Peugeot Sport's much-anticipated Le Mans Hypercar will race at Monza in July.
Peugeot sportTwitterPeugeot’s wingless wonder, the 9×8, is finally race-ready. The Peugeot Sport team announced Friday that the 9×8 will make its race debut in July at the World Endurance Championship’s Monza 6-hour event, and presented the version of the 9×8 to be homologated to media at the Portimao circuit in Portugal. It looks incredible.
The FIA and ACO’s Le Mans Hypercar (LMH) regulations promised really interesting cars, but so far, the entries from Toyota and Glickenhaus just feel like embiggened, simplified LMP1 cars. Peugeot Sport is taking a big swing with the 9×8, running without a traditional rear wing and instead relying on underbody aero to generate the bulk of its downforce. This is the sort of risk you don’t typically see in modern sports-car racing, where better simulation technology often leads constructors to similar solutions. After years of seeing LMP1s that looked almost interchangeable, it’ll be refreshing to have a car that’s totally unique.
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Peugeot originally targeted an entry for next month’s 24 Hours of Le Mans, but earlier this year decided to delay the 9×8’s debut to ensure its reliability before homologation. This move will give the Peugeot Sport team close to a year’s worth of competition running before the flagship event, where it’ll be up against established LMH entries from Toyota and Glickenhaus, new entries from Ferrari and possibly privateer ByKolles, and LMDh cars from Porsche, BMW, and Cadillac.
The 9×8 is an all-wheel-drive hybrid with a 700-hp twin-turbo V-6 driving the rear wheels, and a 268-hp electric motor on the front axle. It weighs 2271 pounds, and like all other LMH cars, it’s relatively large, with a total length of 196.85 inches and a width of 78.7 inches.
Soon, we’ll see if Peugeot’s no-wing bet will pay off. We can’t wait.
Keyword: The Peugeot 9x8 Is Officially the Coolest Sports Prototype