WEC: Hydrogen at the heart of fan activities at Spa-Francorchamps

Sport news The village was open during all three days of on-track action, located in the heart of the fan zone, and therefore available to the large crowd, with a total of 98,874 fans in attendance over the course of the race weekend. The initiative, driven by the ACO and its MissionH24 project, featured educational and interactive activities that allowed fans to engage directly with hydrogen, including hands-on experiences such as water electrolysis. Hydrogen-powered racing cars such as the Alpine Alpenglow Hy6 and the Toyota Gazoo Racing Yaris H2 Concept were also on display, with the former of the two taking to the track for demonstration runs. FIA SHARING ITS KNOW-HOW Among several industry experts sharing their knowledge in the Hydrogen Village was Nicolas Aubourg, FIA Head of Research & Development, who held a presentation for university experts on the subject of hydrogen. “It was a great opportunity to exchange with university professors from across Europe and share how the FIA is approaching the subject of hydrogen in motor sport,” said Aubourg. “While many of them are hydrogen experts, the specific applications of this technology in the very extreme motor sport environment are quite unique. Therefore, I'm glad that we managed to show how motor sport can serve as a fast and efficient testing ground and how this knowledge can complement academic research,” he summarised. In recent years, the FIA has been assessing risks, including conducting crash tests with hydrogen tanks, with the aim of keeping potential hazards no greater than those already present in motor sport. Last year, the FIA announced that it would focus its efforts on contributing to the development of solutions based on hydrogen stored in liquid form, given that they are best suited (lower volume and weight compared to compressed gas tanks) to the demands of motor sport and allow vehicle layouts to remain closer to conventional fuel-powered designs. However, as the regulatory body, the FIA is not only developing safety standards but also shaping rules to steer innovation toward decarbonisation, as well as overseeing performance balancing between different technologies. The FIA along with the ACO are jointly governing the FIA WEC and the two parties work in close collaboration on the future set of regulations for the forthcoming class of hydrogen-powered vehicles in endurance racing. World Endurance Championship WEC Endurance WEC SEASON 2025 Sport Circuit 1SportWorld Endurance ChampionshipCircuitWECSEASON 2025WECEndurance00 Thursday, May 15, 2025 - 10:05am Thursday, May 15, 2025 - 10:05am