6H Fuji FP1: Toyota quickest with Rebellion close behind
The first Free Practice session for the 6 Hours of Fuji, round two of FIA WEC Season 8, started on a damp but rapidly drying Fuji Speedway track.
Main FP1 headlines can be found below:
LMP1
• Toyota place top in LMP1 as Sébastien Buemi sets best time in No.8 Toyota TS050 HYBRID
• Swiss driver peaks on a 1:27.373 lap, 0.286 ahead of the No. 1 Rebellion Racing driven by Norman Nato who set the second quickest time in the session’s closing stages
• No. 7 Toyota third-quickest with Kamui Kobayashi posting a time of 1:27.790 during the session’s opening ten minutes
• Team LNT’s No. 5 Ginetta car fourth with Ben Hanley clocking a time of 1:28.449
• Both Ginettas spent a lengthy period in the pits due to brake cooling issues
日本の皆様、どこのコーナーにいるかわかりますか#6HFuji #WEC #WECjp pic.twitter.com/Hqe6EIgl8y
— WEC (@FIAWEC) October 4, 2019
LMGTE Pro
• Porsche headed Ferrari and Aston Martin in LMGTE Pro, with Gianmaria Bruni setting a best time of 1:38.315 in the No.91 Porsche 911 RSR-19 he shares with Richard Lietz
• A flying lap in the dying minutes of the session by Michael Christensen in the No.92 Porsche gave Porsche a 1-2 in class, just one tenth of a second behind the sister car
• The No.71 AF Corse Ferrari 488 GTE of Davide Rigon and Miguel Molina placed third ahead of the Nicki Thiim and Marco Sørensen crewed No.95 Aston Martin Vantage AMR in fourth
• 5th and 6th in class were Ferrari and Aston Martin, with the No.51 Ferrari (Calado/Pier Guidi) ahead of the No.97 Aston Martin (Martin/Lynn)
LMP2
• Season 8 newcomers High Class Racing equipped with Goodyear tyres top LMP2 times as local star Kenta Yamashita sets the pace early in the session with a time of 1:29.624
• High Class Racing only LMP2 team to post a sub 1:30 time out of the eight teams entered
• Racing Team Nederland second quickest, with Nyck de Vries setting a time of 1:30.832 in the session’s closing stages
• Third out of the LMP2 teams is Cool Racing with Nicolas Lapierre at the wheel
LMGTE Am
• In LMGTE Am the No.90 TF Sport Aston Martin Vantage lead the category, with a fastest time of 1:39.010 set by Jonny Adam, just two hundredths of a second ahead of the second-placed car, the No.70 MR Racing Ferrari 488 GTE
• Showing his Fuji Speedway experience early in the 90-minute session was Kei Cozzolino in the MR Racing Ferrari, setting a fastest time of 1:39.039 to claim second spot in the class
• Third in GTE Am was the No.86 Gulf Racing Porsche 911 RSR of Ben Barker with a best lap of 1:39.351
Full times and results can be found HERE.
Second Free Practice session scheduled for 15h30 local time this afternoon.
