Toyota seeking revenge with return to top step at Le Mans

Having lost its crown to Ferrari last year, Toyota Gazoo Racing has made its intentions clear that it wants to regain the number one position at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Victory the only option

Since debuting at La Sarthe in 1985, the brand has notched-up five victories, 17 podiums and eight pole positions, although this year, it plans on adding more silverware to the cabinet, which will put it level with Bentley for the most 24 hour wins.

For the fourth round of this year’s World Endurance Championship, the brand will field two GR 010 and The Citizen Motoring will be right there soaking up all the drama that only 24-hours of flat-out racing can bring.

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In 2024 specification, the GR 010 combines a pair of electric motors on each axle with a twin-turbo 3.5-litre V6 combustion engine capable of running on 100% biofuel.

Piloting the no. 7 car are José María López, Kamui Kobayashi and Nyck de Vries, while Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa, will drive the no. 8.

New era in sports car racing

In the the biggest field of 23 Hypercars to contest this year’s event, opposition will come from long-time rivals Porsche, Peugeot and Ferrari, but also Cadillac and for the for the first time, from Alpine, BMW, Lamborghini and Isotta Fraschini.

Former Le Mans winner and current Toyota Gazoo Racing Europe Vice-Chairman, Kazuki Nakajima, has been given the role of Grand Marshal for this year’s event by event organisers, the Automobile Club de l’Ouest, an honour which includes leading the field away on the formation lap for the race this Saturday in front of an expected 300 000 crowd

Watch live

Toyota Gazoo Racing is offering fans from around the world the opportunity to delve deeper into its Le Mans challenge, including information about the team and live onboard cameras from the two GR010 HYBRIDs, via a dedicated website, https://toyotagazooracing.com/wec/special/2024/24h-lemans/

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