Hot News World Endurance Championship

WEC: Toyotas run 1-2 in Practice 2 at Sebring

Posted by AR1 staff

–by Mark Cipolloni–

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing stepped up preparations for the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) season opener by setting a new Hypercar milestone when practice began for the 1000 Miles of Sebring.

Kamui Kobayashi set the fastest lap of the day, 1min 46.954secs, in the #7 GR010 HYBRID he shares with Mike Conway and José María López. That is the quickest lap ever for a Hypercar in an official WEC session at the historic Sebring circuit.

A promising day ended with the #8 GR010 HYBRID of Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa in second place, just 0.318secs behind.

World Champions and 2022 Le Mans winners TOYOTA GAZOO Racing therefore finished on top of an 11-car Hypercar field, featuring new competitors Cadillac, Ferrari, Porsche and Vanwall as well as existing rivals Glickenhaus and Peugeot.

“It has gone quite okay today,” said Kobayashi. “We have been trying to adjust our car to the different conditions and we need to continue improving the balance. I only drove in the afternoon, and it was nice to be fastest, but I think I could have improved my lap. So far, the team is doing a great job but it’s still too early to say what the competitive situation really is. Our program is going smoothly so we are happy with where we stand at the moment.”

The #50 Ferrari 499P Hypercar with Antonio Fuoco at the wheel was 3rd quick, 1.167s behind the Toyota.

Alex Lynn was 4th fastest in the #2 Ganassi Cadillac, 1.311s back while Alessandro Pier Guidi rounded out the top-5 in the Hypercar class in the #51 Ferrari.

The JOTA #28 driven by David Heinemeier-Hansson topped the LMP2 class with a lap of 1m50.326s

The #57 Ferrari 488 GTE Evo of Kessel Racing, with Takeshi Kimura at the wheel led the GTE class with a lap of 1m58.845s

Qualifying is Thursday, with the 1,000-mile race on Friday. The teams will take have one more practice session tomorrow morning from 11:55 a.m. to 12:55 p.m. ET before the Hypercar class qualifying window takes place in the evening from 7:20 – 7:35 p.m. ET.

Practice 2 Results

POS NO. CLASS TEAM FASTEST DRIVER CAR TIME BEHIND LAPS
1 7 Hypercar H Toyota Gazoo Racing Kamui Kobayashi Toyota GR010 HYBRID 1:46.954 0.000 25
2 8 Hypercar H Toyota Gazoo Racing Buemi Sébastien Toyota GR010 HYBRID 1:47.272 0.318 24
3 50 Hypercar H Ferrari AF Corse Fuoco Antonio Ferrari 499P 1:48.121 1.167 22
4 2 Hypercar H Cadillac Racing Lynn Alex Cadillac V-Series.R 1:48.265 1.311 22
5 51 Hypercar H Ferrari AF Corse Pier Guidi Alessandro Ferrari 499P 1:48.606 1.652 23
6 708 Hypercar Glickenhaus Racing Briscoe Ryan Glickenhaus 007 1:49.700 2.746 21
7 5 Hypercar H Porsche Penske Motorsport Christensen Michael Porsche 963 1:49.782 2.828 23
8 28 LM P2 Jota Heinemeier-Hansson David Oreca 07 – Gibson 1:50.326 3.372 23
9 94 Hypercar H Peugeot Totalenergies Menezes Gustavo Peugeot 9X8 1:50.378 3.424 23
10 22 LM P2 United Autosports Albuquerque Filipe Oreca 07 – Gibson 1:50.701 3.747 23
11 23 LM P2 United Autosports Pierson Joshua Oreca 07 – Gibson 1:50.708 3.754 22
12 48 LM P2 Hertz Team Jota Stevens William Oreca 07 – Gibson 1:50.827 3.873 24
13 10 LM P2 Vector Sport Kaiser Matthias Oreca 07 – Gibson 1:50.902 3.948 21
14 93 Hypercar H Peugeot Totalenergies Di Resta Paul Peugeot 9X8 1:50.914 3.960 23
15 41 LM P2 Team WRT Kubica Robert Oreca 07 – Gibson 1:50.918 3.964 23
16 6 Hypercar H Porsche Penske Motorsport Lotterer André Porsche 963 1:51.060 4.106 19
17 36 LM P2 Alpine Elf Team Canal Julien Oreca 07 – Gibson 1:51.229 4.275 24
18 35 LM P2 Alpine Elf Team Negrão André Oreca 07 – Gibson 1:51.415 4.461 22
19 4 Hypercar Floyd Vanwall Racing Team Dillmann Tom Vanwall Vandervell 680 1:51.524 4.570 17
20 9 LM P2 Prema Racing Viscaal Bent Oreca 07 – Gibson 1:51.722 4.768 23
21 34 LM P2 Inter Europol Competition Smiechowski Jakub Oreca 07 – Gibson 1:52.144 5.190 20
22 63 LM P2 Prema Racing Pin Doriane Oreca 07 – Gibson 1:52.457 5.503 21
23 31 LM P2 Team WRT Frijns Robin Oreca 07 – Gibson 1:52.819 5.865 12
24 57 LM GTE Am Kessel Racing Kimura Takeshi Ferrari 488 GTE Evo 1:58.845 11.891 20
25 33 LM GTE Am Corvette Racing Varrone Nicolas Chevrolet Corvette C8.R 1:59.122 12.168 20
26 777 LM GTE Am D’station Racing Hoshino Satoshi Aston Martin Vantage AMR 1:59.156 12.202 22
27 60 LM GTE Am Iron Lynx Schiavoni Claudio Porsche 911 RSR – 19 1:59.160 12.206 21
28 54 LM GTE Am AF Corse Flohr Thomas Ferrari 488 GTE Evo 1:59.191 12.237 20
29 86 LM GTE Am Gr Racing Wainwright Michael Porsche 911 RSR – 19 1:59.331 12.377 21
30 21 LM GTE Am AF Corse De Pauw Ulysse Ferrari 488 GTE Evo 1:59.496 12.542 21
31 77 LM GTE Am Dempsey – Proton Racing Andlauer Julien Porsche 911 RSR – 19 1:59.506 12.552 19
32 98 LM GTE Am Northwest Amr Thiim Nicki Aston Martin Vantage AMR 1:59.689 12.735 20
33 83 LM GTE Am Richard Mille AF Corse Rovera Alessio Ferrari 488 GTE Evo 2:00.011 13.057 22
34 25 LM GTE Am Ort By TF Dinan Michael Aston Martin Vantage AMR 2:00.041 13.087 21
35 56 LM GTE Am Project 1 – Ao Hyett Pj Porsche 911 RSR – 19 2:00.080 13.126 20
36 85 LM GTE Am Iron Dames Frey Rahel Porsche 911 RSR – 19 2:00.186 13.232 19
37 88 LM GTE Am Proton Competition Hardwick Ryan Porsche 911 RSR – 19 2:01.261 14.307 4