Why Peugeot's sportscar return will capture the imagination

OPINION: Peugeot will make its World Endurance Championship debut at Monza this weekend with the 9X8 Le Mans Hypercar that has ignored design conventions by eschewing a rear wing. Its distinctive look will help sportscar racing appeal to fresh audiences as a new golden era is ushered in

Author Gary Watkins

Updated Jul 7, 2022, 9:05 PM

The arrival of Peugeot in the World Endurance Championship at Monza is a seismic event for me. Twice over.

It has to be a big deal because the French manufacturer should be regarded as one of the heavyweights of sportscar racing’s modern era with three Le Mans 24 Hours victories and another 30 wins to its name. But it’s significant for another reason: the Peugeot 9X8 Le Mans Hypercar racing for the first time this weekend is quite unlike anything we’ve seen before.

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Author Gary Watkins

Gary Watkins has, for reasons best known to himself, devoted all his working life to covering sportscar racing. This season is his 33rd as a motorsport journalist, during which time he has reported on major long-distance events on four continents and approaching 80 24-hour races. He reckons a degree in political philosophy makes him well qualified for covering the sometimes Machiavellian world of international sportscars.

Gary, who also writes for Motor Sport, Autocourse, RACER and others, lives in Surbiton close to the former workshops of the Cooper Formula 1 team but spends more time on the road than at home for most of the year.