TOYOTA GAZOO Racing returned to winning ways in the 2019-2020 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) with a one-two victory in a dramatic and rain-affected Total 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, the sixth round of the season.
The #7 TS050 HYBRID crew of Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and José María López overcame maximum success handicap to extend their World Championship lead to 12 points with two races remaining, winning TOYOTA GAZOO Racing’s first WEC race since Bahrain in December last year.
They were pushed hard by Sébastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima and Brendon Hartley, in the #8 TS050 HYBRID, who finished 34.170secs behind as the team earned its fourth one-two of the season, stretching its lead in the teams’ World Championship to 42 points over Rebellion, whose #1 car finished a lap behind in third.
“Spa certainly delivered an exciting race with all the combinations of weather,” commented Hartley. “It was a great day for the team to score a one-two in very tricky conditions. I was out there during the very challenging heavy rain before the safety car. My eyes were wide open but I still couldn’t see much; it was not easy.
“On our side of the garage maybe we didn’t execute everything perfectly. Car #7 performed well and they deserved the victory so congratulations to them. We have some areas to improve on our car so this was a good dress rehearsal for Le Mans.”
After days of sunshine and high temperatures, the famously variable Spa weather struck just over an hour before the start, with a heavy rain storm causing the race to begin behind the safety car.
When racing resumed on lap five, both TS050 HYBRIDs used their four-wheel-drive capabilities, instantly overwhelming the pole position Rebellion #1, with Sébastien in the #8 leading from Mike in the #7.
Conditions were constantly evolving and at the first pit stops, close to the one-hour mark, the #8 crew pitted a lap earlier and kept the Michelin wet tyres, whereas Mike in the #7 opted for dry tyres. When the safety car was called soon after due to an incident for a GT car, it became clear that conditions favoured the dry rubber.
Sébastien relinquished the lead to change tyres and the green flags waved with the #7 leading a TOYOTA GAZOO Racing one-two. More rain was to come, however, as the second hour came to a close and both cars pitted simultaneously for wets; the #7, with Kamui at the wheel, led Brendon in the #8 by a minute, with the #4 Bykolles a further minute behind in third.
When the rain worsened, another safety car was called which eliminated the #7 TS050 HYBRID’s advantage. Fortune soon returned the favour when Brendon lost around half a minute leaving the pits due to an issue which had affected both cars intermittently during the race. That restored the #7 car’s advantage.
As the final third approached the sun made a rare appearance, allowing José and Kazuki to take their stints on dry tyres. The race entered its final hour under the safety car, bringing Kazuki on to the tail of José and setting up a tense duel heading into the final pit stop.
José held the lead under heavy pressure and both pit crews serviced the cars in near identical times, with the #7 pitting a lap after its sister car. Mike took the wheel and saw out the remaining 40 minutes, with Sébastien holding station in second until a brief late stop for fuel, crossing the line 34.170secs behind at the flag.
The WEC season now gears up for the biggest race of the year, the Le Mans 24 Hours, when TOYOTA GAZOO Racing will aim for a third successive victory in the TS050 HYBRID’s final appearance in the historic French event, which will take place on 19-20 September.
Total 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps results:
1st #7 TOYOTA GAZOO Racing 143 laps
2nd #8 TOYOTA GAZOO Racing +34.170secs
3rd #1 Rebellion (Senna/Menezes/Nato) +1 lap
4th #22 United Autosports (Hanson/Albuquerque/Di Resta) +3 laps
5th #42 Cool Racing (Lapierre/Borga/Coigny) +4 laps
6th #29 Team Nederland (van Eerd/van der Garde/van Uitert) +4 laps
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