The reigning World Champions completed an intensive programme of optimising its two GR010 HYBRID Hypercars for the challenge ahead, when they take on 21 Hypercar rivals in a twice-round-the-clock battle with competitors from Alpine, BMW, Cadillac, Ferrari, Isotta Fraschini, Lamborghini, Peugeot and Porsche.

A difficult qualifying means the #7 and #8 GR010 HYBRID crews start from 23rd and 11th respectively but the team showed its determination in Thursday’s two free practice sessions. It made the most of the final opportunity to adjust set-ups and plan strategies for the race, which starts at 4pm local time on Saturday.

With the true performance hierarchy within the Hypercar class yet to become fully clear, many uncertainties remain. TOYOTA GAZOO Racing is ready to meet that challenge and be part of an exciting spectacle for the 300,000-plus crowd.

Third practice, which took place over three hours in 20°C temperatures on a cloudy Thursday afternoon, saw the team concentrate on long stints, comparing the characteristics of the two compounds of Michelin tyres as well as different set-up options.

Despite a red flag midway through, the session ran smoothly and both cars completed productive programmes. Kamui’s lap late in the session earned fifth for the #7 GR010 HYBRID while Sébastien set the best time for the #8 and ended the session in eighth.

The second night session of the week brought the curtain down on free practice. Light rain began at points around the 13.626km Circuit de la Sarthe early in the one-hour fourth practice, meaning Brendon’s early fastest lap stayed at the top of the timing sheets throughout. José’s first-stint time put the #7 in 10th as the top 11 were covered by less than a second.

After 16 hours of on-track running at La Sarthe so far this month, the team has the data and experience to plot its race challenge. Those plans will be finalised on Friday while mechanics carefully rebuild the GR010 HYBRIDs to be in peak condition for the longest race of the season.

Friday also sees all 186 participants joining the traditional drivers’ parade through the city of Le Mans. TOYOTA GAZOO Racing’s drivers will not only meet the fans, but they will also showcase new technology, with the #7 crew traveling in a hydrogen fuel cell Hilux pick-up prototype which produces no tailpipe emissions.

Three-time Le Mans winner, and current TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Europe Vice Chairman, Kazuki Nakajima has been named Grand Marshal for this edition and he will play a key part of Saturday’s official grid and start ceremonies. The race begins at 4pm local time on Saturday.

Kamui Kobayashi (Team Principal and driver, car #7):

“We looked quite good today but considering our starting position we will face a difficult task in the race. Our expectation is always to fight at the front but to do that we need everything to go to perfection, with a bit of luck and a lot of hard work. Le Mans is always challenging and anything can happen. We have to prepare well for the big race and then we’ll see.”

José María López (Driver, car #7):

“We have finished our free practice programme so that’s it until the race. We have been working hard for a few days, so I am happy to finally be in the countdown to the race. The car feels very good, and we have confidence in it. As usual at Le Mans it will be a difficult race, so we need to keep our focus and execute our plan cleanly. It’s going to be challenging, with all the Hypercars being so close.”

Nyck de Vries (Driver, car #7):

“We went through our full programme during the free practice sessions, comparing set-up and tyres, and our race preparations have gone smoothly. We did a lot of laps in total and we have all the information to prepare ourselves for the race. It’s a long one and we expect it to be exciting so I am looking forward to my first Le Mans with Toyota in a Hypercar; let’s see what it will bring.”

Sébastien Buemi (Driver, car #8):

“We put the disappointment of not reaching Hyperpole behind us and focused on the race. Our goal was to set up the car as well as we can. We even did a few laps in drizzle in the final session and, with rain possible during the race, it was helpful to experience that. We had no reliability issues and just pushed fully for the race, when we hope to fight at the front.”

Brendon Hartley (Driver, car #8):

“We had two really smooth sessions. Maybe not being in Hyperpole allowed us to focus purely on our race car without distraction. It was a constructive day and I feel like we can challenge in the race. We are not the fastest car, but it is very close between five or six manufacturers. We are in for an amazing race. Now it’s up to us to use all our experience and put it all together. We are going to give it our all.”

Ryo Hirakawa (Driver, car #8):

“All our preparation on track is done and we feel ready for the challenge. Obviously, it’s going to be a hard race, but we are ready to fight and we are determined to achieve a good result. The weather looks a bit unstable so we need to be flexible and ready to adapt to the conditions, which will be constantly evolving. Risk management is a key factor. We’re looking forward to it.”