6 Hours of Fuji – Page 2 – Syndication Server

Toyota locks out front row at home

Toyota Gazoo Racing has locked out the front row for its home FIA WEC race at the Fuji Speedway tomorrow, after a dominant performance in Qualifying this afternoon. The No. 7 GR010 HYBRID will lead the field across the start line tomorrow from pole …

Toyota Gazoo Racing has locked out the front row for its home FIA WEC race at the Fuji Speedway tomorrow, after a dominant performance in Qualifying this afternoon.

The No. 7 GR010 HYBRID will lead the field across the start line tomorrow from pole position, after a 1m27.794 from Kamui Kobayashi. The Japanese ace was the only driver to set a time under 1m28 in the session, which was affected by a late rain shower that prevented any improvements in the final few minutes.

“We know this circuit well, I know how to build the temperature in the tyres. It’s critical. I made a pretty good lap, the car felt pretty good after practice. I was not expecting this lap time, I was shocked. Tomorrow we hope for sunshine,” Kobayashi said after the session.

Brendon Hartley was entrusted with the task of qualifying the No. 8, and managed to set a 1m28.418 to make it an all-Toyota front-row for Sunday’s six-hour race, in which Toyota is looking to score its fifth win in six races this season and extend its win streak on home soil.

Behind, Porsche Penske enjoyed its strongest qualifying performance of the season to secure third and fourth on the grid. The faster of the two 963 LMDh-spec prototypes was the No. 6 of Kevin Estre, who got within nine-tenths of pole with a 1m28.687. Fred Makowiecki’s set a 1m28.717 in the No. 5.

It was a tough session for Toyota’s main title rival Ferrari, which ended up claiming sixth and seventh on the grid, behind the Cadillac Racing V-Series.R, meaning both LMH 499Ps set times slower than all three factory LMDh cars. The faster of the two was the Le Mans-winning No. 51, which was over a second off pole after a 1m28.991 from James Calado.

“It was a surprise honestly,” Calado said in reaction to the Qualifying result. “I expected a little better than that, but we knew going into this weekend that we were at a slight disadvantage compared to Monza. It’s still disappointing. “I did get compromised on my first lap in the last sector. But I don’t think we could compete with the Toyotas on lap time, it was a magical lap from Kamui (Kobayashi), so congratulations to them.“Tomorrow will be difficult, degradation is high, but we will see what we can do with strategy.”

For Peugeot, it was a disappointing run too. Its 9X8s, which have prior experience here from the team’s maiden WEC season last year, could only manage 10th and 11th after struggling to find outright performance in the mixed conditions.

LMP2 saw a hugely impressive performance from Phil Hanson score the class pole for United Autosports and its No. 22 ORECA. This was also his first WEC pole from behind the wheel.

The Briton bettered WRT driver Louis Deletraz’s best time by less than a tenth, forcing him and his teammates in the No. 41 ORECA to settle for second on the grid.

Adding to United Autosports’ strong performance was Oliver Jarvis’ 1m32.453 to put the No. 23 third.

“Really happy with pole position today, especially at Fuji where we haven’t been the strongest in the past,” Hanson said. “So to come here and be as competitive as we have been, and ultimately to put it on pole … and for me to be the one who did it … I’m incredibly grateful and very happy with the job I’ve done.

“I’ve got confidence in the car for tomorrow but with all the mixed conditions and lack of long running, I think there’s going to be a bit of learning. But I think we’ve got a good package, and starting from pole is the first piece of the puzzle to the ultimate reward at the end, which is our only goal and ambition tomorrow.”

JOTA’s ORECA ended up fourth, with the Le Mans-winning No. 34 Inter Europol example fifth.

In GTE Am, Ben Keating secured his third pole position of the 2023 season in the No. 33 title-winning Corvette Racing C8.R, with a 1m38.338 with just over four minutes remaining in the first of the three sessions.

Am Qualifying saw multiple cars briefly claim provisional pole, as the times steadily improved across the board when the drivers got used to the grip levels available on the greasy track surface. But again it would be Keating who would steal the show, with a lap that seemingly came out of nowhere, especially as Corvette hadn’t laid down any markers during practice.

