TOYOTA RACING will start the 94th Le Mans 24 Hours from outside the top 10 after a frustrating Hyperpole at the Circuit de la Sarthe.
The #7 TR010 HYBRID of Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and Nyck de Vries will line up 14th on the grid when the race begins at 4pm CEST on Saturday, with Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryō Hirakawa just behind, in 15th, in the #8 TR010 HYBRID.
“We hoped for better in qualifying, but we know that the race is long and ultimately it doesn’t matter too much where we’re starting,” commented Hartley. “We’ve been focusing on long-run pace. It’s not going to be easy because we are down a bit on top speed, so it will be hard to overtake. But the car actually feels quite good to drive so we’re ready to take on the challenge.”
Kamui Kobayashi and Ryō Hirakawa took the wheel of their respective cars for Hyperpole 1, aiming to be among the fastest 10 to progress. Their first flying laps initially put them in the top 10, and after a stop for new soft Michelin tyres, both looked set to improve. However, Kamui’s last attempt was cancelled after he was judged to have exceeded track limits, while Ryō was delayed in traffic. The TR010 HYBRIDs therefore fell down the order and missed out on Hyperpole 2.
Earlier in the afternoon, Thursday’s first session, third practice, offered another chance to adjust race set-ups of the TR010 HYBRIDs and compare Michelin tyre compounds. After a brief, late red flag, the three hours finished with the #8 car in 12th place thanks to Ryō’s lap. The #7 car was one place behind following Kamui’s best lap.
After sunset, fourth practice brought the curtain down on the on-track action before the race weekend. The relatively short one-hour session ran without major incident and Mike’s lap in the #7 car earned third place, with the #8 in 11th courtesy of Brendon’s best lap.
Earlier in the day, the Circuit de la Sarthe witnessed a significant milestone when the liquid hydrogen fuelled TR LH2 Racing Prototype completed its first public demonstration, bringing the sights and sounds of a hydrogen engine to fans around the track.
Although there are no track sessions, Friday is nevertheless an intense time for the team. Engineers will finalise a strategy to gain positions in the race, while mechanics will rebuild and prepare the TR010 HYBRIDs. Meanwhile, the drivers will meet their fans during the afternoon drivers’ parade in the city centre, which they will complete onboard hydrogen fuel cell Hilux prototype vehicles.
Le Mans 24 Hours – Hyperpole 1
1st #35 Alpine Endurance Team 3mins 23.018secs
2nd #38 Cadillac Hertz Team Jota +0.073secs
3rd #17 Genesis Magma Racing +0.108secs
4th #101 Cadillac WTR +0.173secs
5th #20 BMW M Team WRT +0.228secs
6th #15 BMW M Team WRT +0.262secs
14th #7 TOYOTA RACING +1.250secs
15th #8 TOYOTA RACING +1.560secs
Le Mans 24 Hours – Hyperpole 2
1/ #15 BMW M TEAM WRT 03:22.564
2/ #12 CADILLAC HERTZ TEAM JOTA 03:23.078
3/ #35 ALPINE ENDURANCE TEAM 03:23.62
4/ #20 BMW M TEAM WRT 03:23.764
5/ #101 CADILLAC WTR 03:23.778
6/ #19 GENESIS MAGMA RACING 03:23.823
7/ #009 ASTON MARTIN THOR TEAM 03:24.729
8/ #51 FERRARI AF CORSE 03:25.081
9/ #17 GENESIS MAGMA RACING 03:26.116
10/ #38 CADILLAC HERTZ TEAM JOTA 03:26.865
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