WEC Qatar 2025 Qualifying: Ferrari and McLaren on pole position

Antonio Giovinazzi secured the pole position for Ferrari AF Corse in the qualifying for the Qatar 1812 km, the first round of the FIA 2025 World Endurance Championship. In the LMGT3 category, United Autosports locked out the front row with their McLaren cars.

HYPERCAR - WEC Qatar 2025 Qualifying

Giovinazzi took the Ferrari 499P #51 to the top spot with a time of 1m38.359s on a final lap that beat Dries Vanthoor in the BMW M Hybrid V8 #15 by 0.136s. The German team came close to achieving their first pole in the category but had to settle for second place. The third position went to the other AF Corse Ferrari, the #50, driven by Antonio Fuoco, who was forced to take evasive action during his fast lap to avoid his teammate. The Cadillac V-Series.R #12 from Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA completed the second row, with Alex Lynn at the wheel. His teammate, Sebastien Bourdais, qualified the Cadillac #38 in fifth position, achieving a solid debut for the new partnership between the team and the American manufacturer.

The second BMW on the grid, the #20, finished in sixth position with Robin Frijns at the helm. The top ten was completed by Toyota Gazoo Racing #7, Ferrari AF Corse #83, Alpine #35, and Peugeot TotalEnergies #93.

Starting Grid in Hypercar

Important Data from Hypercar Qualifying

• Giovinazzi achieved his second pole in the last four races, after securing his first one at COTA 2024.
• Ferrari AF Corse became the fourth team to reach five overall poles, joining Audi, Toyota, and Porsche LMP1.
• This is the second time the Ferrari 499P starts a season from pole position, after doing so at Sebring 2023.

LMGT3 - WEC Qatar 2025 Qualifying

United Autosports repeated their qualifying success by securing a complete front row in the LMGT3 category. Sean Gelael, driving the McLaren 720S #95, achieved his first pole in WEC with a time of 1m54.239s, beating Sebastien Baud's McLaren #59 by 0.2s. This result also earned Gelael the first point of the season.

Darren Leung and James Cottingham managed to advance both McLarens to the Hyperpole session under the new regulations that allow silver-category drivers to qualify in this phase.

The third position went to the Lexus RC F LMGT3 #78 from Akkodis ASP, driven by WEC debutant Finn Gehrsitz, while the Ferrari 296 LMGT3 #54 from VISTA AF Corse, with Francesco Castellacci at the wheel, took fourth place on the grid.

The fifth position went to the Ferrari #21 from VISTA AF Corse, initially driven by François Heriau before handing it over to Simon Mann. The second Akkodis ASP Lexus, driven by Clemens Schmid, closed out the top six. Schmid seemed to be on his way to fighting for pole position, but lost his best lap for exceeding track limits.

Starting Grid in LMGT3

Important Data from LMGT3 Qualifying

• First pole for Gelael in WEC.
• Third pole for McLaren in the category, the most so far in LMGT3.
• United Autosports is the first team to achieve consecutive poles in LMGT3, after doing so in Bahrain and Qatar.