BIC hosts WEC rookie test

Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) hosted the official World Endurance Championship (WEC) rookie test yesterday, just several hours following the completion of the hugely exciting FIA WEC Bapco 8 Hours of Bahrain late on Saturday night.

There were two sessions of testing – the first in the morning which included some rain, and then again in the afternoon following an hour-long midday break. A total of 16 cars from the WEC’s four competition categories including the LMP1, LMP2, LMGTE Pro and LMGTE Am took to the track, with several drivers taking turns to get behind the wheel of each.

Among the challengers testing was the no. 7 TS050 Hybrid of Toyota Gazoo Racing, which was the winning car in the Bapco 8 Hours of Bahrain. Other cars included the Gibson-powered Rebellion R13 of Rebellion Racing; the Gibson-powered Oreca 07 and Alpine A470 of the LMP2 teams; and the Porsches, Ferraris and Aston Martins of the LMGTE contingent.

Meanwhile, the trio of Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and Jose Maria Lopez, who were the winners of the FIA WEC Bapco 8 Hours of Bahrain, expressed their extreme delight with the result especially since it earned them the lead in the drivers’ World Championship. Lopez was at the wheel of the no. 7 Hybrid when it took the chequered flag. Toyota now also hold a 41-point advantage over rivals Rebellion Racing in the teams’ standings.

“It is a fantastic result to get a one-two here,” said Conway. “We pushed as hard as we could all day and got a result which we weren’t expecting at the start of the week. That is thanks to a great job by everyone; my team-mates and my team. We struggled earlier in the week but together as a team we got the car dialled in. It’s brilliant to win and it’s nice to lead the World Championship again.” Kobayashi commented, “To finish the year with a win is great; thanks to the team for doing such a good job here.

We knew it would be a tough race as we had some strong competition but we managed it really well, made no mistakes and had fast pit stops. There is still a long way to go in the season but I am really happy and we will be pushing to keep this form going.” Added Lopez: “I am very happy with the win. Everyone in the team did a great job this weekend. It is nice to finish the year with a win.

This means we go into Christmas and New Year able to celebrate the results we achieved together this year.” The World Championship battle will resume in the new year, returning to Austin, Texas following a two-year absence for the 6 Hours of Circuit of the Americas on 23 February, the first of a double-header in the United States with the 1000 Miles of Sebring following on 20 March.