P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Toyota insists it is not the “quickest” despite topping Le Mans test day
Brendon Hartley, despite setting the fastest time in the Le Mans 24 Hours test day, believes Toyota does not have the quickest car over long runs at the event. The Toyota GR010 Hybrid, driven by Hartley, Sebastien Buemi, and Ryo Hirakawa, topped the timesheets with a lap time of 3m26.246s. Toyota has received a maximum output of 520kW below 250km/h under the latest Balance of Performance changes, setting them up for the World Endurance Championship’s main event.
Although Toyota appears strong, Hartley remains cautious about their chances of winning due to tough competition in the Hypercar field. His teammate Buemi acknowledges the presence of other fast cars and the need to analyze and improve their performance. The varying weather conditions expected during the race week will require the team to be adaptable and ready for any changes.
While the #8 Toyota showed promise, their sister car, the #7 crewed by Kamui Kobayashi, Mike Conway, and Nyck de Vries, had a less optimal performance, finishing 14th overall, more than two seconds behind. In the testing phase, teams focus on long runs and setup optimization rather than outright speed, so the true competitive order will only be revealed during the race itself.
