The No. 08 Toyota GR010 dominated in Bahrain to secure the win and championship for Toyota Gazoo Racing. Toyota was in control for the entire race never really being challenged by anyone on the grid. The No. 08 Toyota Gazoo Racing GR010 Hypercar crew of Sebastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa all pulled perfect stents in the race allowing the No. 08 car to keep the lead from start to finish for the 8 Hours of Bahrain.
Kamui Kobayashi (Team Principal and driver, car #7):
“It was an amazing performance to end the season; we achieved everything we could with a one-two in the last race. Obviously, there was not a big chance for car #7 to win the title but congratulations to everyone on car #8, they did a fantastic job. We always race hard between the two cars, and it was close at every race. That is a real achievement from the team and the drivers, who didn’t make any mistakes. Thank you to our partners and our colleagues in Japan for their support, and of course thank you to Sato san and Morizo san for helping us to be so strong. This year we faced competition from so many manufacturers, and we proved the strength of our car and our team. It is definitely a proud moment for all of us to end the season like this.”
Toyota Gazoo Racing dominated the race weekend topping all practice and qualifying sessions in Bahrain. Their race pace wasn’t surprising given this fact all weekend. The No. 07 car did have an incident with the No. 02 Cadillac V-Series.R who had been on tails of the Toyotas all weekend. Fortunately for Toyota the No. 07 was able to fight back to secure second place. In third was the the No.50 Ferrari AF Corse 499P driven by Antonio Fuoco, Nicklas Nielsen and Miguel Molina. The No. 02 Cadillac fell behind after having to serve a 90 second time penalty for the incident with the No. 07 Toyota. Their race was essentially over after the penalty was handed down.
Team WRT Win the LMP2 Championship
The No. 41 Team WRT LMP2 car won the in class race in Bahrain which sealed the LMP2 championship for Team WRT. This is the final WEC LMP2 championship ever to be claimed in class. The LMP2 class will be dropped from WEC in 2024. Robert Kubica was driving as the No. 41 car crossed the finish line. Team WRT finished 1-2 in the race with the No. 31 car finishing just under 9.2 seconds behind. The team has dominated in Bahrain winning the last 4 LMP2 class races there.
Team WRT Principal Vincent Vosse commented: “It’s the happiest end we could have to our three seasons in LMP2 racing. We are FIA WEC champions for the second time and here in Bahrain, it is our fourth win in four starts. There are worse ‘balance sheets’. I’m disappointed with what happened to car #31 today, but that is part of racing. The most important is the team’s result and the one-two. I am very happy for the entire team, which has proven to be really well-established, and I also want to thank Oreca for the great car it has provided us. A chapter is closing and now let’s focus on the new challenges ahead of us.”
BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT, BAHRAIN – NOVEMBER 04: #31 TEAM WRT Oreca 07 – Gibson LMP2 of Sean Gelael, Ferdinand Habsburg-Lothringen, Robin Frijns and #41 TEAM WRT Oreca 07 – Gibson LMP2 of Rui Andrade, Robert Kubica, Louis Delétraz at Bahrain International Circuit on Saturday November 04, 2023 in Sakhir, Bahrain. (Photo courtesy of Motorsport Images)
The Iron Dames Leave it all on the Track
The Iron Dames No. 85 Porsche 911 RSR crossed the finish line in first place for the LMGTE AM finale. The class will also be removed from the World Endurance Championship in 2024. This win is a special one because it will also be the last in class. Michelle Gatting, Sarah Bovy and Rahel Frey got the job done. The Iron Dames also claimed second place in the LMGTE Am championship. The team made history by being the first all woman team to win a World endurance Championship race.
Sarah Bovy Had the Following Words After the Race
This race was definitely about tyre management, and I think we managed that pretty well. We anticipated the race conditions, the fact that we were going into the night and we really tried to nurse our very nice Michelin tyres for one last time. In my stint, as I was also taking the start, we didn’t know what to expect in those temperatures. But at the end the pace was there. I think the whole crew did a good job and I’m so proud of everybody. We’ve been working really hard for this, and it’s finally here – our first win in FIA WEC. The wait was long, but we are all super happy to be here tonight.
BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT, BAHRAIN – NOVEMBER 04: #85 IRON DAMES Porsche 911 RSR – 19 LMGTE AM of Sarah Bovy, Michelle Gatting, Rahel Frey at Bahrain International Circuit on Saturday November 04, 2023 in Sakhir, Bahrain. (Photo courtesy of Motorsport Images)
Deborah Mayer, Iron Dames Project Founder
“What an incredible day for the Iron Dames! It’s hard to put into words so much joy and emotion. This first victory in the FIA World Endurance Championship is a very special moment to me because it gives full vindication to the project itself and to the passion, the dedication, the hard work of all the people within the team, both trackside and behind the scenes.
I’d like to pay tribute to each and every one of them. This historic moment is theirs as well. It’s a world championship victory, but it’s also a family victory. The Iron Dames project was founded with the belief that women could excel in a male-perceived world as motorsport, and we are incredibly proud of what Sarah, Rahel, and Michelle have achieved. Since their debuts as Iron Dames, they have demonstrated remarkable determination, team spirit and never giving-up attitude that this victory rewards. They are proving that dreams have no barriers if you give yourself the means to make them come true. May this day inspire other women around the world to never give up on what they believe in.”
Full Race Results are Below
You can view the final moments of the race here: