Battling the Elements in Japan | 6 Hours of Fuji | WEC Round 6

DK Engineering's James Cottingham delivered one of his finest career drives this past weekend at Fuji Speedway, a circuit that has spotlighted his talent in previous years. In the days leading up to the 6 Hours, Japan had endured Typhoon Dujuan. With wind speeds upwards of 80 mph and torrential rain in tow, the stormy weather would play a huge role in the World Endurance Championship's weekend.

As inclement conditions hounded the circuit on Saturday, the WEC and the FIA made the decision to cancel Qualifying and Hyperpole in favour of the team's safety. This meant that the starting order for Sunday's race would be decided based upon times taken from practice. Unfortunately for the #91 DK Engineering Manthey Porsche, this meant starting at the very back of the LMGT3 field, in P18.

The conditions on Sunday were fairer, and the race would get underway in the usual fashion. James Cottingham saddled up to complete the opening stint and immediately set about recovering the lost ground. He picked his way through the field with strong pace and a series of overtakes, and after around 90 minutes had taken the Porsche all the way into the class lead.

Then followed an unfortunate drive-through penalty for Timur Boguslavskiy, and VSC, which dropped the car back into the midfield. From there, the #91 had to fight its way forward again, with the final stages becoming complicated as rain approached and the Safety Car bunched the LMGT3 field together.

The #91 eventually finished 7th, climbing 11 positions from its original grid position and subsequently scoring six championship points. The frustration came because the pace shown suggested that a higher result could have been possible. Nonetheless, an incredibly strong performance by the team, despite Japan's weather throwing everything it had at Fuji Speedway.

We go again in Barcelona for the penultimate round of the 2026 World Endurance Championship.