WEC

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing celebrates historic Hypercar title after Bahrain 1-2

Motorsport Technology
30 Oct 2021
4 min read

The TOYOTA GAZOO Racing team, partnered by Acronis, made endurance racing history after becoming the first World Champions of the Hypercar era with a 1-2 finish in the 6 Hours of Bahrain.

It had already been a successful season for the team with yet another victory in the historic 24 Hours of Le Mans extending its 100% winning record in the new Hypercar era after victory in Monza.

And just as the #7 Hypercar of Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and José María López got the job done at Le Mans, so the trio kept up their impressive form, bringing their machine home ahead of the sister Toyota GR010 HYBRID ahead of Sébastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima and Brendon Hartley.

“The team did a great job. Congratulations to everyone on becoming Hypercar World Champions,” commented an ecstatic Kobayashi after crossing the line in first position. “We had struggled a bit on Friday but we found the reason and therefore were confident for the race. The whole crew did a really good job in the race, and Mike and José had strong pace as well.

“They gave me the car in a good position and my stint was really smooth. By the time I was in the car for my stint to finish the race, the temperature was a little less so it wasn’t as demanding on me or the tyres. I just maintained the gap and brought it home.”

Victory for the #7 Hypercar team means that TOYOTA GAZOO Racing claimed a fourth World Championship in WEC, and its third in succession. Yet the battle for the drivers’ championship is still far from over with only 15 points separating the two teams.

“It was tough race with the heat, but the temperature was a bit better for me at the end of the race,” commented Nakajima after taking the flag 51.401secs later to complete the one-two. “We ran an aggressive set-up to try to maybe get an edge, but it didn’t work out that way. Nevertheless, we finished second and we are still in contention for the title.

“Congratulations to car #7, they drove a great race. TOYOTA GAZOO Racing is a World Champion again and the team really deserve this. It is good to have this wrapped it up already; now it means we can go out and have some fun in the final race.”

The teams will immediately begin preparations for an eight-hour race, also in Bahrain, which brings the curtain down on the 2021 WEC season on November 6.

“Congratulations to car #7 for three consecutive victories, and car #8 for taking second place with their outstanding work to earn this fantastic one-two finish,” added Koji Sato, GAZOO Racing Company President. “Thank you so much for bringing the first Hypercar World Championship to TOYOTA GAZOO Racing.

“At the beginning of the race, I was thrilled to watch the battle between our two Hypercars, but despite the difficulties of working in 35°C, the efforts of all the team brought a great result. I am deeply grateful to the drivers for their huge effort.

“Now the final race of the season is only a week away and the drivers’ World Championship will soon be decided. I hope for an exciting end to the season, and I look forward to seeing who will come out on top. The team will work hard to prepare in the best possible way.”

Acronis are proud to be the official Artificial Intelligence Partner of the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing team, helping the team perform to the best of their capabilities through machine learning. To find out more, please visit https://www.acronis.com/en-us/lp/msp-sports/

 

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