Alpine wins 6 Hours of Fuji as WEC marks 100th race

Alpine claimed a dramatic victory in the 6 Hours of Fuji on Sunday as the FIA World Endurance Championship celebrated its 100th race at Fuji Speedway, with the No. 35 Alpine A424 taking the win ahead of the No. 93 Peugeot TotalEnergies 9X8 and the No. 6 Porsche Penske 963. The race, held in the foothills of Mount Fuji, concluded a turbulent weekend of practice, strategy shifts and multiple safety car periods that reshaped the Hypercar order.

Peugeot ran strongly through the opening stints, topping both free practice sessions and holding the lead with two hours remaining. A fourth-hour incident involving the No. 007 Aston Martin Valkyrie and the Heart of Racing Aston Martin GT3 entry prompted a safety car and significant reordering of the field. Tom Gamble spun on cold tyres after leaving the pits and made contact with Zacharie Robichon, leaving the 007 with terminal front-end damage and forcing a safety car while the car was recovered. Several Hypercars had been on different pit cycles at the time, handing advantage to those who had pitted just before the caution and forcing emergency stops for others.

Prior to the caution, Jean-Éric Vergne had led for Peugeot, with Nyck de...