Toyota looking to finish 2012 season on a high
Toyota Racing scored a hugely successful victory at their home track of Fuji Speedway, the Japanese manufacturer’s second win from five races. Now, for the final round of the 2012 FIA World Endurance Championship in Shanghai, China, Alex Wurz and Nicolas Lapierre will be looking to take their Toyota TS030 Hybrid to victory circle once more. They will be without 6 Hours of Fuji winner Kazuki Nakajima as he will be racing at Motegi, Japan in the Super GT series. Wurz brings a good deal of Shanghai International Circuit experience to the team from his days in F1.
The Toyota team made their debut at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June and followed it up with a podium placing in Silverstone in only their second race. A win in the 6 Hours of Sao Paulo came soon after and they have been nipping at Audi's heels ever since, the Fuji result being achieved in front of a huge, fervent crowd.
As at Fuji Speedway, there will be four designated hybrid recovery zones in Shanghai, where the super capacitor-based Toyota Hybrid system can be charged prior to releasing a 300hp boost.
Yoshiaki Kinoshita, Team President: “It has been an emotional and successful first season in the FIA World Endurance Championship for TOYOTA Racing. We have achieved more than we expected when the programme was confirmed just over one year ago, in October 2011. To be able to compete with a competitor as strong as Audi in such a short timeframe is a great credit to all involved in the project. Now we look forward to the final race of this exciting season and we want to finish with a strong performance. We have great memories of our victory at Fuji Speedway earlier this month but Shanghai is another race and we have to start again, aiming to avoid mistakes to get the best possible result.”
Alex Wurz, No.7 Toyota TS030 Hybrid: “I am quite looking forward to China. I know the track from Formula 1 and I like the flow of corners, which I think will be quite fitting to our car. I am just happy to race the TS030 HYBRID on any track but I think Shanghai should suit us. It is the last race of the season so it is the last maximum attack and we will try to finish the season on a high. I have had a busy time since the last race, taking part in an event in Tokyo; it was cool to see so many TOYOTA fans. The whole experience in Japan was fantastic and gives us great motivation so we are going to the final race of the season ready for the challenge.”
Nicolas Lapierre, No.7 Toyota TS030 Hybrid: “During the winter everybody remembers the last race of the season so this race is important to us and we want to get a strong result in China. Considering what we have seen in the last few races I think we have a good chance there because the track should suit our car quite well. I’ve raced there before in A1GP so I know the lay-out pretty well, but as usual the first practice sessions will be important for us to prepare properly. We have had a great first season as TOYOTA Racing, standing on the podium three times in five races and twice as winners, so I hope we can end the season with another positive result.”
Fiona Miller (quotes from Toyota team press release)
Photo: OYAMA-CHO (SHIZUOKA PREFECTURE, JAPAN), FUJI INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY, 6 HOURS OF FUJI, SUNDAY 14TH OCTOBER 2012, RACE.
