6 Hours of São Paulo: Qualifying

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing locked out the front row and strengthened its title challenge thanks to a perfect performance in qualifying for the 6 Hours of São Paulo, the fifth round of the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC).

Kamui Kobayashi earned the team’s first pole of the season by lapping the historic Interlagos circuit in 1min 23.140secs in the #7 GR010 HYBRID he shares with Mike Conway and Nyck de Vries, earning a World Championship point in the process.

Sébastien Buemi completed an all-Toyota front row in second place, just 0.122secs behind in the #8 GR010 HYBRID he drives alongside Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa, after a closely-fought Hyperpole contest.

Four hours of practice prior to qualifying allowed the team to optimise the two GR010 HYBRIDs for the 4.309km circuit, located in the São Paulo suburb of Interlagos. Those three practice sessions featured exceptionally close lap times throughout the Hypercar field, setting the scene for an exciting qualifying contest.

A 12-minute qualifying session saw 19 Hypercars compete for 10 places in Hyperpole, where the leading grid positions would be determined. Kamui and Sébastien took on qualifying duties for their respective cars and both hit the track on new medium Michelin tyres as soon as the session began. The first two timed laps were used to warm the tyres before both drivers began their attack.

Kamui went quicker on his second flying lap, which was enough for third place. Sébastien on the other hand, initially set the pace with his first effort and did not improve on his next two laps, ending up seventh in a session which saw the top 10 separated by less than half a second. 

In Hyperpole, Kamui set the best time for the #7 with his first effort, positioning himself in provisional pole, while Sébastien improved on his second flying lap to move into second place. After a tense wait for the final moments of the session to count down, the team’s first front pole, and first row lock-out, since Bahrain 2023, were confirmed, rewarding a strong team effort from drivers, mechanics and engineers.

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing goes into Sunday’s race, which begins at 11.30am (4.30pm CEST), determined to fight for its second win of the season and score significant points towards its World Championship challenge. The team is now only 11 points behind leaders Porsche in the manufacturers’ standings, while Kamui and Nyck are within 16 points of the drivers’ World Championship lead.

The 2024 TOYOTA GAZOO Racing WEC press kit, along with rights-free video material and photography of all TOYOTA GAZOO Racing’s motorsport projects, can be found at https://toyotagazooracing.com/media/.
 

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TOYOTA GAZOO Racing’s motorsport activities in the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) are supported by the following partners: