Round7

6 Hours of Fuji

Fuji Speedway (JPN)

Course: Fuji Speedway

Fuji Speedway
Two TS050 HYBRID
Practice

PRODUCTIVE HOME START FOR TOYOTA GAZOO Racing

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing began its home event with a busy and constructive day of practice for the 6 Hours of Fuji, the seventh round of the 2016 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC).

On a day when the priority was race preparation rather than one-lap pace, the #6 TS050 HYBRID of Stéphane Sarrazin, Mike Conway and Kamui Kobayashi set the fifth fastest time from today's two 90-minute practice sessions.

Anthony Davidson, Sébastien Buemi and Kazuki Nakajima in the #5 were sixth quickest, but more importantly both cars made encouraging progress as TOYOTA challenges for a fifth podium, and first win, of the season.

Fuji Speedway combines a unique 1,475m straight with an increasingly twisty back section, requiring a delicate balance between top speed and cornering grip.

Before arriving in Japan, the team already prepared various set-up options based on past data and simulations but today's practice sessions were the first time to put that theory into practice.

The morning session began in fine weather with air temperatures of 16°C; significantly lower than experienced at the previous race in Austin. Those different conditions change the behaviour of the Michelin tyres, so a comprehensive evaluation of performance and degradation formed a large part of today's activities.

In addition, both cars worked hard to optimise aerodynamic and mechanical set-ups, as well as the settings of the hybrid powertrain, which is designed and built just a few kilometres away at Higashi-Fuji Technical Centre.

For the team's Europe-based drivers, today saw their first laps at Fuji Speedway since last year's race, while Kazuki and Kamui raced here in July in Super Formula. On that occasion, Kazuki set fastest lap on his way to second place with Kamui finishing 10th.

When the chequered flag flew in practice two, the two TS050 HYBRIDs had completed a combined total of 157 laps, 716 kilometres, gathering important data which will be used overnight to fine-tune the car prior to Saturday's final practice session.

With the support of TOYOTA colleagues and enthusiastic Japanese fans, the team, winner of this race in three of the last four seasons, is aiming for a strong performance in Sunday's race, which begins at 11am local time.

TS050 HYBRID #5 (Anthony Davidson, Sébastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima)

Free practice 1: 4th (1min 25.885secs), 39 laps
Free practice 2: 5th (1min 25.657secs), 43 laps

Anthony Davidson

“It's great to be back here in Fuji as it is a track I really enjoy. We focused on mechanical set-up and made big improvements; we ended up in good shape with a nice balance. There are still improvements to make but in terms of race condition we are almost there so generally I am fairly pleased.”

Sébastien Buemi

“It was quite a good day of practice. We did a lot of laps with no issues on the car so I am happy. Now it's time to work through all the data to find improvements and be ready for the race. We will see what we can do in qualifying but the main objective is to optimise the car as much as possible for the race.”

Kazuki Nakajima

“It's nice to be back here at Fuji which is one of my favourite circuits. We worked a lot on the set-up today and made good progress. Mainly we focused on long runs and I was quite happy with how the car felt. Qualifying probably won't be our strong point but I feel we can have a good race pace.”

TS050 HYBRID #6 (Stéphane Sarrazin, Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi)

Free practice 1: 2nd (1min 25.556secs), 35 laps
Free practice 2: 6th (1min 25.702secs), 40 laps

Stéphane Sarrazin

“It was not so easy at the beginning of first practice due to some understeer but we made a good step with the set-up. As usual we don't put any focus on qualifying; the race is the priority. We had a positive day so I am content with everything so far. Now we will work on getting even more from the car.”

Mike Conway

“We looked pretty competitive right from the start which was nice and the car feels good. We have to go into the data and find areas to improve. In terms of car balance it feels quite good; now we just try to find more lap time. Fuji has been kind to us in the past so we are pushing for another good result.”

Kamui Kobayashi

“I am happy to be back at Fuji and racing in front of TOYOTA's home fans. We did a lot of laps today and made some good progress with the car. There is still work to do to be in the best shape for the race but we will be pushing hard to be ready for Sunday.”

  • Mt.Fuji
  • Kazuki Nakajima with a cheer flag
  • TS050 HYBRID #6
  • Kid's cheer banner
  • TS050 HYBRID in pit

Free practice 1 results

PosN°CatDriverCarTLapsTotal TimeGapGap Prev.Best lapBest timeBest speed
1 7 LMP1 Marcel FÄSSLER, André LOTTERER, Benoît TRÉLUYER Audi R18 M 38 - - 4 1:25.030 193.2
2 6 LMP1 Stéphane SARRAZIN, Mike CONWAY, Kamui KOBAYASHI Toyota TS050 - Hybrid M 35 +0.526 +0.526 4 1:25.556 192.0
3 8 LMP1 Lucas DI GRASSI, Loïc DUVAL, Oliver JARVIS Audi R18 M 42 +0.808 +0.282 4 1:25.838 191.4
4 5 LMP1 Anthony DAVIDSON, Sébastien BUEMI, Kazuki NAKAJIMA Toyota TS050 - Hybrid M 39 +0.855 +0.047 39 1:25.885 191.3
5 2 LMP1 Romain DUMAS, Neel JANI, Marc LIEB Porsche 919 Hybrid M 18 +0.932 +0.077 6 1:25.962 191.1
6 1 LMP1 Timo BERNHARD, Mark WEBBER, Brendon HARTLEY Porsche 919 Hybrid M 44 +1.067 +0.135 21 1:26.097 190.8
7 13 LMP1 Mathéo TUSCHER, Dominik KRAIHAMER, Alexandre IMPERATORI Rebellion R-One - AER D 36 +5.887 +4.820 36 1:30.917 180.7
8 4 LMP1 Simon TRUMMER, Oliver WEBB, Pierre KAFFER CLM P1/01 - AER D 31 +6.519 +0.632 26 1:31.549 179.4
9 26 LMP2 Roman RUSINOV, Alex BRUNDLE, Will STEVENS Oreca 05 - Nissan D 42 +8.174 +1.655 16 1:33.204 176.2
10 31 LMP2 Ryan DALZIEL, Luis Felipe DERANI, Christopher CUMMING LIGIER JS P2 - Nissan D 41 +8.445 +0.271 24 1:33.475 175.7
11 42 LMP2 Jonny KANE, Lewis WILLIAMSON, Gibson 015S - Nissan D 37 +8.456 +0.011 7 1:33.486 175.7
12 43 LMP2 Ricardo GONZALEZ, Filipe ALBUQUERQUE, Bruno SENNA LIGIER JS P2 - Nissan D 34 +8.497 +0.041 3 1:33.527 175.6
13 44 LMP2 Matthew RAO, Richard BRADLEY, Roberto MERHI Oreca 05 - Nissan D 33 +8.646 +0.149 9 1:33.676 175.4
14 37 LMP2 Vitaly PETROV, Kirill LADYGIN, Victor SHAITAR BR01 - Nissan D 39 +9.039 +0.393 14 1:34.069 174.6
15 30 LMP2 Antonio GIOVINAZZI, Giedo VAN DER GARDE, Sean GELAEL LIGIER JS P2 - Nissan D 46 +9.220 +0.181 12 1:34.250 174.3
16 35 LMP2 David CHENG, Ho-Pin TUNG, Paul Loup CHATIN Alpine A460 - Nissan D 44 +9.286 +0.066 19 1:34.316 174.2
17 36 LMP2 Gustavo MENEZES, Nicolas LAPIERRE, Stéphane RICHELMI Alpine A460 - Nissan D 40 +9.366 +0.080 5 1:34.396 174.0
18 27 LMP2 Nicolas MINASSIAN, Maurizio MEDIANI, Mikhail ALESHIN BR01 - Nissan D 37 +9.473 +0.107 4 1:34.503 173.8
19 45 LMP2 Tor GRAVES, Alex LYNN, Shinji NAKANO Oreca 05 - Nissan D 19 +9.788 +0.315 9 1:34.818 173.2
20 67 LMGTE Pro Andy PRIAULX, Harry TINCKNELL, Ford GT M 40 +14.186 +4.398 37 1:39.216 165.6
21 77 LMGTE Pro Richard LIETZ, Michael CHRISTENSEN, Porsche 911 RSR (2016) M 40 +14.515 +0.329 24 1:39.545 165.0
22 51 LMGTE Pro Gianmaria BRUNI, James CALADO, Ferrari 488 GTE M 42 +14.667 +0.152 12 1:39.697 164.8
23 66 LMGTE Pro Stefan MÜCKE, Olivier PLA, Ford GT M 39 +14.686 +0.019 5 1:39.716 164.7
24 71 LMGTE Pro Davide RIGON, Sam BIRD, Ferrari 488 GTE M 43 +14.713 +0.027 37 1:39.743 164.7
25 95 LMGTE Pro Nicki THIIM, Marco SØRENSEN, Aston Martin Vantage V8 D 45 +15.146 +0.433 13 1:40.176 164.0
26 97 LMGTE Pro Richie STANAWAY, Darren TURNER, Aston Martin Vantage V8 D 43 +15.560 +0.414 23 1:40.590 163.3
27 83 LMGTE Am François PERRODO, Emmanuel COLLARD, Rui AGUAS Ferrari F458 Italia M 43 +15.745 +0.185 12 1:40.775 163.0
28 98 LMGTE Am Paul DALLA LANA, Pedro LAMY, Mathias LAUDA Aston Martin Vantage V8 M 44 +15.905 +0.160 5 1:40.935 162.7
29 50 LMGTE Am Yutaka YAMAGISHI, Pierre RAGUES, Ricky TAYLOR Chevrolet Corvette C7-Z06 M 41 +16.257 +0.352 12 1:41.287 162.2
30 78 LMGTE Am Christian RIED, Wolf HENZLER, Joël CAMATHIAS Porsche 911 RSR M 42 +16.262 +0.005 7 1:41.292 162.2
31 88 LMGTE Am Khaled AL QUBAISI, David HEINEMEIER HANSSON, Patrick LONG Porsche 911 RSR M 43 +16.428 +0.166 5 1:41.458 161.9
32 86 LMGTE Am Michael WAINWRIGHT, Adam CARROLL, Benjamin BARKER Porsche 911 RSR M 42 +16.765 +0.337 6 1:41.795 161.4

