Toyota GR010 Hybrid Returns to Track for Barcelona Test

Toyota Gazoo Racing hit the track for the first time since its 24 Hours of Le Mans victory last month for a two-day Le Mans Hypercar test at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

Sebastien Buemi, Nyck de Vries and Ryo Hirakawa took turns behind the wheel of the No. 7 Toyota GR010 Hybrid across Thursday and Friday this week.

It marked the second LMH outing for Super GT and Super Formula ace Hirakawa, who was given his first chance to test Toyota’s FIA World Endurance Championship contender at Portimao in June.

Buemi normally drives the No. 8 GR010 Hybrid in the WEC, while Formula E champion de Vries is the team’s test and reserve driver.

Separate sessions were held on each day, with no overnight running on the agenda. A Toyota spokesperson said that the test consisted of 16 hours on the track in total.

Motorbikes running at the Spanish Grand Prix venue on Wednesday, combined with light rain, made for a low-grip circuit on the first day of work but conditions gradually improved. The second day allowed for a fully dry run under cloudy skies.

“The session went smoothly, apart from a few spins in tricky rainy conditions on day one,” reflected Toyota Gazoo Racing Europe technical director Pascal Vasselon.

“Ryo kept delivering the expected high performance level, in line with his showing earlier this season in Portimao.

“He has now collected significant experience in our GR010 Hybrid, and was especially impressive in the wet considering he had no previous experience at Barcelona.”

Toyota previously ran its LMP1-spec TS050 Hybrid at Barcelona during the 2019 WEC Prologue test, but this week marked its first visit to the circuit with its LMH car.

The GR010 Hybrid’s latest mid-season run took place on the original race week for the 6 Hours of Fuji, which was canceled due to ongoing coronavirus measures and replaced with an event at Bahrain International Circuit in late October.