Toyota held the race lead after four hours of the 2026 24 Hours of Le Mans as the Japanese manufacturer’s alternative strategy placed the #8 TR010 Hybrid ahead of BMW and Cadillac.
Brendon Hartley led in the #8 Toyota after taking over from Sébastien Buemi, while the #20 BMW M Hybrid V8 held second. The #38 and #12 Hertz Team JOTA Cadillac V-Series.R entries followed in third and fourth respectively.
Meanwhile, Duqueine Team led LMP2 through Doriane Pin, while the #91 Manthey DK Engineering Porsche moved to the front of LMGT3 as the fifth hour approached.
Toyota strategy changes the Hypercar order in the 2026 24 Hours of Le Mans
Will Stevens made the strongest start in the #12 Cadillac and beat the pole-sitting #15 BMW into the first corner.
However, René Rast quickly moved the sister #20 BMW into contention. The German driver attacked through the opening lap and crossed the line in first place, giving BMW control during the early phase.
Toyota then changed the shape of the race by bringing both cars into the pits earlier than the leading group. The team sought clear air and moved its cars onto a different fuel sequence from BMW and Cadillac.
Buemi made the strategy work in the #8 Toyota. He progressed rapidly through the order and set the fastest lap of the race with a 3:26.580 on lap 20.
The Swiss driver also completed a triple stint on one set of Michelin medium tyres before handing the car to Hartley during the third hour.
Toyota consistently lapped faster than the #20 BMW as afternoon temperatures remained high. Furthermore, the #8 appeared to manage its tyres more effectively than several of its direct rivals.
Nevertheless, cooler evening and overnight conditions could change the balance as the race develops.
Slow puncture delays the #7 Toyota
The #7 Toyota followed a similar strategy during the opening phase.
However, Nyck de Vries suffered a slow puncture during the fourth hour and had to return to the pits. The additional stop pushed the car down to 16th, although it remained on the lead lap.
Most Hypercar teams committed to triple-stinting Michelin’s Pilot Sport tyres. However, some crews chose mixed compounds as they attempted to balance performance and durability in the warm conditions.
The differing approaches allowed Toyota, BMW and Cadillac to take turns at the front during the first four hours.
Jack Aitken moved the #38 Cadillac ahead of Sheldon van der Linde in the #20 BMW after three-and-a-half hours. However, Aitken stopped shortly before the four-hour mark, which returned Hartley and the #8 Toyota to the lead.
Ferrari encounters trouble in traffic
Ferrari lost ground after both factory 499Ps became involved in incidents with LMP2 cars.
Antonio Fuoco made contact with Richard Verschoor’s #30 Duqueine Team Oreca at Tertre Rouge during the third hour. The contact sent the #50 Ferrari into a spin and dropped Fuoco to ninth.
Race control also showed Fuoco the black-and-white warning flag following the incident.
The sister #51 Ferrari then collided with the #9 Proton Competition Oreca while Alessandro Pier Guidi entered the Forest Esses during the fourth hour.
Both cars continued, but the Stewards handed Pier Guidi a drive-through penalty. Consequently, the #51 Ferrari dropped from sixth to ninth.
Despite those incidents, the race required only one Full Course Yellow during the opening four hours. Officials used the short interruption to clear debris from the circuit.
BMW and Cadillac reacted quickly, with the #20 and #12 cars taking on a small amount of sustainable TotalEnergies fuel during the neutralisation.
Duqueine Team takes control of LMP2
IDEC Sport led LMP2 through much of the opening phase after Job van Uitert controlled the class from the #28 Oreca.
However, Duqueine Team moved ahead after the fourth round of pit stops. Verschoor recovered from his contact with Fuoco and took the class lead before handing the #30 car to Pin.
Pin remained in first place at the four-hour mark.
The #28 IDEC Sport entry lost ground after Paul Lafargue began his stint. Louis Rousset then moved the #29 Forestier Racing by Panis Oreca into second.
Inter Europol Competition also featured near the front. Bijoy Garg placed the #343 Oreca third after passing Lafargue, while the team’s #43 entry remained inside the leading group.
Harry King completed a strong double stint in the #9 Proton Competition Oreca before handing over to Jonas Ried. However, Ried later stopped for checks following contact with the #51 Ferrari and lost a position to CLX Motorsport.
Further back, DKR Engineering dropped to the rear of the LMP2 field after contact forced the team to replace an upright.
Manthey moves into LMGT3 lead in 2026 Le Mans
Mattia Drudi controlled the opening LMGT3 stint from pole in the #27 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3.
He then handed the car to team owner Ian James, which allowed the #78 Akkodis ASP Team Lexus RC F LMGT3 to take over at the front.
Jack Hawksworth built a sizeable advantage before Tom van Rompuy continued the Lexus’s strong run.
However, Ayhancan Güven brought the #91 Manthey DK Engineering Porsche into the fight through an impressive double stint. The Turkish driver used an alternative strategy and moved into the class lead as the fifth hour began.
José María López also ran strongly in the sister #87 Lexus. The Argentine briefly held third before moving into second near the end of the fourth hour.
Drudi returned to the #27 Aston Martin and ran third, just ahead of Julian Hanses in the Team Qatar by Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG.
Early LMGT3 problems affect several contenders
The #69 Team WRT BMW and #87 Lexus fought closely for second during the third hour.
Anthony McIntosh defended strongly in the BMW, but Petru Umbrărescu eventually moved the Lexus ahead.
Elsewhere, Martin Berry endured a difficult opening stint in the Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG. He spun on cold tyres at Tertre Rouge before hitting the barrier at the first Mulsanne Chicane.
The crew repaired the car during the first hour, although the incidents cost valuable time.
The Manthey 1st Phorm Porsche also encountered early trouble. A technical issue delayed the car shared by Yasser Shahin, Richard Lietz and Riccardo Pera by four laps.
Meanwhile, the #13 Autosport Corvette required repairs after contact with another LMGT3 entry near the end of the second hour.
Toyota leads as the 2026 Le Mans race enters its next phase
Toyota’s early pit-stop strategy and Buemi’s strong triple stint placed the #8 car at the head of the race after four hours.
However, BMW and both Hertz Team JOTA Cadillacs remained close enough to challenge as the strategies continued to cycle.
The #7 Toyota’s puncture and Ferrari’s two incidents demonstrated how quickly traffic could alter the order. Meanwhile, the hot afternoon conditions placed tyre management at the centre of the Hypercar contest.
As the race moved towards evening, the falling temperatures promised another shift in performance across all three classes.
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