Hartley pleased with gaining slim advantage in Hypercar drivers’ title race

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Brendon Hartley seized the advantage in the 2022 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) title battle with his superb pole last night.

His stunning lap earned his crew a point, which could prove crucial in the battle for the Hypercar drivers’ crown.

Hartley’s crew of Sebastien Buemi and Ryo Hirakawa arrived in Bahrain level on points with the #36 Alpine drivers, but now hold a slim advantage ahead of today’s race.

“It’s fantastic to get pole position, and particularly the World Championship point,” said Hartley after qualifying. “That was one of my better laps.

“The grip has improved a lot since practice and I got the tyres working perfectly, everything was in the right window. I knew when I crossed the line that it was pretty strong, so it felt really nice when I heard the gap to second place.

“It hasn’t been a straightforward weekend on our side of the garage up to now. We were struggling in practice this morning, when car #7 went in a different direction to us and was much better.

“We followed their set-up, so thanks to them for finding the right direction and a big thanks to the team.”

Despite taking the championship lead, Hartley is expecting no easy task in the WEC’s season-ending eight-hour race today.

“The qualifying result looks dominant, but I don’t think that reflects the true picture and I am expecting a tight race between us, Peugeot and Alpine,” he said.