Toyota GAZOO Racing’s No. 8 Toyota GR010 Hybrid shared by Sebastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa claimed the overall victory in the 24 Hours of Le Mans Sunday (June 12). It is Toyota’s fifth consecutive victory at Le Mans. For Buemi, it is his fourth overall win. For Hartley, it is his third (two with Toyota and one with Porsche). It is Hirakawa’s first Le Mans victory.
“This whole 24 hours, you try not to think about what might happen,” Hartley said after the race. “Crossing the line, I was overcome with emotions. I was crying. [Winning is] an amazing feeling. Big thanks to the entire team. Especially Ryo [Hirakawa], who has been an incredible addition, and Seb [Buemi].”
The race was a back-and-forth affair between the two Toyotas. Signatech Alpine and Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus simply didn’t have the speed to keep up. A stay in the garage at the end of the fourth hour ended any chance of a good finish for Signatech Alpine, which ended up ensconsed in the LMP2 battle for the remainder of the race.
The real turning point of the race occurred in the 16th hour. Jose Maria Lopez was leading in the No. 7 Toyota when the car died suddenly.
Track stop for the #7 Toyota. She goes back to the pit to start again 👊
⏱️ https://t.co/4J3q5Z45q3#LeMans24 | @FIAWEC pic.twitter.com/wRjDwpP78q
— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 12, 2022
Lopez pulled through the Arnage corner and came to a stop on the right side of the road. Here, Lopez performed a electronic reset in order to get the car started and drive back to the pits. This was something quite similar to what ultimately put the No. 8 Toyota out at Spa last month.
Unlike Spa, it did not end the No. 7 team’s day. It did require Lopez to get the car back to the pits for service. However, the car was unsafe to be touched in the pits due to it dying again. Lopez had to reset again, but not too quickly. The situation took Lopez from the…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Frontstretch…