WEC News: JOTA Tops Quiet Opening Prologue Session
HERTZ Team JOTA’s #12 Porsche 963 was fastest in the first three-hour session of the delayed 2024 FIA WEC Prologue in Qatar.
Norman Nato set the pace, with a best time of 1m41.822s in the rapid Porsche Hypercar.
It was a quiet three hours on track. Due to the timetable revisions and delays caused by the freight issues last week, all teams were given the choice of running in either the opening session today or the fourth session tomorrow. This decision was made to give the teams with cars and equipment delivered late more time to prepare.
As a result, only 10 of the 37 cars elected to run in the first session, and only nine of those made it out.
JOTA’s pair of 963s topped the times, though only three Hypercars took to the track. The other car that made use of the session was the #11 Isotta Fraschini Tipo6-C, which set a 1:45.928 best time, four seconds off the #12 and 2.7 seconds off the #38 JOTA Porsche that slotted in second.
In LMGT3, six cars – all of which arrived at the circuit on time last week – made it out, with the TF Sport Corvettes, United Autosports McLarens and Lamborghinis from Iron Lynx and Iron Dames setting times.
The quickest of the six was the #59 McLaren 720S LMGT3 EVO from United, with Brazilian racer Nicolas Costa topping the times in his first public appearance with the team. His best tour of the Lusail circuit was a 1:56.583 during the car’s 57-lap stint.