Toyota Gazoo Racing set WEC FP1 pace

Toyota Gazoo Racing overcame a sudden downpour to top the first practice timesheet today in the Bapco Energies 8 Hours of Bahrain at Bahrain International Circuit (BIC), “The Home of Motorsport in the Middle East”.

The final round of the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) flagged off in thrilling fashion, with the challenging weather conditions adding an external element that the WEC’s teams and star drivers do not regularly experience in Sakhir.

The #7 crew of Kamui Kobayashi, Mike Conway and Jose Maria Lopez were the pace-setters in their Toyota GR010 Hybrid. They led a Toyota Gazoo Racing one-two in the extended 135-minute session, where they were just 0.104 seconds ahead of teammates Sebastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa in their #8 Hybrid.

Both cars were also the top two amongst the record 12 runners in the WEC’s Hypercar category.

United Autosport’s #22 crew of Frederick Lubin, Philip Hanson and Filipe Albuquerque were quickest in the WEC’s Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) class, and D’Station Racing’s #777 trio of Liam Talbot, Casper Stevenson and Tomonobu Fujii were fastest in the Le Mans Grand Touring Endurance Am (LMGTE Am) category.

The 36-car WEC field returns to action for the weekend’s second practice later today. The sessions are part of the opening day’s events in the Bapco Energies 8 Hours of Bahrain, which are being held behind closed doors.