WEC 2025 BoP Analysis: BMW

The Balance of Performance graph essentially tells the entire story: the BMW M Hybrid V8 stagnated during the 2025 World Endurance Championship. A very strong start to the season was followed by a bitter Le Mans and a disappointing second half of the year. 

In its second season in the Hypercar class, WRT’s goal was to score at least one win. That target was not achieved, leaving BMW (and Acura, which is not entered in the WEC) as the only LMDh manufacturer yet to achieve a Hypercar victory. 

It is particularly frustrating as Cadillac and Alpine both secured their breakthrough victories during the season. After the first races, BMW looked most likely among the three manufacturers to achieve this milestone first. 

BMW started the season in Qatar with the third-best power-to-weight ratio of 2.053kg/kW in the critical sub-250km/h range; only Cadillac and Peugeot had a favourable BoP. While Team WRT benefited from the intra-team Cadillac collision, the #15 car was delayed early on by a mysterious problem that sorted itself out. 

After the final Safety Car, however, the #15 BMW matched the pace of the superior Ferrari 499Ps, finishing just ten seconds behind the winner and ten seconds ahead of the rest of the field. 

Despite this strong performance, BMW received a slightly better BoP of 2.031kg/kW for Imola. Once again, both BMWs were fighting at the front.  

In the strategic chess match, it was the #20 car that came out on top, securing second place, while the #15 finished sixth. At that point, no one would have even thought about the #15 failing to score another single-digit result for the remainder of the season. 

It seemed BMW had made its breakthrough. Following these strong performances, it received a less favourable BoP of 2.085 kg/kW for Spa-Francorchamps, though only Cadillac, Alpine, and Aston Martin were rated better in direct comparison. 

The BMW M Hybrid V8 remained competitive in Belgium. It could have very well been the program's first WEC win, but the #20 retired with brake problems after a hard-fought battle for the lead. 

The Downward spiral from Le Mans onwards 

Following this promising start on three completely different types of tracks, BMW was even considered a dark horse for the win at Le Mans.  

Below 250km/h, BMW was given a power-to-weight ratio of 2.037kg/kW, identical to Porsche and thus the second-worst behind Peugeot. 

In exchange, the M Hybrid V8, along with Aston Martin, received the most favorable power-to-weight ratio above 250km/h at 1.997kg/kW—a metric that is uniquely decisive at Le Mans. Grid positions four and six further fueled hopes for a good result. 

But the race ended in disaster, setting the stage for a disappointing remainder of the season. Both BMWs suffered from technical issues, in this case the hybrid system cooling and the internal combustion engine. 

The pace was equally unsatisfying; BMW was only fourth-fastest in terms of manufacturers. Until the late technical problems occurred, the two M Hybrid V8s were fighting for positions around seventh place. 

Ferrari, the #6 Porsche, and the #12 Cadillac were all faster than the #15 BMW in the 60-per-cent average, while the #20 fell into the bottom half of the table. 

When asked after the race whether those reliability issues or the lack of pace bothered him more, Vincent Vosse told Motorsport.com: "Reliability. There isn't much we can do about the pace." 

The Le Mans setback had barely been digested when BMW suffered the next blow in Sao Paulo: less than ten minutes after the start, the #15 had to pit. Just like the #20 in Spa, a brake-related issue was to blame. 

BMW's BoP in Sao Paulo was less favourable than in Spa. At 2.095kg/kW below 250km/h, the BMW was only marginally better rated than the Porsche (2.102) and significantly worse than the Cadillac, which dominated the weekend with its 2.016kg/kW rating. 

BMW did manage to salvage a respectable fifth with the #20 thanks to a clever strategy decision that allowed it to get by both Peugeot 9X8s. 

This, however, proved to be the last hurrah in a season that was increasingly slipping away. The rain in Austin resulted in the first no-points finish of the season, including another technical retirement. 

No improvement in the final rounds 

#20 BMW M Team WRT BMW M Hybrid V8: Rene Rast, Robin Frijns, Sheldon van der Linde

For Fuji, the rating of 2.116kg/kW below 250km/h didn't look bad on paper. Whilst less favourable than for much of the season, Ferrari, Toyota, and Porsche had long since moved into regions beyond 2.150 kg/kW.  

Cadillac's Brazil win hadn't fully manifested in its rating (2.076), but the V-Series.R suffered from strategic misfortunes. Still, BMW failed to repeat the podium finish from 2024. The #15 retired due to an accident that wasn't its fault, and the #20 received a drive-through penalty.  

Worse still, it became clear—as reflected in the BoP graph—that BMW and WRT had made less progress after Le Mans when it came to extracting more pace from the existing package. The speed simply wasn't there all weekend. 

At 2.116 kg/kW below 250 km/h, BMW was the only LMDh not to receive a worse BoP for the season finale in Bahrain. Even then, there was no progress to be made in Sakhir.  

WRT team principal Vincent Vosse summarised after the finale: "We still have a lot of work ahead of us in the Hypercar class to improve for next year." 

In the 2025 WEC season, BMW served as the prime example that stagnation in motorsport means losing ground. WRT’s progress throughout the season simply could not keep up with the pace of the competition. 

For 2026, the BMW M Hybrid V8 will receive fundamentally revised aerodynamics. The Bavarian marque will be under high pressure to score its first victory of the WEC programme. 

Otherwise, Motorsport Director Andreas Roos might soon face some very uncomfortable questions from the board. 

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