When a new car officially takes to the track, the team running it usually has a long list of jobs to check off. At the FIA WEC Prologue this week, that was certainly the case for Toyota Gazoo Racing who intended to use the two days to improve the handling and settings of its latest creation. The GR010 Hybrid – entered in the Hypercar class, the FIA WEC’s new top category – was put through a vast testing programme during the close-season. The Prologue, however, marked the official kick-off of the 2021 season, the highlight of which will be the 89th 24 Hours of Le Mans scheduled on 21-22 August.

Monday’s session saw the #7 car delayed by hydraulic and electrical issues, resulting in the car spending most of the day in the garage while parts were replaced. The #8 car had a busier day, testing tyres and comparing settings with those selected when the GR010 Hybrid first visited the Spa-Francorchamps track.

After a tough first day, Tuesday was a much smoother affair for the #7. Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and José María López were able to get behind the wheel and make a contribution to the team’s programme of adjustments and development despite some time out for repairs following contact with a GT. “It’s been a challenging week for our side of the garage,” said Conway, “but the mechanics did an exceptional job to get us back on track and we’ve been able to get a lot more running in on the second day, despite a few hiccups. The balance feels okay and we’ve been working on race pace, which means consistency and reliability. It’s gone okay and we can take a lot out of the second day so collectively we will go through it all and get back on track Thursday, hopefully with a slightly better car.”

Throughout the two days, the top LMP2 cars achieved similar track times to the Hypercars, reflecting the different performance window for these machines compared with their LMP1 predecessors. “We will push hard to improve the car and come back stronger for the race weekend, although it looks like the weather might change,” added Sébastien Buemi, driver of the #8 Toyota GR010 Hybrid. “It was helpful to practice a bit in the traffic. There were a lot of incidents over the two days but our car stayed out of trouble and now we focus on improving things for the race.”

Overall top six times set during the Prologue

1. #26 Oreca 07-Gibson – G-Drive Racing – 2:04.168 (233 laps)
2. #22 Oreca 07-Gibson – United Autosports – 2:04.284 (197 laps)
3. #38 Oreca 07-Gibson – JOTA – 2:04.582 (218 laps)
4. #8 Toyota GR010 Hybrid – 2:04.708 (205 laps)
5. #29 Oreca 07-Gibson – Racing Team Nederland – 2:04.775 (138 laps)
6. #7 Toyota GR010 Hybrid – 2:04.798 (85 laps)

Following Monday’s accident, the #46 Porche 911 RSR fielded by Team Project 1 and driven by Dennis Olsen, Axcil Jefferies and Anders Burchardt will sit out the Total 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps.
The competitors will be back in track action on Thursday for the first free practice session at 15:30 CEST.

For further information on the FIA WEC, head to the official championship website.