David Parry & the London Philharmonic Orchestra, "Ride of the Valkyries (from Die Walküre)" from The 50 Most Essential Pieces of Classical Music
Commentary: For the 2020-2021 season of the World Endurance Championship (W.E.C.), the existing Le Mans Prototype 1 (L.M.P.1) regulations will be replaced with the new specification called "Hypercar." Hypercars may be based on road-going hypercars (because "supercars" have become so proletarian) or purpose-build prototypes. So far, four marques have confirmed their intention to compete in Hypercar: Toyota, Aston Martin, boutique manufacturer Glickenhaus, & privater team ByKolles. Toyota are building a prototype based on their G.R. Super Sport Concept (Wikipedia-link); Aston Martin are adapting their road-going Valkyrie (Wikipedia-link), developed in partnership with the Red Bull Racing Formula One team. This past weekend, during the British Grand Prix weekend at the Silverstone Circuit, the Valkyrie turned its first public laps (see: the above photograph).
I will miss the thrillingly, absurdly fast L.M.P.1s, but freely acknowledge that their exorbitant cost has served as a deterrent to manufacturers, at least since the diesel emissions scandal demonstrated that the entire Volkswagen Group is a giant criminal conspiracy & Volkswagen marques Audi & Porsche both withdrew from the W.E.C. (only from L.M.P.1 in the case of Porsche, who still compete in the G.T.E. class) to burnish their environmental credentials in the all-electric Formula E series. Here's hoping Hypercar will both provide thrilling racing & attract a plethora of competitors, all vying or the glory of overall victory in the "Grand Prix of Endurance & Efficiency," the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Le Mans! Le Mans! Le Mans!
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