The time bettered the best tour from Iron Dames’ Sarah Bovy by just 0.035, which was good enough for provisional pole for a handful of seconds before the Texan completed his best lap.

“I don’t know why (race engineer) Tyler Neff has to wait until qualifying to give us the really good setup!” said Keating. “I went more than two seconds per lap faster in qualifying today than I have at any other time this weekend. It’s because the setup is that much better. It was so confidence-inspiring. I could really push the car without losing grip, even on a damp track.

“I don’t know what they did, but the car was really nice to drive. I wasn’t expecting to be on the pole. It’s always so much fun to be that close with Sarah. She did a good job. I thought I had a pretty good lap and then the team said she did a 1:38.3, and I came across the line at a 38.3 and not knowing who was going to be in front. It was super, super close.”

Behind the Corvette C8.R and Iron Dames Porsche, the No. 777 D’Station Racing and No. 98 Northwest AMR Aston Martins took the spots on the second row, with the fastest Ferrari – the No. 21 from AF Corse – securing fifth on the grid after a strong performance from Hiroshi Koizumi.

Tomorrow’s 6 Hours of Fuji is set to get underway at 11:00 local time in Japan.

Vandoorne hopeful of building on Peugeot WEC chance

Stoffel Vandoorne is eager to make the most of his FIA World Endurance Championship Hypercar debut with the Peugeot TotalEnergies team this weekend at Fuji Speedway, where he will race in place of the injured Nico Müller in the No. 94 9X8. The …

The 2021/22 Formula E champion received the late call-up for this drive when it became clear that Müller, who suffered an injury to his left collarbone during the summer break, wouldn’t be fit to race. As such, Vandoorne has been short on time to prepare.

Vandoorne’s WEC run at Fuji is a one-off, for now. Motorsport Images

As Peugeot Sport’s reserve driver, the Belgian is not heading into this weekend’s track action completely blind. Vandoorne has previous experience behind the wheel of the 9X8 at a test at the Aragon circuit back in March, as well as WEC starts in LMP1 with SMP Racing and LMP2 with JOTA to draw from. While there was no chance to get any additional track time in the Peugeot, he managed to fit in some simulator time last week to help him get up to speed.

“It’s not a complete unknown for me because I have raced in WEC before,” said Vandoorne. “Obviously, times have changed with Hypercar — it’s more competitive than ever. You always want more mileage, but I am glad to get on with it.

“I don’t think there will be any big surprises. I will need to learn the car again in the beginning, but I don’t expect any issues. I am more focused on procedures and making sure I don’t make silly mistakes.

“It’s been a challenge because I have been switching between a lot of cars lately with the (DS Penske) Formula E car, the Aston Martin (F1 car) and now the Peugeot. Every wheel has a different layout and each car operates differently.”

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1416]

The 6 Hours of Fuji is presently a one-off for Vandoorne, as Peugeot expects Müller to be fit to race in time for the season finale at Bahrain in November.

“At the moment the news is good, but we will have to judge at the last minute,” Peugeot Sport technical director Olivier Jansonnie said of Müller’s readiness. “At the moment he is recovering very well. For now, the plan is for him to be in Bahrain; we think he will be.”

Vandoorne’s future role with Peugeot. When asked if a full-time WEC drive is a priority for 2024, he said he has no preference between racing in the WEC or Formula E.

“I’d like to do both,” he said. “I want to drive in as many programs as possible. The more you can drive the better it is. It’s good to combine cars and skill sets. It develops your general skill set if you’re jumping from one car to another.

“My future in Formula E is not only a Stellantis decision because the team is part-owned by Penske. There are more parties involved.”

He did, however, all but rule out a switch in Formula E to fellow Stellantis brand Maserati in the short term.

“I am not calling them, and they haven’t been calling me,” he said.

