Silverstone One-Two for TOYOTA GAZOO Racing
September 02 2019 - 4:39AM
JCN Newswire (English)
TOYOTA GAZOO Racing started the 2019-2020 FIA World Endurance
Championship (WEC) season in perfect style with a one-two victory
in an eventful 4 Hours of Silverstone.
Home favourite Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and José María López
took victory from pole position in the #7 TS050 HYBRID to register
the sixth consecutive win for reigning World Champions TOYOTA GAZOO
Racing, despite its cars now carrying 99kg more weight than their
nearest rivals under updated regulations.
The #8 TS050 HYBRID of Sébastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima and Brendon
Hartley fought all the way to the flag and earned second place,
less than two seconds behind its sister car, in front of a weekend
crowd of 49,600 who saw an action-packed race in changing weather
conditions.
Mike started the race from pole in the #7, holding that advantage
from Sébastien during the early stages until an unfortunately-timed
full course yellow saw the Rebellions briefly lead. Sébastien, now
ahead of the sister car after the pit stops, soon closed the gap
and took the lead with Mike bringing the #7 up to second a few laps
later.
As the race approached the 90-minute mark, an intense rain shower
hit Silverstone. Both cars initially attempted to avoid a costly
unplanned pit stop but track conditions deteriorated and both
eventually changed to wet weather tyres.
Pit stops proved to be an influential factor, with TOYOTA GAZOO
Racing earning precious seconds at tyre changes. That is even more
significant this season due to regulation changes which increase
the refuelling time for the TS050 HYBRID to make sure that Ginetta
and Rebellion are able to fill up within the same time, despite
adding 50% and 61% more fuel to their tanks respectively.
Brendon held the lead on his #8 race debut despite losing a few
seconds in the pits due to a windscreen wiper repair, but Kamui was
directly behind and overtook soon after as half distance
approached. The race entered its final two hours under a safety
car, which brought the top three close together.
When racing resumed after a 23-minute safety car period, the two
TS050 HYBRIDs led the way and soon their margin over the #3
Rebellion was increased to almost a minute when it served a
stop-and-go penalty for a technical infringement.
That left the two TS050 HYBRIDs, with Kamui at the wheel of the #7
and Brendon driving the #8, to fight it out for victory and the
pair swapped places several times before handing over to José and
Kazuki respectively for the final hour.
José held the advantage as the pendulum swung between the two cars
through the challenging Silverstone traffic and took the chequered
flag, winning the race for the #7 car just 1.901secs ahead of
Kazuki in the #8.
2019-20 WEC Round 1 the 4 Hours of Silverstone
TOYOTA GAZOO Racing will therefore take an early World Championship
lead to the second round of the season, its home race at Fuji
Speedway on 6 October when the race length will revert to the more
traditional six-hour format.
However, the challenge of winning again on home ground will be even
tougher due to new rules which impose performance penalties on cars
depending on championship position. The TS050 HYBRIDs will be
slowed compared to their non-hybrid rivals, with the #7 suffering
more than its sister car on account of today's victory.
Hisatake Murata (Team President)
"This was a perfect way to start the new season; a one-two victory
and an eventful race for the fans to enjoy. Thanks to everyone in
the team for a great job today, particularly the pit crews who made
up a lot of time on our rivals with their very fast tyre changes,
and the drivers who stayed cool in the changing conditions. We have
seen that the competition is much tougher this season and our
rivals will be even closer in Fuji when we experience the success
handicap system for the first time. So I hope the fans will
continue to enjoy an exciting battle among the LMP1 teams
throughout the season."
Mike Conway (TS050 HYBRID #7)
"It's great to win my home race here at Silverstone. I've been
trying to win this race for a while now; it took me long enough!
Big thanks to my team-mates who did a really solid job in tricky
conditions. We were being hounded all the time by our sister car;
it was a very tight race so it feels great to come away with the
win. Thanks as well to the team for giving us the car to achieve
this, especially after having to change the monocoque on Friday.
This win is for those guys."
Kamui Kobayashi (TS050 HYBRID #7)
"I'm very happy with this result; it's a perfect start to our
season. I think I had the hardest stint due to the rain. We
expected a short shower and tried to survive on the slick tyres but
it was heavier and longer than we expected so we had to pit. It was
a close and fair fight with car #8; everyone in the team did a
great job. All week the car was strong and we had good pace so now
we are looking forward to Fuji."
José María López (TS050 HYBRID #7)
"That was a really good way to start the season for the whole team.
It was a very tough race and really close with our sister car, as
well as our LMP1 competitors. The conditions were tricky but Mike
and Kamui did a great job and I had to manage the final stint,
fighting with Kazuki. I managed to keep the car in front so I'm
really happy for this because Silverstone is a special track and
it's also Mike's home race. So there are a few factors which make
this victory particularly special."
Sébastien Buemi (TS050 HYBRID #8)
"A one-two is the perfect result for the team, so it was a good day
for us. Of course I am always aiming to be first but we had a
strong race and Brendon did a good job in his first race in the
TS050 HYBRID. We made no mistakes and were right there with car #7.
Congratulations to them for the win. Unfortunately we were just a
little bit behind but we had the right pace and that makes me
optimistic for Fuji."
Kazuki Nakajima (TS050 HYBRID #8)
"Congratulations to all the team and especially to car #7 for the
win; also compliments to Brendon and Kamui who raced in extremely
difficult conditions and did a really good job to keep the car on
the track. That was very impressive. We also had strong race pace
but unfortunately I lost a little time in my first stint. Now we
look forward to our home race in Japan and aim to get back on the
middle step of the podium there."
Brendon Hartley (TS050 HYBRID #8)
"It was a fantastic race for TOYOTA GAZOO Racing; the pit stops
were good, the cars were well-prepared and there were no mistakes
from any of the drivers. There's a little disappointment not being
first, but as we all know only one car can win so I am happy with
my first weekend with TOYOTA and how I integrated with Kazuki,
Sébastien and the team. I had an interesting first stint driving
with slicks in the wet without a windscreen wiper but I am happy
with my performance."
2019-20 WEC Round 1 the 4 Hours of Silverstone
4 Hours of Silverstone results
1st - #7 TOYOTA GAZOO Racing - 129 laps
2nd - #8 TOYOTA GAZOO Racing - +1.901secs
3rd - #3 Rebellion (Berthon / Derani / Duval) - +1 lap
4th - #5 Ginetta (Robertson / Hanley / Orudzhev) - +5 laps
5th - #42 Cool Racing (Lapierre / Borga) - +5 laps
6th - #36 Signatech Alpine (Laurent / Negrão / Ragues) - +5
laps
About Toyota Motor Corporation
Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) is the global mobility company that
introduced the Prius hybrid-electric car in 1997 and the first
mass-produced fuel cell sedan, Mirai, in 2014. Headquartered in
Toyota City, Japan, Toyota has been making cars since 1937. Today,
Toyota proudly employs 370,000 employees in communities around the
world. Together, they build around 10 million vehicles per year in
29 countries, from mainstream cars and premium vehicles to
mini-vehicles and commercial trucks, and sell them in more than 170
countries under the brands Toyota, Lexus, Daihatsu and Hino. For
more information, please visit www.toyota-global.com.
Source: Toyota Motor Corporation
Copyright 2019 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved. |
Toyota Motor (NYSE:TM)
Historical Stock Chart
From Aug 2024 to Sep 2024
Toyota Motor (NYSE:TM)
Historical Stock Chart
From Sep 2023 to Sep 2024