Brazil race ends early for TOYOTA Racing

TOYOTA Racing's Six Hours of Sao Paulo ended in disappointment when the team was forced to retire from the fourth round of the FIA World Endurance Championship inside the opening hour.

Stéphane Sarrazin took the rolling start of the race from third on the grid and he held position with an interesting race in prospect until he was involved in an accident through no fault of his own.

The #8 TS030 HYBRID was lapping the #32 car, which lost control in turn three and collected Stéphane, pushing him into the barrier and causing heavy damage to the front and right of the car.

Stéphane tried bravely to return to the pits, even getting out of his car to remove pieces of bodywork, but the damage was too severe and he was forced to retire.

That meant his team-mates Anthony Davidson and Sébastien Buemi did not take part in the race.

The next round of the FIA World Endurance Championship takes place at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas on 22 September.

TS030 HYBRID #8 (Anthony Davidson, Sébastien Buemi, Stéphane Sarrazin)

Race: DNF, 25 laps, 0 pit stops. Fastest lap: 1min 22.545secs

Stéphane Sarrazin: "I am very disappointed for the team I am very sorry. I was doing my race and I was lapping the LMP2 car in a normal place. He lost control of his car and crashed into me. What can I do? I did my very best to get the car back to the box but it was impossible. It's a very bad day for us. I am so disappointed because we thought we would be part of a great fight today."

Yoshiaki Kinoshita, Team President: "Racing is tough sometimes and today has been very disappointing. The team did a good job all weekend and we were expecting an exciting race with Audi, but it wasn't to be. It's a pity for the fans because there was a big, enthusiastic crowd and unfortunately the contest between TOYOTA and Audi only lasted 35 minutes. It was a racing accident and there was nothing Stéphane could do to avoid it. That's motorsport and we can only look to the future now."

About TOYOTA Racing in the FIA World Endurance Championship:

TOYOTA first competed in the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) in 1983, marking the start of a long period of participation in endurance racing which included several editions of the Le Mans 24 Hours. TOYOTA cars have raced in 15 Le Mans 24 Hours races, achieving a best result of second place on four occasions (1992, 1994, 1999 & 2013). TOYOTA entered the revived WEC in 2012, as TOYOTA Racing, with its first hybrid LMP1 car, the TS030 HYBRID. After making its debut at Le Mans, the car went on to win three races from pole position in its first season. The TS030 HYBRID chassis, modified for 2013, has been designed and built by TOYOTA Motorsport GmbH (TMG), where the race team is based. TMG is the former home of TOYOTA's World Rally and Formula 1 works teams, and was responsible for design and operation of TOYOTA's TS020 Le Mans car in 1998-99. TMG now combines works motorsport participation with a new direction as a high-performance engineering services provider to third party companies, as well as the TOYOTA family.

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