Dean MacDonald placed Garage 59 at the top of Thursday’s 2026 GT World Challenge (GTWC) Europe powered by AWS test session at Magny-Cours.
The Scottish driver produced a 1:37.397 during the closing minutes to move the #59 McLaren 720S GT3 EVO ahead of Dani Juncadella’s #3 Mercedes-AMG Team Verstappen Racing entry by 0.173 seconds.
Meanwhile, Kiern Jewiss led the Bronze Cup in third overall, Tom Fleming set the Gold Cup benchmark in seventh and Guilherme Oliveira completed the top 10 as the fastest Silver Cup driver.
Changing conditions create late opportunity
The 44-car field began the session on a wet circuit before increasingly dry conditions improved the track during the afternoon.
Consequently, several drivers set their best laps during the final stages. MacDonald completed his fastest effort on Lap 29 at 15:45, while Dennis Marschall, Fleming, Maro Engel and Oliveira also recorded late improvements.
The session ran without a Safety Car or Full Course Yellow period, giving every crew uninterrupted time to assess its car before Friday’s two Free Practice sessions.
MacDonald snatches first from Juncadella
Juncadella had established the benchmark for Mercedes-AMG Team Verstappen Racing with a 1:37.570.
However, MacDonald improved during the final five minutes and moved Garage 59 to the top by 0.173s. His 1:37.397 also represented an average speed of 163km/h around the 4.411km French circuit.
The result provided an encouraging start for Garage 59 after the team struggled to reproduce its strong 2025 Sprint Cup form during the opening rounds of the current campaign.
Moreover, Magny-Cours holds positive memories for the British squad after it won at the circuit last season. MacDonald’s early pace therefore suggests that the venue could offer Garage 59 an opportunity to revive its Sprint Cup challenge.
Three Mercedes-AMGs finish inside top four
Although Juncadella lost first late in the session, Mercedes-AMG still placed three cars among the leading four.
Jewiss recorded a 1:37.787 in the #222 2Seas Motorsport entry to finish third overall and lead the Bronze Cup. He ended the session 0.390s behind MacDonald and 0.217s behind Juncadella.
Dienst followed only 0.066s further back in Winward Racing’s #87 Mercedes-AMG. The Misano Bronze Cup winner set a 1:37.853 and finished 0.022s ahead of Marschall’s Kessel Racing Ferrari.
Therefore, Jewiss, Dienst and Marschall filled third, fourth and fifth overall while also occupying the first three Bronze Cup positions.
Hesse places Team WRT sixth
Max Hesse led Team WRT’s four-car effort with sixth place in the #46 BMW M4 GT3 EVO he shares with Valentino Rossi.
Hesse stopped the clock at 1:37.909, placing him 0.512s behind MacDonald and only 0.034s behind Marschall.
Meanwhile, Sprint Cup championship leaders Charles Weerts and Kelvin van der Linde finished ninth in the #32 BMW. Weerts produced a 1:37.948, leaving the Misano double winners 0.551s away from the top.
The #31 BMW of Amaury Cordeel and Jordan Pepper finished 39th, while Silver Cup leaders Matisse Lismont and Ignacio Montenegro placed 29th in the #30 entry.
Fleming gives Garage 59 Gold Cup benchmark
Garage 59 also topped the Gold Cup through Fleming and Louis Prette.
Fleming recorded a 1:37.924 in the #58 McLaren to claim seventh overall, only 0.527s behind MacDonald. His result placed both Garage 59 cars inside the top seven.
Arthur Rougier and James Kell took second in the Gold Cup and 12th overall for CSA Racing with a 1:38.006.
Meanwhile, Gilles Magnus and Robin Knutsson finished third in class and 20th overall for Boutsen VDS. Gold Cup championship leaders Tommaso Mosca and Matias Zagazeta followed in 21st for AF Corse.
Engel leads Winward Racing’s Pro entry
Engel placed the #48 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG eighth overall with a 1:37.935.
The result left him 0.011s behind Fleming and 0.013s ahead of Weerts as the two leading Sprint Cup championship crews finished directly alongside one another.
Engel and Lucas Auer entered Magny-Cours as the nearest Drivers’ Championship challengers to Weerts and Van der Linde following two third-place finishes at Misano.
Nevertheless, the Thursday test offered no championship points. Instead, Winward Racing and Team WRT used the session to begin preparing for two races that could significantly influence the title fight.
Oliveira leads closely matched Silver Cup
Oliveira completed the overall top 10 and set the fastest Silver Cup lap in Optimum Motorsport’s #5 McLaren.
His 1:37.960 placed him only 0.563s behind MacDonald. Jamie Day followed just 0.017s further back in the #34 Walkenhorst Motorsport Aston Martin.
Arthur Dorison took third in class and 16th overall for Comtoyou Racing with a 1:38.095.
The leading Silver Cup runners remained tightly matched, with fewer than 0.14s separating Oliveira, Day and Dorison.
Emil Frey Racing places both Ferraris inside top 20
Thierry Vermeulen and Ben Green led Emil Frey Racing’s effort in 15th overall.
The #69 Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO recorded a 1:38.080, placing it 0.683s behind the session-leading McLaren.
Konsta Lappalainen and Matteo Cairoli followed in 19th with a 1:38.255. Meanwhile, Neubauer and Arthur Leclerc placed AF Corse’s leading Pro Cup Ferrari 22nd, 0.967s away from first.
Garage 59 carries momentum into Friday
Garage 59 completed an encouraging opening day with the fastest overall and Gold Cup laps.
However, teams will gain a clearer picture of the competitive order during Friday’s two 100-minute Free Practice sessions. FP1 begins at 13:30 before FP2 takes place under the lights from 20:40.
The Razoon – more than racing Porsche no longer appears on the final entry list, reducing the expected grid from a record 45 cars to 44. Nevertheless, every confirmed entry participated in Thursday’s test.
Live coverage begins with Qualifying 1 at 14:55 on Saturday before Race 1 starts under the lights at 21:05. Qualifying 2 follows at 10:50 on Sunday, with Race 2 scheduled for 15:30.
