Stellantis CEO Tavares Resigns - what will come of Peugeot's Hypercar future?

Some big news breaking out of the automotive world this week as Carlos Tavares, the CEO for Stellantis, abruptly resigned from his post, pushing the already shaky future of the company further into the land of the unknown.

Tavares has left Stellantis after a reported clash with other members of the board surrounding the long-term financial health and stability of the multinational manufacturer as they navigate through declining sales globally. From their insane 14-brand portfolio, which includes Jeep, Chrysler, Fiat and Peugeot, among many others, there has been a decline in sales and an increase of inventory numbers currently marooned at dealers around the globe.

Sources from media outlets highlight that Tavares was more focused on finding short-term cost-cutting solutions in order to facilitate a quicker turnaround, while those on the board were more concerned about the long-term outlook and what the future of the company holds. Apparently Tavares was eyeing to cut out Fiat and Alfa Romeo from the North American market, something that the board and shareholders did not agree with and we all know how things go when the shareholders start voicing their opinions.  

Our focus through the myriad of questions in the aftermath of course relate to Peugeot and what will come of their brand now that arguably their biggest fan is no longer making the tough decisions at the top. Tavares was a huge force behind Peugeot returning to the top level of prototype endurance racing four years ago and he played a big role in securing the funding and support for the 9x8 Hypercar, and now that Tavares is out and someone new will come in to redirect Stellantis starting in 2025, the question we care about is what will come of the 9x8 and its future.

If we're being honest with the situation and play fortune teller - the days of the 9x8 are numbered. 

Where to start? Right off the bat we know that financial troubles for a manufacturer is a death sentence for any racing program that might fall under their umbrella. Time and time again when the money dries up and decisions need to be made it's always the motorsport division that gets the axe to save on costs. Never mind that, but racing also doesn't exactly produce record profits across for teams or for the builders unless its the circus that is Formula 1, so if a global brand is facing a financial downturn that can alter their longterm future, the easiest place to look at is cutting out the guys that spend millions of dollars on R&D for a prototype racecar to go zoom'a-zoom-zoom for fun.

Second, the 9x8 just hasn't performed at a level that would make things hard for a brand to reconsider moving on and allocating those funds elsewhere. 15 total races across 2.5 years has produced a grand total of two podium finishes and no wins, and as the cost to run a Hypercar team in the WEC continues to increase seemingly exponentially, AND knowing that there are other hungry, healthier (we think but you never know) manufacturers that are ramping up their Hypercar future (Hyundai is confirmed for 2026 while Mercedes and McLaren are preparing their ambitions) and it's easy to envision a scenario where Peugeot simply can't justify the cost of maintaining their prototype program as other brands push for space on the grid that they're willing to pay for. 

Lastly, the two-car mandate brought by the FIA and WEC for 2025 already claimed the life of the lone Lamborghini SC63 that ran in 2024, and moving forward the same goes for every other factory team that wants to join in on the fun - it's two cars or nothing; gone are the days of running a single works car on the grid in hopes of handling budget concerns as the FIA accelerates their own plans of seeing a balanced racing grid between the manufacturers.

It would be a shame because the fanfare for the 9x8 rivals any other car or team that is present on the HY grid. The engineers deserve all the credit in the world for trying something drastically different in this new era of endurance motorsports, and although they ultimately admitted that the 9x8 needed that rear wing to improve overall stability and downforce on the car, the spirit and character of the machine, to go along with all of the support it gets from fans, deserves to see success. But we've seen through two years of the new LMDh era that success in the form of race wins is hard to come by when so many other manufacturers are putting in the work to compete for world championships. It's a tough, competitive battlefield filled with teams, drivers and cars that can all fight at the top of the table, and if a program is going to be successful they're going to need commit the time, attention and money towards the cause. You wonder how much of TA&M Peugeot are truly going to get next year and beyond. Prayers up and fingers crossed.

(photo credit - 24-lemans.com)