the French manufacturer in the Hypercar class, signaling a strong resurgence as the championship’s second round unfolded under the Ardennes sky on Friday.
Qualifying for the 2026 WEC Spa 6 Hours followed the championship’s established two‑part format, with an initial one‑hour qualifying session followed by a ten‑minute Hyperpole shootout for the top‑six cars in each class.
In Hypercar, all 17 entries lined up on circuit shortly after sunset, chasing not only position but also the right to progress into the final Hyperpole segment at the Ardennes venue known for its dramatic elevation changes and high‑speed corners.
Charles Milesi in the No. 35 Alpine A424 lit the fuse early, banging down a 2:01.078 to claim provisional top honors in Q1, before improving to 2m00.731s in the pole-deciding session.
The No. 94 Peugeot driven by Jakobsen, Loïc Duval and Théo Pourchaire recorded a 2:01.023 in the hour, which was enough to top the intermediate times and secure a spot in Hyperpole.
As the final qualifying shootout unfurled over a tightly compressed ten‑minute window, the No. 12 Cadillac Hertz Team Jota looked set to steal the show with Will Stevens posting a 2:00.696 that temporarily sat at the top of the timesheets.
However, Malthe Jakobsen ultimately delivered a 2:00.653 in the final minutes to give Peugeot first WEC pole.
Full 2026 WEC Spa 6 Hours Qualifying Results
The No. 35 Alpine of Charles Milesi, António Félix da Costa and Ferdinand Hasburg finished third, just 0.035 seconds behind the Cadillac, while the sister No. 36 A424 of Jules Gounon locked out the second row.
Jack Aitken qualified fifth in his debut aboard the No. 38 Hertz Team Jota Cadillac V-Series.R, followed by the pair of Heart of Racing Aston Martin Valkyries with Marco Sorensen’s No. 009 leading and Harry Tincknell in the No. 007.
Antonio Fuoco led the struggling Ferraris in a distant eighth aboard the No. 50 Ferrari 499P, some four-tenths slower than Jakobsen’s benchmark, as his teammates were knocked out in the opening leg of qualifying.
Robert Kubica’s privateer No. 83 Ferrari 499P bailed out with two minutes remaining, ending up 13th, while the No. 51 of Antonio Giovinazzi finished down in 15th after a huge slide scuppered his final flyer.
Toyota, fresh off winning the WEC 2026 season-opener at Imola, also endured a tough qualifying session at Spa with Kamui Kobayashi finishing 12th in the No. 07 TR010 Hybrid, while Brendon Hartley ended up 16th in the No. 08, only beating the No. 17 Genesis GMR-001 which finished at the bottom of the Hypercar field.
Hadrien David snags LMGT3 Pole for Akkodis Lexus
LMGT3 class delivered its own compelling narrative during qualifying for the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, as Frenchman Hadrien David drove the No. 78 Akkodis ASP Team Lexus RC F LMGT3 to a commanding pole.
David delivered a 2:16.612 lap, edging out Zach Robichon in the No. 27 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage GT3 by just 0.194 seconds.
“I knew the car was going to be strong this weekend,” David said. “We prepared it quite well on the simulator, and I was lucky that Tom [Van Rompuy] made it into the top 10 in the first qualifying, so he gave me a shot for Hyperpole, which was not easy as it was quite tight in the first part of qualifying.”
Proton Competition made a strong showing with the No. 77 Ford Mustang GT3 EVO of Benjamin Tuck finishing third, while the second No. 87 Akkodis Lexus qualified fourth in the hands of Clemens Schmid.
Giammarco Levorato made it two Fords in the top five, while Simon Mann was the best of the AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3s in sixth.