Toyota turns tables on Ferrari in second Fuji WEC practice

Toyota Gazoo Racing’s GR010 HYBRIDs ended up 1-2 atop the timing screens in Free Practice 2 for the FIA WEC runners at Fuji Speedway this afternoon, with Sebastien Buemi setting the fastest time early in the session in the No. 8. The Swiss’ fastest …

The Swiss’ fastest lap, set in significantly better conditions than the first session earlier in the day, was a 1m29.523s. It was almost six-tenths faster than the sister car, which ended up with a 1m30.120s.

Third in the times was the No. 38 Hertz Team JOTA Porsche 963, which finished with a 1:30.584, Antonio Felix da Costa reeling off the car’s best tour of the circuit.

After finishing 1-2 in Practice 1, which was held on a wet track after rain throughout the morning, Ferrari AF Corse’s 499Ps were fourth and sixth. The quicker of the two was the No. 51, which set a best time just over a second off the No. 8 Toyota. The No. 5 Porsche Penske 963 split the two 499Ps and slotted in fifth.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1416]

LMP2 was tight at the top, with the top five all setting times in the 1m33s. Louis Deletraz in the No. 41 Team WRT ORECA ended up setting the benchmark time, a 1m33.131s, bettering Pietro Fittipaldi’s best lap in the No. 28 JOTA example which eventually was good enough for second. The No. 23 United Autosports ORECA rounded out the top three.

In GTE Am, AF Corse-run Ferrari 488 GTE Evos finished 1-2-3, with the No. 54 leading the way with a 1m38.239s from Davide Rigon. The No. 21 finished the day second, with the No. 83 Richard Mille-backed car third.

The quickest Porsche was the No. 83 from Dempsey Proton Racing, which was fourth fastest. The No. 777 Vantage AMR from D’Station was the quickest of the Aston Martins in sixth. The title-winning Corvette Racing C8.R ended up 10th.

UP NEXT: Track action continues Saturday with Free Practice 3 at 10:20am local time.

RESULTS

Fuoco leads opening Fuji WEC practice for Ferrari

Ferrari AF Corse’s No. 50 499P topped the first practice session of the FIA WEC’s weekend at Fuji Speedway, which was held on a drying circuit after a bout of heavy rain showers throughout the morning. Antonio Fuoco set the fastest time, a 1m35.649s …

Antonio Fuoco set the fastest time, a 1m35.649s at the end of the session, as multiple drivers began to find pace as the conditions improved. It also made it a 1-2 for Ferrari in the times, making for an encouraging start to the meeting for the Italian team on its first trip to Japan with the 499P.

The No. 51 ended up second in the times, with a 1m38.258s from Antonio Giovanazzi.

Best of the rest was the No. 94 Peugeot TotalEnergies 9X8, after a 1m38.693s at the end of the 90-minute run from American Gustavo Menezes. The two Penske Porsche 963s completed the top five after late flyers, with the No. 6 ahead of the No. 5.

The pair of GR010 HYBRIDs from home favourite Toyota Gazoo Racing ended up sixth and seventh, both 3.6 seconds off the best time from Fuoco.

In LMP2, JOTA’s No. 28 ORECA was quickest and notably ran faster than two of the cars in Hypercar — its own Porsche 963 and the Vanwall.

Dane Oliver Rasmussen set the time, a 1m40.781s, which was almost a second up on the rest of the ORECAs in the category. The No. 23 United Autosports and No. 9 examples ended up completing the top three.

GTE saw Dempsey Proton Racing’s No. 77 Porsche 911 RSR 19 end FP1 with the best time, a 1m43.538s courtesy of Mikkel Pedersen, which was quicker than the bottom two LMP2s.

The No. 54 AF Corse Ferrari slotted in second in the category, with the No. 56 Project 1 AO Porsche third. Local team D’Station Racing emerged as the fastest Aston Martin team, with a 1m47.493s to go fifth, a fraction off the No. 83 Richard Mille AF Corse Ferrari that was top early in the session before falling to fourth.

Remarkably, considering the tricky conditions, there were no notable incidents during the session. The weather thus far has been a talking point in the paddock, with typhoon alerts issued locally yesterday. The forecast for the rest of the meeting remains somewhat mixed.

RESULTS