Team Peugeot TotalEnergies travels to Fuji Speedway this weekend for the sixth round of the FIA World Endurance Championship season, at the circuit where the Peugeot 9X8 scored its best result to date. The #93 car finished second there in 2025 after leading 61 laps. The 6 Hours of Fuji is the last overseas race of the year before the season closes out in Barcelona and Monza.

Fuji International Speedway has been one of the friendlier venues for Peugeot’s Hypercar programme. The French manufacturer returns to Japan on 25–28 September for the 6 Hours of Fuji, twelve months after the PEUGEOT 9X8 #93 came home second — the team’s strongest finish since it joined the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2022.

Why Fuji suits the 9X8

The layout pairs a 1.475 km (0.92-mile) main straight with a tight infield section of 12 corners, a combination that has repeatedly worked in the 9X8’s favour. Peugeot has finished inside the top ten at Fuji at every attempt since 2022, and last year the car recorded the highest top speed of any Hypercar in the field at 318 km/h (198 mph) down the straight.

That 2025 run was more than a strong qualifying trace. The #93 led 61 laps and was still in the fight for the win during the final hour before settling for second — the reference point the team is measuring itself against this weekend.

A driver line-up with Japanese history

Several of the team’s drivers know the country well. Loïc Duval and Nick Cassidy each spent years racing in Japan and won titles across multiple championships there. Paul Di Resta started three Formula 1 Grands Prix at Suzuka, Théo Pourchaire has raced in Super Formula, and Stoffel Vandoorne first appeared for the French squad at Fuji in 2023.

“I’m really looking forward to Fuji. It almost feels like a home race for me. I have many special memories at this circuit, and I can’t wait to drive the PEUGEOT 9X8 in front of the Japanese fans. The team is working incredibly hard and making progress in many areas. Our objective is to convert that work into a clean race weekend and deliver a strong result.” — Nick Cassidy, PEUGEOT 9X8 #93

Duval, who races the #94, describes the event as his second home race after Le Mans. “It’s a circuit I particularly enjoy because it usually produces close racing and plenty of overtaking opportunities,” he says, adding that he hopes to be challenging for another podium as the team did last year.

Managing expectations

Team principal Emmanuel Esnault is careful not to read too much into last year’s result. “While past performance never guarantees future success, we arrive in Japan with confidence, knowing this layout has consistently matched our package well,” he says, noting that the team has kept working since the previous round and wants to measure its progress against what it calls extremely strong competition.

That caution is reasonable. The Hypercar class has grown into one of the most crowded top categories in modern sportscar racing, and a circuit that theoretically suits a car no longer guarantees much on race day.

What it means for the run-in

Fuji closes the flyaway part of the calendar. After Japan, the championship heads to the 6 Hours of Barcelona and then to Monza — the track where Peugeot’s WEC campaign began in 2022. The team says it wants to rebuild momentum in Japan ahead of those two finales.

Facts: Peugeot at the 6 Hours of Fuji

  • Cars: PEUGEOT 9X8 #93 and #94
  • Best Fuji result: 2nd place, #93, 2025
  • Laps led in 2025: 61
  • Highest Hypercar top speed in 2025: 318 km/h (198 mph)
  • Circuit: Fuji International Speedway, 1.475 km (0.92-mile) straight, 12-corner infield
  • Free Practice: Friday 25 September; Qualifying: Saturday 26 September
  • Race start: Sunday 28 September, 11:00 local time (04:00 CET)

The 6 Hours of Fuji gets under way on Sunday 28 September at 11:00 local time, 04:00 CET.

Source: www.media.stellantis.com