09.09.2023 - 09h00

Fuji Qualifying: Kobayashi takes pole for Toyota at home race

No.22 United Autosports fastest in LMP2 while Keating sweeps to pole in LMGTE Am for Corvette Racing. Below are the main headlines from today’s qualifying at WEC 6 Hours of Fuji.

Hypercar: Pole Sitter – No.7 Toyota

Kamui Kobayashi in No.7 Toyota Gazoo Racing GR010 Hybrid Hypercar takes pole position for tomorrows WEC 6 Hours of Fuji
Kobayashi laps in 1m27.794s to head the field by 0.6s
Toyota claims the front-row as Brendon Hartley laps in 1m28.418s
Rain shower arrives with six minutes of session remaining denying any attack on the Toyotas
Porsche Penske secures best ever third and fourth for the Porsche 963 Hypercar with Kevin Estre and Frederic Makowiecki on qualifying duties
Cadillac Racing starts fifth as Alex Lynn sets a best lap of 1m28.770s
No.51 Ferrari AF Corse rounds out the top six as he peaks on a 1m28.991 as James Calado sets time
Top ten completed by No.50 Ferrari AF Corse (Nielsen), Hertz Team Jota with (da Costa), Proton Competition Porsche (Bruni) and No.93 Peugeot 9X8 (Jensen)

It's a front row lockout for Toyota at the 6 Hours of Fuji pic.twitter.com/V1oqvNKPie
— FIA World Endurance Championship (@FIAWEC) September 9, 2023

LMP2: Pole Sitter – No.22 United Autosports

No.22 United Autosports Oreca-Gibson takes pole as Phil Hanson backs up his ELMS pole at Aragon last month with another in Fuji
Hanson peaks on a 1m32.182s to lead the No.41 WRT entry driven by Louis Deletraz and take his first WEC pole of the season
Strong qualifying for United Autosports as Oliver Jarvis claims third with a lap of 1m3.453
No.28 Jota will start in fourth position as Pietro Fittipaldi qualifies gold delivered Oreca-Gibson
A last ditch lap from Albert Costa ensures that Inter Europol Competition claim fifth as they try and chase down WRT in title stakes
Vector Sport places sixth as Gabriel Aubry sets a 1m32.876s despite heavy lock-up at Turn 1 after setting his best lap

LMGTE Am – Pole Sitter: No.33 Corvette Racing

Crowned champion Ben Keating takes his third pole position of the 2023 season as he sets a 1m38.338s lap in damp but drying session
The No.33 Corvette leads the No.85 Iron Dames Porsche 911 RSR 19 driven by Sarah Bovy by just 0.035s
D'Station Aston Martin starts home race in third position as Satoshi Hoshino laps in 1m38.875s
The top six is completed by the No.98 Northwest AMR Aston Martin, No.21 AF Corse Ferrari (Hiroshi Koizumi) and No.57 Kessel Racing Ferrari (Takeshi Kimura)