Winners & Losers of the WEC 6 Hours of Spa

Credit: Noah Romana

Saturday's World Endurance Championship (WEC) 6 Hours of Spa proved to be an absolute thriller from lights to flag, with plenty of action up and down the field.

But as with every race, some teams won and others lost. DIVEBOMB Motorsport Magazine takes you through the teams leaving on a high, and those with work to do before the 24 Hours of Le Mans next month.

Winners: BMW

Credit: Noah Romana

Let's get the obvious one out of the way. The No.20 in first, and the No.15 in second. It probably couldn't have gone much better for BMW and WRT. Maximum points from race day propels the No.20 to the top of the drivers standings, and BMW to the top of the manufacturers.

But it's not just a 1-2 finish. It gives the team belief in the package they have. The car's first two seasons, 2024 and 2025, didn't yield much in the way of results. One podium in each year. The BMW M Hybrid V8 always felt like it was on the verge of something, but they couldn't quite get over the last hurdle.

They flew over that final hurdle in Spa. The 2026 spec car seems to already be performing well in just it's first two WEC races, so it wouldn't be surprising to see BMW fighting at the sharp end again in 2026.

Losers: Cadillac

Starting second and fifth on the grid, Cadillac were definitely one of the favourites heading into the race. When Will Stevens took the lead from Loic Duval on lap one, all looked well for the No.12 crew. But on the other side of the garage, the No.38 collided with one of the Porsches and got a puncture.

That, followed by brake issues for Earl Bamber, and a gearbox problem when Sebastian Bourdais got in, ended their race prematurely.

The No.12 was still going pretty strong though, until a late race strategy call left them out on soft tyres, when the rest of the field stayed on the mediums. The temperatures were simply too high for the soft to be a viable race tyre, so their pace disintegrated and they ended up finishing ninth. Just two points consolidation for what could've been a much better weekend.

Not all is a loss though for the American marque. Chief Engineer, Jeremy Moore said "We had a strong qualifying and we showed good performance in the high-speed corners and on the straights, so there are a lot of good things to take with us to Le Mans."

The pace they showed looked genuine, from both cars. Alex Lynn - who took pole for Le Mans last year - is also set to return to the team. They may have lost out on points for the championship, but they learned a lot heading into the years biggest race.

Winners: McLaren and Garage 59

Credit: Noah Romana

We left Thursday thinking McLaren had the best overall car this weekend in LMGT3, after they excelled in practice. Then qualifying came around and the narrative shifted entirely. Neither car made it into Hyperpole, and all looked bleak heading into the race.

Fortunes changed once again though. The No.10 ended up crossing the line second, but standing on the top step of the podium after a five second penalty for the No.21 Vista AF Corse Ferrari.

The middle stint by Thomas Fleming was one that particularly propelled the car up the order. The Briton was consistently one of, or the quickest LMGT3 on the circuit for his double stint. The sister No.58 car also finished in a solid fifth place.

The No.10 entry is one that should be on everyone's minds heading into Le Mans and the rest of the season, as they were also in the lead of the 6 Hours of Imola before a mechanical issue ruined any chance they had.

Losers: Ford

Like their American counterparts in Hypercar, Ford's story at the 6 Hours of Spa is one of 'what could have been?'.

Eric Powell started the No.77 car from third position, making quick work of the No.27 Aston Martin to get into second. After a few more laps, he managed to take the lead off of the No.78 Lexus too. Then, as he pulled away, Powell clipped the gravel on the entry into Stavelot and lost the car, spinning off into the gravel and losing two laps.

The No.88 was going well after that though, challenging the top positions. But as with so many of the GT3s in the race, they couldn't avoid track limits penalties. Multiple drive-throughs set them back down the order, where they eventually finished in 12th place.

No points from what looked to be such a promising weekend is a disappointment, but once again like Cadillac, Ford can take a positive from the weekend knowing they have pace heading into Le Mans.

Winner: Balance of Performance

This one isn't about a car, team, or driver for that matter. Over the last year and a bit Balance of Performance (BoP) - specifically in Hypercar - has been a major talking point for fans, especially online. It was so after qualifying too, many blamed the BoP for Ferrari and Toyota's lowly positions on the grid.

But after the race, no one can say it wasn't balanced. Every manufacturer looked like they had the pace to challenge for a podium at one stage or another - save Genesis, who scored their first points in the new car.

Imola may not have been as impartial, but it also felt like a great representation of the BoP. Of course, this season the bulletin's detailing the additional weight and power for the cars has not been published in 2026, and won't be.

So far though, whatever is going on in these now closed doors BoP bulletin's, it seems to be working much better. Granted, there are still complaints, but the topic doesn't feel quite as sensitive anymore as it did last year.

The WEC returns in one months time for the big one. The 2026 24 Hours of Le Mans will take place from the 10th - 14th of June.