GET THE COMPLETE RACE RESULTS AND CHRONO

Free practice 2 results

PosN°Cat DriverCarTLapsTotal TimeGapGap Prev.Best lapBest timeBest speed
1 1 LMP1 Timo BERNHARD, Mark WEBBER, Brendon HARTLEY Porsche 919 Hybrid M 51 - - 5 1:24.074 195.4
2 8 LMP1 Lucas DI GRASSI, Loïc DUVAL, Oliver JARVIS Audi R18 M 52 +0.894 +0.894 5 1:24.968 193.3
3 7 LMP1 Marcel FÄSSLER, André LOTTERER, Benoît TRÉLUYER Audi R18 M 32 +0.926 +0.032 6 1:25.000 193.3
4 2 LMP1 Romain DUMAS, Neel JANI, Marc LIEB Porsche 919 Hybrid M 46 +1.004 +0.078 24 1:25.078 193.1
5 5 LMP1 Anthony DAVIDSON, Sébastien BUEMI, Kazuki NAKAJIMA Toyota TS050 - Hybrid M 43 +1.583 +0.579 23 1:25.657 191.8
6 6 LMP1 Stéphane SARRAZIN, Mike CONWAY, Kamui KOBAYASHI Toyota TS050 - Hybrid M 40 +1.628 +0.045 31 1:25.702 191.7
7 13 LMP1 Mathéo TUSCHER, Dominik KRAIHAMER, Alexandre IMPERATORI Rebellion R-One - AER D 46 +5.579 +3.951 13 1:29.653 183.2
8 4 LMP1 Simon TRUMMER, Oliver WEBB, Pierre KAFFER CLM P1/01 - AER D 40 +6.441 +0.862 12 1:30.515 181.5
9 43 LMP2 Ricardo GONZALEZ, Filipe ALBUQUERQUE, Bruno SENNA LIGIER JS P2 - Nissan D 41 +7.835 +1.394 9 1:31.909 178.7
10 26 LMP2 Roman RUSINOV, Alex BRUNDLE, Will STEVENS Oreca 05 - Nissan D 45 +8.668 +0.833 17 1:32.742 177.1
11 44 LMP2 Matthew RAO, Richard BRADLEY, Roberto MERHI Oreca 05 - Nissan D 45 +8.673 +0.005 26 1:32.747 177.1
12 42 LMP2 Jonny KANE, Lewis WILLIAMSON, Gibson 015S - Nissan D 42 +8.874 +0.201 12 1:32.948 176.7
13 30 LMP2 Antonio GIOVINAZZI, Giedo VAN DER GARDE, Sean GELAEL LIGIER JS P2 - Nissan D 27 +8.897 +0.023 7 1:32.971 176.7
14 35 LMP2 David CHENG, Ho-Pin TUNG, Paul Loup CHATIN Alpine A460 - Nissan D 45 +9.002 +0.105 10 1:33.076 176.5
15 36 LMP2 Gustavo MENEZES, Nicolas LAPIERRE, Stéphane RICHELMI Alpine A460 - Nissan D 44 +9.200 +0.198 13 1:33.274 176.1
16 37 LMP2 Vitaly PETROV, Kirill LADYGIN, Victor SHAITAR BR01 - Nissan D 39 +9.290 +0.090 10 1:33.364 175.9
17 31 LMP2 Ryan DALZIEL, Luis Felipe DERANI, Christopher CUMMING LIGIER JS P2 - Nissan D 44 +9.319 +0.029 11 1:33.393 175.9
18 45 LMP2 Tor GRAVES, Alex LYNN, Shinji NAKANO Oreca 05 - Nissan D 41 +9.601 +0.282 15 1:33.675 175.4
19 27 LMP2 Nicolas MINASSIAN, Maurizio MEDIANI, Mikhail ALESHIN BR01 - Nissan D 37 +9.932 +0.331 13 1:34.006 174.7
20 66 LMGTE Pro Stefan MÜCKE, Olivier PLA, Ford GT M 39 +14.669 +4.737 12 1:38.743 166.4
21 51 LMGTE Pro Gianmaria BRUNI, James CALADO, Ferrari 488 GTE M 40 +14.861 +0.192 34 1:38.935 166.0
22 71 LMGTE Pro Davide RIGON, Sam BIRD, Ferrari 488 GTE M 42 +14.938 +0.077 32 1:39.012 165.9
23 67 LMGTE Pro Andy PRIAULX, Harry TINCKNELL, Ford GT M 45 +15.145 +0.207 16 1:39.219 165.6
24 95 LMGTE Pro Nicki THIIM, Marco SØRENSEN, Aston Martin Vantage V8 D 46 +15.473 +0.328 10 1:39.547 165.0
25 97 LMGTE Pro Richie STANAWAY, Darren TURNER, Aston Martin Vantage V8 D 46 +15.474 +0.001 12 1:39.548 165.0
26 77 LMGTE Pro Richard LIETZ, Michael CHRISTENSEN, Porsche 911 RSR (2016) M 35 +15.503 +0.029 12 1:39.577 165.0
27 98 LMGTE Am Paul DALLA LANA, Pedro LAMY, Mathias LAUDA Aston Martin Vantage V8 M 42 +16.038 +0.535 28 1:40.112 164.1
28 50 LMGTE Am Yutaka YAMAGISHI, Pierre RAGUES, Ricky TAYLOR Chevrolet Corvette C7-Z06 M 43 +16.327 +0.289 5 1:40.401 163.6
29 88 LMGTE Am Khaled AL QUBAISI, David HEINEMEIER HANSSON, Patrick LONG Porsche 911 RSR M 39 +16.340 +0.013 33 1:40.414 163.6
30 86 LMGTE Am Michael WAINWRIGHT, Adam CARROLL, Benjamin BARKER Porsche 911 RSR M 37 +17.050 +0.710 28 1:41.124 162.4
31 78 LMGTE Am Christian RIED, Wolf HENZLER, Joël CAMATHIAS Porsche 911 RSR M 45 +17.212 +0.162 35 1:41.286 162.2
32 83 LMGTE Am François PERRODO, Emmanuel COLLARD, Rui AGUAS Ferrari F458 Italia M 42 +17.340 +0.128 32 1:41.414 162.0

GET THE COMPLETE RACE RESULTS AND CHRONO