Toyota statements
Toyota president Koji Sato has released a set of comments on the Japanese giant’s second-place finish in the Le Mans 24 Hours.
“In the 100th anniversary year, the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing WEC team gave it their all in a Le Mans 24 Hours that created incredible challenges for them to win their sixth straight victory.
“I would like to express my sincere gratitude to everyone who supported us.
“Having worked hard for a year with the team, I know many aspects of the team.
“Kamui (Kobayashi) spoke with the team on a daily basis and continued to convey the significance of fighting and the importance of teamwork.
“Mike (Conway), Jose (Maria Lopez), Seb (Buemi), Brendon (Hartley), Ryo (Hirakawa), and driver Kamui, the drivers pushed themselves as athletes and created a car which could fight for victory.
“For this day, the mechanics had perfected their work step by step, and practiced pit stops day after day.
“The engineers brilliantly solved the problems that occurred at Le Mans two years ago and last year, and greatly improved the reliability of the car.
“Together with Morizo, the team faced the challenge also with Uchiyamada, who continued to support Toyota’s challenge in WEC.
“No matter what the circumstances, I am proud of all the members of the team because it is the result of endless efforts and challenge, without giving up. All were heroes.
“There may have been some shortcomings in our challenges. But failure only happens to those who try. It takes tremendous courage to challenge beyond the limits. I believe that courage is the driving force behind changing the future.
“Be a challenger”
“This year’s Le Mans has taught us how to approach the next 100 years.
“Thank you for all your support. We will continue to fight.”
The secondary statement released from Toyota on Monday morning came from Akio Toyoda, Toyota’s chairman.
It was rather more pointed, to say the least…
“In this year’s Le Mans 24 Hours race, battles outside the racetrack” hindered everyone’s battles as sportsmen,” it reads.
“I am truly sorry, sorry, and sorry about this. However, in such a way, everyone in the team fought fair and square. Finishing in second place is truly amazing. Thanks guys. Let’s all brag about this runner-up!
“Let’s proudly prove that all of Team Morizo fought together!”
Gibson’s milestone
LMP2 engine supplier Gibson revealed that its GK428 engines have covered over 4 million kilometers since they were first introduced back in 2017. That figure includes mileage in the Asian Le Mans Series, European Le Mans Series, IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and FIA World Endurance Championship.
https://twitter.com/gibsontech1/status/1668262015532429312?s=20
Stat attack!
Here are some of the key stats milestones from the race:
– Ferrari now has 10 overall wins at Le Mans, and sits third behind Porsche with 19 and Audi with 13
– The winning #51 Ferrari 499P covered 4,569.40kms during the race and managed an average speed of 194.1 kph. It completed 342 laps
– The fastest lap of the race came on lap 306, a 3:26.984 set by Antonio Fuoco in the #50 499P
– There were 35 lead changes in the race, and all the major Hypercar manufacturers took turns at the front. The #8 Toyota GR010 Hybrid, the #50 and #51 Ferrari 499P, the #2 Cadillac V-Series.R, the #94 Peugeot 9X8 and the #5, #75 and #38 Porsche 963s all led
– The #2 Cadillac’s first lap in the lead was the first ever for Cadillac as a factory in the Le Mans 24 Hours
– The fastest speed recorded in the race was 347.8 km/h, by Miguel Molina in the #50 499P
– 22 cars retired from the race, far more than in recent years. In 2022, eight cars did not finish, compared to 15 in 2021, 10 in 2020, 11 in 2019 and 16 in 2018
– Inter Europol’s LMP2 victory was the first for a Polish team in the race
– Corvette Racing’s GTE Am triumph was its ninth class win at the race, and the first at the event for the C8.R
– Ahmad Al Harthy became the first Omani driver to finish on the podium at Le Mans. The ORT by TF Aston Martin was also the first Omani-flagged car to finish on the podium in the event too
– The official attendance figure was 325,000, which WEC.com says is a record
– The retirement of the #75 Porsche Penske 963 with fuel pressure problems was remarkably the first in the top class at Le Mans, since ByKolles in 2020. The ByKolles team would later join that total with the elimination of the #4 Vanwall with an engine failure. That in itself continues a unenviable streak for the Austrian-flagged team, the last time a Kolles-entered car finished the race was back in 2009
– Glickenhaus continued its 100 per cent finish record at the race with its pair of 007s, that once again finished ahead of the entire LMP2 field
Brake failure costs Iron Dames
The all-female crewed Iron Dames Porsche lost out on its podium due to a brake change at the end of the race during its final stop, which dropped the team’s 911 RSR 19 to fourth behind the GR Racing Porsche.
Despite leaving without any trophies, fourth is still the highest finish for the team in the race.
“Sarah [Bovy], Rahel [Frey], and Michelle [Gatting] drove an excellent race, and we lead through most of the night and stayed in the podium fight until the chequered flag,” said Deborah Mayer, the founder of the Iron Dames project.
“Sadly, we missed out on the top three by only 10 seconds, and while the Dames achieved their best result at Le Mans, it has a bittersweet feeling, especially after we showed so much potential.”
