TOYOTA GAZOO Racing aims to bring the curtain down on the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) season with another title-winning celebration in the 8 Hours of Bahrain.
The team secured the manufacturers’ World Championship in the penultimate race, on home ground at Fuji Speedway last month, and can cap an exciting season of Hypercar competition against Ferrari, Porsche, Cadillac, Peugeot and Vanwall with the drivers’ crown on Saturday.
Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and José María López are aiming to set a new WEC record of five victories in a single season in their #7 GR010 HYBRID as they keep up the pressure in the battle for their third World Championship crown in four seasons.
Their home win at Fuji Speedway closed the gap to within 15 points of team-mates Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa. The #8 GR010 HYBRID drivers can guarantee their second successive World Championship by finishing first or second in Bahrain, regardless of other results.
“It’s a big race for us and hopefully a fitting end to the season for the team,” commented Hartley. “It was great to win the manufacturers’ title in Japan because that allows us to focus on the battle in the drivers’ championship in Bahrain.
“Our team-mates in car #7 have been really quick all season and they will be tough competitors again. The other Hypercar teams are very competitive as well which will make for another close fight at the front, but we have some good memories of title celebrations in Bahrain and I hope we can enjoy another one on Saturday night.”
A fifth straight drivers’ title for TOYOTA GAZOO Racing is not yet mathematically secure, with both Ferraris still challenging. The #50 drivers are 36 points adrift while the #51 crew are 31 points behind with 39 still available in Bahrain.
The 5.412km Bahrain International Circuit has been a happy hunting ground for the team over the years. It has won eight of the 11 WEC races there since 2012 and is aiming for a seventh successive victory, and sixth consecutive one-two.
A challenging 15-turn lay-out is particularly demanding on tyres, made even trickier by the changing conditions expected during Saturday’s race, which starts in the early afternoon but runs into the night, when temperatures typically drop after sunset.
To prepare for those different conditions, Thursday practice features a lunchtime session in daylight and an evening session in darkness. A midday final practice on Friday sets up qualifying, which takes place just as the sun is setting, at 5.05pm local time (3.05pm CET). Saturday’s race starts at 2pm local time (4pm CET).
The official track action for 2023 goes beyond the 8 Hours of Bahrain. The following day the team will participate in the WEC Rookie Test and rising LMP2 star Josh Pierson, 17, will become the youngest Hypercar driver when he completes at least 30 laps in Sunday’s test. Jack Hawksworth and Ben Barnicoat, 2023 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTD Pro title winners at the wheel of a Lexus RC F GT3 from Vasser Sullivan Racing, will also drive the GR010 HYBRID for the first time.
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