Sportscar racing is extremely popular in 2025 again, and the Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH is a fan favorite already after debuting at the start of the season. Which sim racing title will add it first, though?
The list of Hypercar manufacturers for both WEC and IMSA keeps growing: While the likes of Ferrari, Toyota, Porsche and several others are already running cars in the class, manufacturers like McLaren, Hyundai (as Genesis) or Ford are looking to do so in the near future as well. For 2025, Aston Martin debuted its Valkyrie AMR-LMH - a fan favorite even before it first turned a wheel in an actual race.
The reason for that is basically the same as with the Cadillac V-Series.R: the sound. On a grid dominated by turbocharged V6 or V8 motors, both Cadillac and Aston Martin went the other way, opting for naturally aspirated engines with comparatively large displacement figures. The Caddy sports a 5.5-liter V8, and the Valkyrie's heart is a 6.5-liter V12.
Fans love the result. The Caddy is loved for its loud V8 roar, and the Aston Martin brings an incredible V12 wail to the table. Why is that so important, though? Well, it is a sound that is not really present in modern racing anymore. Much like the beloved noises of the V10 era F1 cars, V12 engines are a thing of the past - for the most part, anyway.
So despite its not very successful debut season thus far, its aggressive looks and sound make the Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH a fan favorite in 2025. It is a spectacular car, really, and as such, it is on the radar of many a racing fan or automotive enthusiast that is not very deep into sportscar racing at all, too.
So, having the car available in a racing sim or game would certainly draw extra attention to that title. There are a few candidates in our sim racing sphere that would make sense for this, and it should be interesting to see who can add the V12 Hypercar first in an official capacity.
Add in the statement that "some new contenders are expected to join the GTP, GT3 and GT4 classes, including models from a premium manufacturer which will be making its debut in AMS2" and it seems almost logical that the manufacturer in question is Aston Martin. However, keep in mind that it was not said that the premium manufacturer does have entries in all three classes listed.
Additionally, it seems that Reiza's focus for now seems to be on the first of its three planned historic versions of Le Mans, in this case the 2005 track and cars to accompany it. Which is not to say that both could not happen - and with new content set to arrive more frequently than in 2024, maybe both will happen, just not at the same time.
With the GTP class of cars as a focal point in early 2025, iRacing adding the Valkyrie AMR-LMH would make sense - and the GT3 crowd could benefit from that as well if it meant a package deal for the Vantage GT3 Evo that is still absent from the sim.
If that were the case, the IMSA GTP grid for 2025 would be almost complete, and the GTD class would only only be missing the Lexus RC F GT3 - not counting the missing evo versions of the Lamborghini Huracán GT3 (EVO2) and the BMW M4 GT3.
Mind you, this has not been officially confirmed to be included yet, but LMU is supposed to reach 1.0 status at some point in 2025 - in time for Le Mans would be fitting. The 24-hour classic is run on June 14 and 15 this year, and 2024 edition of the race resulted in an LMU player peak once it finished. Good timing indeed.
With the recent $2.5M investment by VR hardware manufacturer Pimax, Motorsport Games has the means "to easily keep going for a year even if we didn't do anything", as MSG CEO Stephen Hood put it, so the 2025 content should be a relatively safe bet. And there is no doubt that the combination of the two cars needed for the full 2025 grid being released alongside v1.0 in time for the 2025 Le Mans 24 hours would give Le Mans Ultimate a fair bit of momentum.
Furthermore, it was Rennsport that first had the Evo version of the Vantage GT3, so there might be a good relationship between the manufacturer and Competition Company already. However, as the sim is still relatively light on things to do in its Early Access state, it probably would not be the preferred platform of many sim racers for the car to make its virtual debut.
All that said, keep your eyes on Forza Motorsport and Gran Turismo 7 as well, as both franchises have existing relationships with Aston Martin already. In which game or sim fans get to drive the V12 menace first remains to be seen, however - but we are certain it is going to appear eventually. And that is not even factoring in mods yet.
Where would you want to drive the Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH first? Let us know in the comments below!
The list of Hypercar manufacturers for both WEC and IMSA keeps growing: While the likes of Ferrari, Toyota, Porsche and several others are already running cars in the class, manufacturers like McLaren, Hyundai (as Genesis) or Ford are looking to do so in the near future as well. For 2025, Aston Martin debuted its Valkyrie AMR-LMH - a fan favorite even before it first turned a wheel in an actual race.
The reason for that is basically the same as with the Cadillac V-Series.R: the sound. On a grid dominated by turbocharged V6 or V8 motors, both Cadillac and Aston Martin went the other way, opting for naturally aspirated engines with comparatively large displacement figures. The Caddy sports a 5.5-liter V8, and the Valkyrie's heart is a 6.5-liter V12.
