Prologue Session 4: Hartley fastest in Hypercar as Kubica tops LMP2
Toyota stayed atop the timing screens for the fourth and final Prologue session as Brendon Hartley set the second fastest time of the test overall so far.
The session was stopped and subsequently shortened with 10 minutes to go after a red flag was brought out after an incident involving David Heinemeier-Hansson in the N0.28 Jota LMP2 car and Thomas Flohr in the No.54 AF Corse Ferrari.
A 1m48.216s lap by the Kiwi shaded the sister No.7 Toyota GTR010 Hybrid Hypercar by a mere 0.117s over Mike Conway, while the time was just 0.008s off Jose-Maria Lopez’s outright best from Saturday morning.
While Toyota secured its third 1-2 from the four sessions, Cadillac Racing continued its strong showing with the new Cadillac V-Series.R Hypercar. Richard Westbrook lapped in a 1m48.890s best in the car he will share with Earl Bamber and Alex Lynn this season.
Prologue Session 4 Toyota quickest on day 2.
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Nicklas Nielsen secured fourth best time in Hypercar for the Ferrari AF Corse squad with a 1m49.300s lap, as he and teammate Miguel Molina ran the majority of laps for the new Hypercar squad.
The No.51 Ferrari AF Corse 499 Hypercar though did not take part in any running in the afternoon. The Italian manufacturer working around the clock to ready a new chassis for Wednesday’s action.
Porsche Penske place fifth and sixth with the No.5 car of Michael Christensen, Frederic Makowiecki and Dane Cameron heading the No.6 Porsche 963 of Andre Lotterer, Laurens Vanthoor and Kevin Estre. Former LMGTE Pro teammates, Christensen and Estre set the times.
Peugeot TotalEnergies follow Porsche as the No.94 Peugeot 9X8 just outpaces the No.93 machine. Gustavo Menezes and Paul di Resta set the respective times.
The No.93 car returned to track action earlier today after having been repaired following yesterday’s Turn 1 accident but also had to contend with a mechanical issue this afternoon.
However, there was another incident for Peugeot to contend with as Menezes in the No.94 9X8 Hypercar nudged the Turn 3 wall early in the session. The car was able to return to the fray later in the session.
The Floyd Vanwall team continues to improve its times as Esteban Guerrieri sets the new Austrian entered Hypercars best time of the test so far with a 1m51.781s best.
Romain Dumas rounds out the top ten in the Glickenhaus 007LMH with a lap of 1m52.553s.
LMP2 sees the No.41 Team WRT Oreca-Gibson lead the way as Robert Kubica continues his rapid form by setting a 1m50.827s best lap.
This time is almost half a second clear of the second placed Hertz Team Jota entry as Yifei Ye takes the gold car second.
Phil Hanson again proves to be the quickest driver in the No.22 United Autosport with a 1m51.404s best in the car he shares with Filipe Albuquerque and WEC debutant Frederick Lubin.
The LMGTE Am category again sees Porsche on top but this time it is the GR Racing 911 RSR 19 heading the times.
A brilliant 1m59.253 by Ben Barker brings cheer to the UK entered team which also includes owner Mike Wainwright and Riccardo Pera.
Just 0.010s in arrears is the No.83 Richard Mille AF Corse Ferrari with Lilou Wadoux setting the time in the Ferrari 488 GTE Evo she shares with teammates Alessio Rovera and Luis Perez Companc.
Third in LMGTE Am is the Project 1 AO Porsche driven by PJ Hyatt, Gunnar Jeanette and Matteo Cairoli. Its Cairoli who claims the best time for the white and red 911 RSR 19.
The final session featured three red flags. In addition to the late Jota/AF Corse altercation and Menezes incident there was also trouble for the No. 21 AF Corse Ferrari 488 GTE Evo of Stefano Costanini, who spun his his car into the wall at Turn 17.
The first official free practice session of the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship season is scheduled to begin on Wednesday afternoon.
You can follow all the action on the official FIA WEC App HERE