Duqueine suspension
Duqueine driver Neel Jani revealed after the race that the team’s ORECA, which finished 3rd in LMP2 (and on the podium for the first time at Le Mans), suffered a broken suspension on the final corner on the last lap!
“After 12h we took the lead and the race looked good, but then bad luck struck and we had two punctures in a row that forced us to pit and we fell back to P3 and had to defend it heavily as P4 was just behind,” Jani said on Instagram. “But with some luck we got our foot onto the podium.
“A crazy story was that I crossed the line as a three-wheeler after my suspension broke on the last corner!”
Hendrick proud of Garage 56 achievements
Considering it wasn’t fighting for any class honours, the NASCAR Garage 56 project was a talking point throughout Le Mans. Rick Hendrick, the Hendrick Motorsports owner, says he is hugely proud of the performance from the team and its Camaro ZL1 modified Cup car.
The car finished 39th overall and completed 285 laps of the Circuit de la Sarthe after a near-faultless run from Jenson Button, Jimmie Johnson and Mike Rockenfeller. The car’s only fault came 20 hours into the race, when the Hendrick crew were forced to replace the car’s gearbox.
“It makes me proud for our sport,” said Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports and NASCAR Hall of Famer.
“The last thing I’d want to do is for us to come over here and fall on our nose. That’s what I was worried about. From the very beginning with Chad (Knaus) and Greg (Ives), I said we’ve got to do this right. We don’t spare any expense. Our NASCAR teams can do any kind of race they want to do. I mean, they got the talent, they’ve got the engineers, and they got a lot of smart people and they can do whatever.”
DKR’s chassis
DKR Engineering’s ORECA 07 Gibson made the podium in LMP2 Pro/Am, a second honour in the team’s first full season in the class, after a different title-winning crew found success in the Asian Le Mans Series.
The car is chassis #05, one of two 2017 vintage cars in the 2023 Le Mans 24 Hours, the other being the #66 JMW Motorsport Ferrari 488 GTE Evo.
For context, over 110 additional ORECA 07s have been built since the ex-GRAFF car first left the ORECA plant.
Highlights
Full highlights of the 2023 Le Mans 24 Hours have been released on the FIA WEC YouTube channel.
Race debrief
A race debrief video from the Circuit de la Sarthe pit lane has also been published, featuring insight from Anthony Davidson and Alexa Rendell.
Rolex renews FIA and ACO partnership
The Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO) and the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) have announced a long-term renewal of their partnership with Rolex.
The two organisations have enjoyed a strong relationship since 2001. Each year, Rolex awards six Rolex Cosmograph Daytona watches. Three for the winning team of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and three for the Hypercar world champion drivers.
The model celebrates its 60th anniversary in 2023.
Leclerc among celebrities present
Ferrari Formula One driver Charles Leclerc was present all weekend for the race in the Ferrari AF Corse pit, watching on as the brand scored its famous victory.
Leclerc wasn’t the only celebrity guest from outside sportscar racing in attendance.
NBA icon LeBron James was the official starter, NFL legend Tom Brady was a guest of JOTA, Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur, Ferrari chairman John Elkann and FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem all were spotted. As were 15 x motorcycle World Champion Giacomo Agostini, French basketball star Petr Cornelie, skiing superstars Jean Claude Killy and Luc Alphand and former Le Mans team owner and celebrity Paul Belmondo.
A huge number of Le Mans legends were also present across the week for the centenary celebrations.
Bell and Ickx celebrated
Le Mans legends Derek Bell and Jacky Ickx were awarded honourary citizenship of La Chartes-Sur-Le-Loir during race week. Both drivers used to stay at the famous Hôtel de France located at the village during their racing days. The famous hotel, 40km from the circuit, is still in business and continues to welcome guests during Le Mans week.
Doonan NASCAR tour
RACER.com has published a video from the Le Mans village, featuring a tour of the NASCAR display at with Garage 56 programme manager and IMSA President John Doonan.
Celebrating David Lewandowski
Cadillac Racing’s PR extrodinare David Lewandowski’s talents were recognised formally during Le Mans week. The American was awarded the annual media award from the ACO, which is the result of a vote from a selection of attending media at the event each year.
Elsewhere, Fiona Miller, a previous winner of the award, confirmed that this year’s Le Mans 24 Hours would be her last as a media professional.
The FIA WEC’s communications head, provided a wide variety of Le Mans teams with her wise counsel and excellent service to attending and distant media. She finished her career at the race this year with Vector Sport, having first attended the race with TWR Jaguar in the Group C glory days.
‘Mamma’ Miller will be much missed at one of the most challenging media events of the year.
Scherer’s injury
Fabio Scherer’s herculean effort to make the finish and help Inter Europol win the LMP2 category will go down in Le Mans folklore. After the race, the Polish team revealed that he competed in the race with “some ligament damage and an incomplete fracture to his mid-left foot” after he was run over early in the race by the #33 Corvette on pit lane.
“He has some pain and is on crutches at the moment. Fabio being Fabio, he will certainly be fighting fit and pumped up for the next one at Monza,” the team said.