Fans love the result. The Caddy is loved for its loud V8 roar, and the Aston Martin brings an incredible V12 wail to the table. Why is that so important, though? Well, it is a sound that is not really present in modern racing anymore. Much like the beloved noises of the V10 era F1 cars, V12 engines are a thing of the past - for the most part, anyway.
So despite its not very successful debut season thus far, its aggressive looks and sound make the Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH a fan favorite in 2025. It is a spectacular car, really, and as such, it is on the radar of many a racing fan or automotive enthusiast that is not very deep into sportscar racing at all, too.
So, having the car available in a racing sim or game would certainly draw extra attention to that title. There are a few candidates in our sim racing sphere that would make sense for this, and it should be interesting to see who can add the V12 Hypercar first in an official capacity.
Automobilista 2
Already featuring most of the IMSA grid thanks to a licensing deal with North America's premier endurance series, the Valkyrie would fit in perfectly with the AMS2 roster of modern sportscars. Reiza Studios Founder and Lead Developer Renato Simioni has stated in the March dev update that the next development cycle is going to focus on endurance racing again as well.Add in the statement that "some new contenders are expected to join the GTP, GT3 and GT4 classes, including models from a premium manufacturer which will be making its debut in AMS2" and it seems almost logical that the manufacturer in question is Aston Martin. However, keep in mind that it was not said that the premium manufacturer does have entries in all three classes listed.
Additionally, it seems that Reiza's focus for now seems to be on the first of its three planned historic versions of Le Mans, in this case the 2005 track and cars to accompany it. Which is not to say that both could not happen - and with new content set to arrive more frequently than in 2024, maybe both will happen, just not at the same time.
iRacing
Another sim that is firmly on the Hypercar train, iRacing offers all IMSA GTP cars that competed in 2024 save for the Lamborghini SC63, plus the Ferrari 499P that runs exclusively in WEC. Aston Martin is also on board as a brand already, though only in the GT4 class via the Vantage GT4, and with the mid-2000s DBR9 GT1.With the GTP class of cars as a focal point in early 2025, iRacing adding the Valkyrie AMR-LMH would make sense - and the GT3 crowd could benefit from that as well if it meant a package deal for the Vantage GT3 Evo that is still absent from the sim.
If that were the case, the IMSA GTP grid for 2025 would be almost complete, and the GTD class would only only be missing the Lexus RC F GT3 - not counting the missing evo versions of the Lamborghini Huracán GT3 (EVO2) and the BMW M4 GT3.
Le Mans Ultimate
Duh, you could say. As the official WEC game, Le Mans Ultimate is bound to feature the Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH sooner or later. In may, the 2024 season content is due to be completed with the addition of the Lusail Circuit, plus the Lexus RC F LMGT3 and the Lamborghini Huracán LMGT3 EVO2. From there, only two cars are required to feature all vehicles of the 2025 season as well - the Mercedes-AMG LMGT3 Evo and the Valkyrie.Mind you, this has not been officially confirmed to be included yet, but LMU is supposed to reach 1.0 status at some point in 2025 - in time for Le Mans would be fitting. The 24-hour classic is run on June 14 and 15 this year, and 2024 edition of the race resulted in an LMU player peak once it finished. Good timing indeed.
With the recent $2.5M investment by VR hardware manufacturer Pimax, Motorsport Games has the means "to easily keep going for a year even if we didn't do anything", as MSG CEO Stephen Hood put it, so the 2025 content should be a relatively safe bet. And there is no doubt that the combination of the two cars needed for the full 2025 grid being released alongside v1.0 in time for the 2025 Le Mans 24 hours would give Le Mans Ultimate a fair bit of momentum.
Rennsport
Arguably the dark horse on the list, Rennsport could actually be among the first sims to feature the Valkyrie AMR-LMH. Hypercars are already on the title's roster in the shape of the BMW M Hybrid V8 and the Porsche 963, so the Aston Martin would not be the first in that class.Furthermore, it was Rennsport that first had the Evo version of the Vantage GT3, so there might be a good relationship between the manufacturer and Competition Company already. However, as the sim is still relatively light on things to do in its Early Access state, it probably would not be the preferred platform of many sim racers for the car to make its virtual debut.
All that said, keep your eyes on Forza Motorsport and Gran Turismo 7 as well, as both franchises have existing relationships with Aston Martin already. In which game or sim fans get to drive the V12 menace first remains to be seen, however - but we are certain it is going to appear eventually. And that is not even factoring in mods yet.
Where would you want to drive the Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR-LMH first? Let us know in the comments below!
