GAZOO Racing (GR) earned a double podium finish recently in round five of the 2019-2020 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) at the six-hour Lone Star Le Mans race in Austin, Texas. An outstanding performance in the No. 8 TS050 Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) saw Sébastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima, and Brendon Hartley claim second place overall and close the gap at the top of the drivers’ World Championship leaderboard.

Fellow GR team members Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and José María López had no realistic expectations of challenging their LMP1 rivals due to their maximum success handicap accrued during previous rounds* , but completed a consistent race to earn third place in the No. 7 TS050 HEV and maintain a five-point lead in the drivers’ championship. The result places the GR team 33 points ahead in the manufacturers’ championship with just three races remaining this season.

The race began under grey skies and with a strong wind as the No. 7 TS050 HEV lined up second in the rolling start with López behind the wheel, one place ahead of Buemi in the No. 8 TS050 HEV. The two vehicles swapped positions during the opening lap as the effect of the different success handicaps became instantly apparent. Buemi then pushed hard to stay within striking distance of first place. When he pitted to hand over to Hartley at the 90-minute mark, the second-placed No. 8 TS050 HEV was around half a minute adrift. López, a further 40 seconds behind in third, brought the No. 7 TS050 HEV into the pits soon after for Conway’s stint. 

A strong drive from Hartley and quick work in the pits reduced the deficit to around 20 seconds, keeping the pressure on the race leader. After a fuel stop, Hartley, who has previously won three times in Austin, continued to set impressive lap times and keep the No. 8 TS050 HEV’s challenge alive. Soon after half distance, the next round of driver changes saw Nakajima take over to continue the pursuit, while Kobayashi took the wheel of the third-placed No. 7 TS050 HEV.

With a substantial success handicap to overcome, the No. 8 TS050 HEV had little opportunity to close the gap but Nakajima pushed to minimize the time loss before Hartley’s final 75-minute stint. Kobayashi handed over the No. 7 TS050 HEV to López for the run to the flag shortly after.

Hartley finished in second place to equal Toyota’s best result at the Circuit of the Americas, with López completing the podium two laps adrift. The two TS050 HEVs will remain in the United States prior to the next round of the season, the 1,000 Miles of Sebring. The final flyaway race of the season will take place in Florida on 20 March, before the WEC returns to Europe and its historic fixtures at Spa and Le Mans.

“We are thrilled to gain more vital points and maintain our lead at this crucial stage of the season – congratulations to the entire team on their excellent performance,” commented Kei Fujita, Chief Representative, Middle East and Central Asia Representative ‎Office, Toyota Motor Corporation.  “Our participation in motorsports is not just about winning; by pushing our vehicles to the limit, we develop a deeper understanding of their capabilities and are able to fine-tune our production models to create ‘ever-better’ cars that are fun to drive and capture the joy of motoring. I’d like to thank everyone who came out and supported us in Texas and we look forward to providing all of our fans with more thrills in the upcoming races.” +8

Brendon Hartley, Driver of the No. 8 TS050 HEV, said: “We had a good race, with no mistakes from any of the drivers, some nice stints and strong pit stops. We knew that was needed to have any chance of victory, but our rivals also delivered a flawless race. I had a fun time slicing through the traffic, and the vehicle felt amazing on this track but it’s a pity we didn’t have more wheel-to-wheel fights.”

José María López, Driver of the No. 7 TS050 HEV, added: “To arrive this weekend knowing that on paper we will be the slowest LMP1 vehicle was not easy, but we kept focused to score as many points as possible. We always want to win, but third was the best we could get. There were a number of positives from the race. I felt very comfortable in the vehicle and had some good laps, so I am happy with my performance and we still lead the World Championship.”

Over the years, Toyota has been participating in many different forms of motorsports, ‎including Formula One, the World Endurance Championship (WEC), and the Nürburgring 24 ‎Hours endurance race. Toyota’s participation in these events was overseen by separate ‎entities within the company until April 2015, when Toyota established GR, ‎to consolidate all of its motorsports activities under one in-house brand. Representing ‎Toyota’s belief that ‘the roads build the people, and the people build the cars,’ GR highlights the role of motorsports as a fundamental pillar of Toyota’s commitment to ‎making ‘ever-better’ cars. Harnessing years of experience gained under the extreme ‎conditions of various motorsports events, GR aims to forge new ‎technologies and solutions that bring the freedom, adventure, and joy of driving to everyone.

Race Notes:

• No. 8 TS050 Hybrid Electric Vehicle (Sébastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima, and Brendon Hartley)
o Position: 2nd 
o No. of Laps: 189
o Best Lap: 1'50.589
• No. 7 TS050 Hybrid Electric Vehicle (Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi, and José María López)
o Position: 3rd 
o No. of Laps: 187
o Best Lap: 1'51.970