French driver Théo Pourchaire secured fifth place in qualifying and the race in the Peugeot 9X8 n°94 this weekend at Monza. On the occasion of the final round of the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC), the Maralpin driver delivered a strong race.
For his final race with Team Peugeot in WEC, Théo Pourchaire managed to secure top 5 in qualifying at Monza. A fine performance for his second qualifying session of the season which allowed the n°94 crew to start from the third row of the grid for this final championship race just 253 thousandths of a second off pole position.
Team Peugeot TotalEnergies also placed its second car in Hyperpole. Nick Cassidy, at the wheel of the Peugeot 9X8 n°93, posted the ninth fastest time. Both prototypes notably showed good pace in the first sector of the Italian circuit, between the start line and the braking point of the second chicane.
A dry track after three practice sessions in the rain
Weather conditions complicated team preparation during the weekend. All three free practice sessions took place on a wet track, with rain tires. The qualifying session however provided teams with their first opportunity to run on slick tires since the start of the weekend.
Following qualifying, Théo Pourchaire was satisfied with his performance: “It was my second qualifying session with the PEUGEOT 9X8 in the FIA WEC World Endurance Championship and I’m very happy to have made it to Hyperpole. This fifth place final result is very satisfying and will give us a good starting position for the race. I’m very pleased and looking forward to seeing what tomorrow brings. I’m convinced that we’ll have our chances in this final race of the year.“
A stint of over three hours for Théo Pourchaire
This good grid position offered hope for a more encouraging race than in recent rounds. As has often been the case this season, Loïc Duval took the start late in the morning. After a trouble-free first lap, staying clear of the first chicane incidents, the Frenchman managed to maintain fifth place in the n°94. After a competitive stint, notably marked by a battle with a Ferrari, Loïc Duval handed over to Théo Pourchaire after 1 hour 40 minutes of racing.
The Maralpin exited the pits in sixth position, following a pit stop slightly longer than his competitors’. His stint was then marked by several Safety Car interventions and Full Course Yellow neutralizations. Initially, the Grasse driver let the n°93 Peugeot driven by Paul Di Resta pass, which was pursuing a more aggressive strategy. A tactical choice ultimately negated by another neutralization, which brought the different strategies back into line.
Sixth at the time of the restart, Théo Pourchaire took advantage of a battle between the second Peugeot and the Ferrari ahead of him to overtake the Italian car. The two Lion brand prototypes then found themselves in a position to work together. The n°94 thus took on a defensive role to preserve the chances of the n°93 crew.
A new pit stop, made one lap before main competitors as the brakes showed signs of overheating, pushed Théo Pourchaire back to eighth place. The Frenchman remained nonetheless the best-placed Peugeot. With clearer track ahead of him, the Côte d’Azur driver could focus on his final stint, at the wheel of a car that has not always lived up to the team’s expectations this season.
Another Safety Car intervention interrupted the race again. At the restart, Théo Pourchaire attempted to close in on the Ferrari and BMW ahead of him. The team however asked him to conserve his tires to allow Malthe Jakobsen to have a car capable of defending its chances during the next stint.
After over three hours behind the wheel, the Grasse driver took stock of his weekend: “I really enjoyed this season, I hope to return in the future. The pace was good. I didn’t have much luck with traffic even though it was a bit the same for everyone […] We had a few throttle issues coming out of the pits which hurt us but we’ll still aim for a top 5 to finish on a high,” Théo Pourchaire confided, fifth at the end of his stint.
A position his Danish teammate managed to hold at the cost of a completely crazy end to the race that saw the Peugeot n°94 close to retirement in the final laps after a collision with Alex Lynn’s Cadillac whose race ended in the wall. The Lion brand thus achieves its best result of the season in this final race with Théo Pourchaire at the wheel. The 94 finished 6th at Fuji in late September.
The Maralpin will now focus 100% on the Formula E season which theoretically kicks off in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on the weekend of December 17.
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