The Fuji Scream: Inside Alex Riberas’s Cockpit in the Valkyrie Hypercar

There is onboard footage that flatters a racing car, and then there is the unvarnished cockpit feed of Alex Riberas hustling the No. 009 Aston Martin Valkyrie around Fuji Speedway during the 6 Hours of Fuji. At a circuit renowned for its unrelenting 1.475-kilometre main straight and the claustrophobic, low-speed torture of sector three, Aston Martin’s Hypercar looks less like a synthesised endurance racer and more like an unleashed prototype from an alternate timeline.There is onboard footage that flatters a racing car, and then there is the unvarnished cockpit feed of Alex Riberas hustling the No. 009 Aston Martin Valkyrie around Fuji Speedway during the 6 Hours of Fuji. At a circuit renowned for its unrelenting 1.475-kilometre main straight and the claustrophobic, low-speed torture of sector three, Aston Martin’s Hypercar looks less like a synthesised endurance racer and more like an unleashed prototype from an alternate timeline.

The FIA World Endurance Championship’s premier class has leaned heavily into hybridised balance and computer-moderated delivery, yet watching Riberas work the wheel of the Valkyrie under the shadow of Mount Fuji offers a visceral counterpoint. The onboard perspective captures the rapid-fire steering corrections required through the sweeping 300R bend before clamping down hard on the carbon brakes for the Dunlop chicane.The FIA World Endurance Championship’s premier class has leaned heavily into hybridised balance and computer-moderated delivery, yet watching Riberas work the wheel of the Valkyrie under the shadow of Mount Fuji offers a visceral counterpoint. The onboard perspective captures the rapid-fire steering corrections required through the sweeping 300R bend before clamping down hard on the carbon brakes for the Dunlop chicane.

What stands out immediately across the two-minute lap is the sheer traffic management burden placed on the Hypercar contenders. With the WEC fielding both top-flight Hypercars and LMGT3 machines simultaneously across its eight-round global schedule spanning North America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, Riberas is forced to carve through multi-class traffic while balancing maximum downforce with mechanical grip.What stands out immediately across the two-minute lap is the sheer traffic management burden placed on the Hypercar contenders. With the WEC fielding both top-flight Hypercars and LMGT3 machines simultaneously across its eight-round global schedule spanning North America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, Riberas is forced to carve through multi-class traffic while balancing maximum downforce with mechanical grip.

Through the slow, off-camber rises of Fuji’s final complex—Turns 13 through 16—the Valkyrie’s packaging demands utter commitment. Riberas can be seen fighting the front axle to clip late apexes, short-shifting subtly to avoid lighting up the rear tyres before unleashing full throttle onto the colossal front stretch.Through the slow, off-camber rises of Fuji’s final complex—Turns 13 through 16—the Valkyrie’s packaging demands utter commitment. Riberas can be seen fighting the front axle to clip late apexes, short-shifting subtly to avoid lighting up the rear tyres before unleashing full throttle onto the colossal front stretch.

For Aston Martin, seeing the Valkyrie platform competing wheel-to-wheel in WEC’s headline category is the realisation of a long-delayed endurance racing ambition. Taking a machine originally sketched as an uncompromised road-going hypercar and converting it into a genuine top-class prototype capable of surviving six brutal hours at Fuji is an engineering trial by fire.For Aston Martin, seeing the Valkyrie platform competing wheel-to-wheel in WEC’s headline category is the realisation of a long-delayed endurance racing ambition. Taking a machine originally sketched as an uncompromised road-going hypercar and converting it into a genuine top-class prototype capable of surviving six brutal hours at Fuji is an engineering trial by fire.

As the championship heads into the sharp end of its global tour, the footage serves as a stark reminder of what the top class of prototype racing ought to feel like from behind the visor: loud, relentlessly physical, and completely devoid of compromise.As the championship heads into the sharp end of its global tour, the footage serves as a stark reminder of what the top class of prototype racing ought to feel like from behind the visor: loud, relentlessly physical, and completely devoid of compromise.