Driver Reaction to Qualifying for the BAPCO 8 Hours of Bahrain

Brendon Hartley – Toyota Gazoo Racing; No.8 Toyota GR010 Hybrid Hypercar

“I knew when I crossed the line it was pretty strong. I asked quickly, 'what's the second best?' and it felt really nice.

“Obviously it hasn't been a straightforward weekend on our side of the garage.

“We were struggling a lot in FP3 and we did the famous 'copy/paste' that we sometimes do. It's lucky that No.7 went in a different direction. They were definitely much stronger than us in FP3. We completely copied their setup but that's the beauty of having a sister car. Thanks for them to finding the right direction.

“I think I really got the tyres working perfectly for that first lap. The track grip improved a lot, and it was a bit of a surprise that it was so much.

“I think I just got the tyres perfect for that very first timed lap. I think that I just got everything in the right window and that’s a big thanks to the team.

“It looks like we were quite dominant. But I can tell you that from free practice it hasn't been the case, so I'm expecting a very tight race tomorrow with both the Alpine and the Peugeot.

Gianmaria Bruni – Porsche GT Team; No.91 Porsche 911 RSR-19

"It was a very fast track. I didn’t expect so much grip on track and there was a lots of changes, so you have to adapt quickly to the grip level.

“Obviously it was a good lap without any track limit (violations) and so at the end it was enough to do this last pole position in LMGTE Pro. 

“I've been here around the GTs ever since my F1 and F2 times. I'm very happy to finish the season like this and with the Le Mans win and the last class pole it feels good."

Norman Nato – Realteam by WRT; No.41 Oreca Gibson LMP2

“It was really cool to be honest. We had to fight to try to improve a lot compared to free practice and as expected in Bahrain the qualifying is always the good moment of the weekend. That is when you can really push the car to the limit and that's what we managed to do.

“Until now to be honest, we knew we had a quick car, and we could fight for pole position. But until you do it you never know what's going to happen, and especially in LMP2 it is always really tight.

“It was a good last lap, and I am pleased with it. It's a long race tomorrow and in terms of tyre degradation Bahrain is really tricky.

“So, we've been also working a lot on the car for the race actually, because pole position is one thing but we need to finish the race of eight hours, especially when there is a title at the end and we still are in the fight. It's a really good position to start from.”

Sarah Bovy – Iron Dames; No.85 Ferrari 488 GTE Evo

“It was fantastic. To be honest, we've been struggling a little bit the whole weekend. I was not expecting it. The car was absolutely stunning to drive and I think the team made some very good decisions.

“As always, we've spent a lot of time working on the race setup, so now I can’t wait to be in the race tomorrow and try to stay in that same position

“I expect the fight to be quite fierce on track. To be honest, I think I clinched a good lap but I have absolutely no doubt that the guys behind me will give me a hard time in the race start.

“We know that it's all going to be about strategy, saving the tyres and being smart. We'll do our best to finish that tomorrow.”