Genesis Magma Racing readies the GMR-001 for its first full test

Written by Ghazlan Atqiya Firmansyah

The GMR-001 takes to the track | Credit: Genesis Newsroom

After weeks of progress teasing on social media, Genesis Magma Racing (GMR) is set for the first full test of their LMDh challenger, the GMR-001, after the completion of the first car by chassis partner Oreca and a successful shakedown.

The first car appeared in bare carbon fibre, and it would be the first of the three development chassis to be built in the coming months ahead of the team's debut in next season's FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC).

New milestones every day

The completion and the shakedown of the GMR-001 are the latest milestones for GMR since its announcement to enter endurance racing in December. The team followed the "Hyperspeed" philosophy to make sure everything went as scheduled.

Team principal Cyril Abiteboul said: "We are at a time where we seem to be passing milestones every day, but this is exactly what we must be doing.

"After planning for and talking about these moments for the last eight months, to be able to see a finished car running exactly as we planned is incredibly exciting."

Credit: Genesis Newsroom

The 47-year-old also added that the team is on the verge of moving into the new GMR facility at Le Castellet.

"We are also starting the process of moving into the new Genesis Magma Racing facility at Le Castellet.

"The start of testing is the beginning of bringing the different streams of work together, [from] the design and development of the chassis, the design and development of the engine, equipping a workshop and building the team."

Preparations for GMR-001's first tests

After installing the engine and hybrid system, Oreca completed the GMR-001’s build and successfully fired up the car last month. The chassis partner has now delivered the car to GMR’s engineers, who will lead testing. Oreca will remain a long-term partner to support the car’s development.

GMR features WEC champion André Lotterer and IMSA champion Pipo Derani in their roster. Both drivers have undertaken sessions in the simulator to complete the calibration of the virtual model of the GMR-001.

Earlier, Derani announced that he would not complete the ongoing European Le Mans Series (ELMS) with LMP2 outfit CLX Motorsport to shift his focus solely on the GMR-001 development.

Pipo Derani running tests inside the cockpit | Credit: Genesis Newsroom

Derani and Lotterer had the chance to drive the GMR-001 for the first time during its successful shakedown, where they checked the car's mechanical and electrical systems. After the initial run, GMR will embark on an extensive testing schedule at various European circuits.

GMR Technical Director François-Xavier Demaison said: "Every bit of running we do with the GMR-001 Hypercar in 2025 is extremely valuable.

"The work in preparation that André and Pipo have done on the simulator and during the shakedown means that we have a good starting point for the first tests.

"[By] working with our chassis partners at Oreca throughout testing and development, we can quickly take the data from each test, find a solution and validate it to be able to take full advantage of every moment."