LMP1 (8 Cars)
1 | M | Porsche Team | Timo Bernhard, Mark Webber, Brendon Hartley | Porsche 919 Hybrid
2 | M | Porsche Team | Romain Dumas, Marc Lieb, Neel Jani | Porsche 919 Hybrid
4 | D | ByKolles Racing Team | Simon Trummer, Oliver Webb, Pierre Kaffer | CLM P1/01 AER
5 | M | Toyota Gazoo Racing | Anthony Davidson, Sebastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima | Toyota TS050 Hybrid
6 | M | Toyota Gazoo Racing | Stéphane Sarrazin, Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi | Toyota TS050 Hybrid
7 | M | Audi Sport Team Joest | Marcel Fässler, Benoit Treluyer, Andre Lotterer | Audi R18
8 | M | Audi Sport Team Joest | Lucas Di Grassi, Oliver Jarvis, Loic Duval | Audi R18
13 | D | Rebellion Racing | Matheo Tuscher, Dominik Kraihamer, Alexandre Imperatori | Rebellion R-One AER
Another Porsche win last time out in the USA gave them a 53-point advantage in the Manufacturers’ Championship, but crucially, a poor race from the #2 crew meant Marc Lieb, Romain Dumas and Neel Jani’s lead in the Drivers’ Standings shrunk to 37.5 points ahead of Oliver Jarvis, Loic Duval and Lucas Di Grassi in the #8 Audi, and 38 ahead of the #6 Toyota squad of Stephane Sarrazin, Mike Conway and Kamui Kobayashi.
The big talking points from CoTA though, were that (again) Audi should have won the race, and that Toyota looked far more capable of racing the VAG teams on pace than it did in Germany and Mexico City. For Porsche, the win in Texas was one more in a series of good fortunes which have resulted in it winning a couple of races which throughout looked like Audi’s to lose.
Take nothing away from Brendon Hartley, Mark Webber and Timo Bernhard in the #1 though, because they’ve driven superbly, turning the tables on what was a disastrous start to the season which saw them score just 3.5 points at Silverstone, Spa and Le Mans combined.
Toyota looked far more capable of racing the VAG teams on pace than it did in Germany and Mexico City
However, at Fuji, their teammates in the #1 will be feeling the pressure to get their season back on track. They haven’t looked the same since winning Le Mans, finishing off the podium in every race since. The competition will be stiff though, as Audi is getting desperate for win #2 on the season after a series of ‘un-Audi’ mistakes and fumbles has effectively cost it the Manufacturers’ Championship, and a resurgent Toyota is still looking to put its Le Mans demons behind it.
And what better place to do it than at Fuji, in front of a huge crowd of its supporters? There’s a lot for the team to play for in terms of the championship, and scoring its first win since 2014 is very much at the top of its agenda before the end of the season.
At CoTA, the pace was there, and in fact good enough to have the edge on both Porsches at various points, especially when Stephane Sarrazin was at the wheel. While it didn’t quite go the team’s way, it was a very promising sign going forward.
The #8 Audi needs to finish high above the #2 if it wants to claw its way back into the fight
The #8 Audi meanwhile, needs to finish high above the #2 if it wants to claw its way back into the fight and arrive in Bahrain next month with a shot, because as we saw last year at Shanghai, anything can happen, and in the WEC, it often does.
We know now that the 2016 R18 is a fast car – often the fastest of the three in LMP1 H – which is prone to small hiccups. If they can score a win at Fuji it will go a long way in removing the monkey off the team’s back, and saving its season, which to this point, has been in many ways, a disappointment. The key appears to be not the ultimate pace of the car, but its servicability, and a tired crew can make mistakes – even a tired Audi crew!
For the pair of Privateer entries, eyes are on Rebellion Racing, and fans of its efforts at the top should now begin to savour what’s left. The Swiss-badged team announced last week that it would be switching to LMP2 in search of a new challenge. Whether that means WEC, IMSA or both remains to be seen, for now though, the R-One has three races left; the fan-favourite has begun its farewell tour.
Here’s hoping that ByKolles’ CLM can stay healthy, and fast enough to give it a run for its money.
