Toyota Seeing Potential Bad Weather As Opportunity

Toyota Gazoo Racing team director Rob Leupen feels the possibility of mixed conditions in the 24 Hours of Le Mans could be a boost to the Japanese manufacturer’s chances of regaining its crown in the French endurance classic.

The threat of bad weather is looming over this weekend’s FIA World Endurance Championship blue riband event, with weather forecasts suggesting a moderate chance of rain pre-race and a strong chance in the early hours of Sunday.

Toyota’s pair of GR010 Hybrids are due to take the start from 11th and 23rd on the grid after a chaotic first qualifying session on Wednesday evening that left both of the marque’s cars missing the cut for Hyperpole.

The No. 7 Toyota of Kamui Kobayashi, Jose Maria Lopez and Nyck de Vries was relegated to the back of the Hypercar grid when Kobayashi’s laps were all deleted following his red flag-causing spin.

Looking ahead to the race, Leupen says he regards the possibility of rain as a chance for Toyota to make the difference against its Hypercar rivals, citing the Imola round where it timed its tire changes to perfection for an against-the-odds win.

“I’m looking forward to the changing conditions,” Leupen told Sportscar365. “If you go back to Imola, we are experienced enough, able enough. Making a good call on the tires will decide a lot.

“We have to let the race develop. We can’t be impatient, and we can’t try to force something which could backfire on us. We’re going into Saturday night and Sunday morning with potential rain coming, strong winds are also in the forecast.

“It will be a tricky one. We expect rain before the start and then coming back for Sunday morning. Let’s see how we can cope with it, but I’m very confident in our drivers, in the team, that they will do everything and fight hard.

“We are highly motivated. The car is reliable and quick. Long run pace is not bad at all. You also have to avoid bad luck.

“We have strong competition from Porsche, Ferrari, Cadillac, Alpine, some very good cars. But I think we can challenge for victory.”

Brendon Hartley, who qualified the No. 8 car he shares with Sebastien Buemi and Ryo Hirakawa in 11th place, said he feels Toyota will be “in the mix” amid what he considers to be a potential six-way fight for honors.

The New Zealander added that he wasn’t surprised to see Cadillac and BMW showing form to rival that of the established WEC frontrunners, while also noting the strong fuel economy of the Alpine.

“It will be about keeping it clean in the first hours,” Hartley told Sportscar365. “If we have opportunities to move forward we will, but there are mixed conditions coming, so we don’t need to be desperate.

“It looks like BMW and Caddy finally turned up to the party, and the Alpine as well has been doing impressive long runs.  They’ve also been doing 13 laps [between stops] as well, which is a bit of a surprise. I don’t know how they are managing that.

“It’s not really clear who has the advantage, and it could change during the race too. We saw that a bit last year, we came alive a bit more when it became hot against Ferrari at the end of the race.

“There are maybe 18 cars out there that believe they can fight for a podium. I don’t think there are many thinking they have no chance, which is pretty cool. Six manufacturers probably believe they have a chance.”