Maximum ballast weight in Hypercar increased to 70 kg

The World ChampionshipEndurance starts in a few days with the Prologue organized in Qatar (February 24-25), the opportunity for the committee of WEC – jointly required by the ACO and the FIA ​​– to make final adjustments to the technical regulations. The latest change concerns the famous Balance of Performance, or BoP, which is slow to be determined before the start of the season. However, the committee announced a major modification concerning the ballast applicable via this BoP.

In 2023, the maximum ballast weight was set at a maximum of 50 kilos, meaning that Hypercars could be weighed up to 1080 kg. This was particularly the case for Toyota at the end of the season, with the aim of eradicating the domination of the Japanese team, which won hands down despite this handicap. In 2024, the maximum ballast was increased to 70 kilos: a Hypercar could therefore weigh up to 1100 kilos on the scale! Article 4.3 of the WEC technical regulations now states that “[Hypercar] cars must be able to accept a maximum of +70 kg of BoP ballast (above the minimum weight of the car, set at 1030 kilos). »

The idea of ​​this technical modification is to tighten the Hypercar field even further, more extensive than ever with the arrival of new manufacturers (Lamborghini, Alpine, BMW and Isotta Fraschini). Increasing the maximum ballast weight will allow the ACO and FIA to have a wider window to determine BoP tables ahead of WEC rounds. If the best mounts will necessarily be penalized more – we are thinking in particular of Toyota or Classic Ferrari for sale, the two fastest manufacturers on the grid in 2023 – the other competitors will have a greater chance of shining.

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